Aspirations – Jakob

For this semester’s aesthetics of design project, I want to pick a project which challenges me in areas I haven’t had as much of a chance to develop during my time at CU.  I’m pretty confident in my coding abilities in Matlab, but outside of the Matlab suite, I start to feel lost.  I haven’t taken any coding classes beyond GEEN 1300, so, for my project, I’d like to develop a product which incorporates some level of coding.  Incorporating some sort of microcontroller in my design should force me to learn a new language, and hopefully, boost my confidence in taking on projects developed in unfamiliar languages.

I’d also like my project to incorporate some hardware – software relations.  Very little of the code I’ve written in my classes takes in dynamic hardware information (except for maybe the system dynamics labs).  Developing a project with hardware-software integration will really boost my confidence in taking on more complex projects which can be interacted with the public.  If I can bolster these two skill sets, I’ll feel like a much more rounded engineer when I graduate.

I’m still unsure of what sector I want to work in after graduation.  I’m attracted to jobs which involve a lot of field work, just because I love being outside but I don’t want this to be the focal point in my search.  Really, I want a job where I get to trouble-shoot.  It seems to me, the most rewarding moments as an engineer come after running into a wall.  Really understanding how to construct a solution to a complex problem is very difficult.  Trying to get the solution that you’ve been working on to actually work is another problem in and of itself.    I love trying to integrate the different systems within a solution, and hope to find a job where I get to do this.

I’m still not sure what my dream job is; there are a number of possibilities that I think I could end up falling in love with.  I’d like work for a company that develops musical instruments, be it pianos, synthesizes, MIDI controllers, etc.  I love technology that makes sound.  There are a number of options outside of engineering I’d also like to pursue.  I’d like to find a simple job at a cafe or gym, and spend a couple years developing and traveling as a climber.  I’d also like to work for a record label as a talent scout or manager.  After graduation, I’ll take some time to figure out which way to steer myself.

To me, life’s just about becoming the best person I can be.  I’ll just keep looking for environments that promote growth.

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2 Comments. Leave new

  • I highly admire that you really enjoy trouble shooting because that’s actually usually my biggest point of frustration. Debugging of any form is basically just a mess of me wondering what could’ve gone wrong. No worries about not having a dream job! I’m glad you’re very open to what the future holds and it sounds like you’ll be very happy working on any of a number of different things!

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  • Brittany Warly
    February 21, 2016 4:36 pm

    Jakob, I really like your free spirit and desire to challenging yourself. I think your post collegiate plans are great and that you want to maybe find a simple job first. One thing my dad has taught me is that whatever you do, simple or not, you can get great fulfillment from it. Keep that perspective that you want to become the best person you can be and be in an environment that promotes growth.

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