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Spencer Kelly
Project statement paper

Ever since I was young I wanted to fix problems. It seemed to me that the more i learned

about the world, the more problems i found. that if I wanted to truly help the world, Id have to

become a world class engineer. But in order to do this, Id first have to be a world class

engineering student!

A world class engineering student must be cognizant of the problems facing the world.

Plenty of people want to be an engineering student because they know theyll get a job once they

graduate, but I want to because I want to stop all these problems from getting worse. The

difference between science and engineering to me is that science strives to improve our

knowledge, and engineering strives to improve our world with this knowledge. A world class

engineer would change the world, so a world class student would need to learn about what to

change in the world.

All throughout my education Ive had this strong intellectual curiosity. I know that all of this

information would really come in handy in my life, so I should learn as much as possible! This

desire to learn is incredibly important to be a good engineering student. Sometimes I will design

math problems that I didnt know the answer to just to see if I could solve it. I frequently wonder

if I could always find an easier solution to a problem, and to try to optimize the time required to

solve it. One thing I like to do in my free time is origami, and just recently Ive started to see a

connection between it and STEM related fields. Its all one big engineering problem, where the

only building material I can use is paper. As I got better at engineering I also got better at

origami. To me, a world class engineering student should not only be good at their school work,

but they should be inspired by it.

Finally, a world class engineering student must strive to make the world a better place.

When you become a doctor, you recite the hippocratic oath, stating that you will do no harm.
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Project statement paper

When I become an engineer, I will hold myself to a similar standard. I will make sure that no

matter what I do, I can look back on my actions and be proud of them. Alfred Nobel was the man

who invented dynamite, but he never imagined it would ever be used as a weapon. Once he

realized what he had done, he started the Nobel Peace Prize to try to make the world peaceful.

He was truly a world class engineer, and I hope to one day be as great as him!

Every good engineer was once a good engineering student. To become a good engineering

student you must set goals and strive to achieve them. I strive to be the best engineering student

I can be, and help the world. To achieve these goals, my best bet would be to work hard in all of

my classes, get a good GPA, and find a good job out of college. I feel like I have done a good job

with adjusting to the college life, and next semester I will only get better. My goal for this

semester was to become a better college student, and make friends. I have definitely achieved my

current goals, and I know that next semester I will have to work even harder to achieve what I

have planned next semester.

It is often hard to stay committed to something once you start. In the words of Mark Twain,

Giving up smoking is easy... Ive done it hundreds of times. To fully do something you can be

proud of you have to do it fully, not just stop when youre on the right track. I want to become a

world class engineer because I know it will help me get a job, the life I want, and ultimately

happiness. In order to be a world class engineer, I must act like one. I must stay resolute when

solving a problem, and work efficiently and hard.

If you were to ask me what the definition of engineering is, I would say Engineering is the

goal of all science. Science strives to improve our knowledge, engineering strives to improve our

world with this knowledge. Many people look up to scientists, as they seem to accomplish so

much, but engineering is the field that takes that scientific research and turns it into something
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Project statement paper

useful. Science gave us all the information about the planets in our solar system, but engineering

will be the one to get us there.

During my first semester, we had to write a paper on some feat of engineering that went

totally wrong. I chose the Vanguard TV3: a failed rocket launch during the space race.

Essentially, the fuel was not under enough pressure, so the combustion went back inside the

rocket, and the whole thing exploded. Thankfully nobody was inside, but the payload was

completely destroyed. This was a massive waste of time and money, and the engineering firm

that was contracted to build this struggled to recover. The United States was even mocked about

not being able to make it off the ground. However, even with these setbacks, the Vanguard

project was ultimately successful. There are still Vanguard class rockets being launched to this

day!

Despite the occasional failure, there are so many examples of incredible accomplishments of

brilliant engineers. Marvels like The Eiffel Tower, the first personal computer, Bulletproof

materials, 3d printing, etc. The list is almost infinite because of how many kinds of engineering

there are. I personally want to go into mechanical engineering because of how limitless the

discipline is. Ultimately I want to go into an ecological oriented field, but I feel like a degree in

Mechanical Engineering will be the most helpful. With that I can explore sustainable energy

solutions, the carbon cycle, genetic engineering, or biodegradable materials. Once I become a

world class engineer, I can do so much good.

Unfortunately there will be roadblocks along my way. While nobody is truly evil, some

people dont understand why a certain solution is necessary. Some people dont know the dire

consequences of inaction. It is ultimately up to us to educate the rest of the world, and keep
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Project statement paper

moving forward in the face of adversity. A world class engineer finds a solution to a problem,

especially if that problem is someone who refuses to cooperate.

Even though college was not my first time spending a long time away from home, it still

took some time to find my way. I had to make new friends, study, do homework, make it to class

on time, eat healthy, go to the gym, do my laundry, monitor my checking account for identity

theft, brush my teeth, clean my room, clean my ears, get enough sleep, and answer my phone

whenever my parents called and pretend like everything is ok. I heard somewhere that being an

adult is like looking both ways before you cross the street, then getting hit by an airplane. I could

just barely get everything done, and I seemed to have it under control, then something would

happen and throw it all off balance. One day I was leaving on time for my 9:00 am lecture, and

the second I walked out the door the strap on my backpack broke. I managed to make it through

the day on one strap, and once I got back to my dorm I had to learn how to sew it back together. I

ended up using white thread (on black fabric) and just stabbing it a bunch until it held together. I

had so many unforeseeable setbacks, like when my phone broke, or when I got sick, or when I

got stuck in richmond, or when I forgot to schedule my classes. You cant prepare yourself for

these, but you can learn to deal with them as they happen.

I used to be a terrible student. I considered myself to be intelligent but lazy, and I never

studied in high school. I realized pretty early on that I my free ride was up, and that I would have

to start putting in some serious work. I find it almost impossible to stay focused in my dorm

room, so I spend a lot of time in the library. I also had to find a method of studying that worked

for me. I tried working with other people, but honestly, that didnt seem to work. I have heard

that study groups make you exponentially more likely to pass a class, but I can never seem to

focus. I find myself getting lost in the conversation, or paying too much attention to the group
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Project statement paper

dynamic to focus on my work. I feel much more productive when I am alone and free from

distractions. I know that engineers need to function in a group, but I still need to work on that. I

guess I still have plenty of room for improvement before Im a world class engineering student. I

need a better attitude, and motivation to get along with a group.

In college I have had many different types of teachers. Some tell you the information in a

way that makes sense to them, but are bad at explaining it in a way that makes sense to us. Some

teachers try to put the information in a more modern context, and try to get the class involved

and promote new ideas. Other teachers are just way too cheerful for an 8:00 am lecture. A world

class student must learn to adapt to these teaching styles, while still finding how they learn best.

My goal for next semester is to talk to my professors more, get help when I need it, and work

efficiently on my own time.

One way I am trying to reduce stress when I have to balance all of these things is by

physical exercise. Regular physical exercise is proven to help reduce stress, improve

preformance, and promote a healthy lifestyle. I try to go to the gym every day, but I also make

sure that my grades come first. I really enjoy rock climbing, and it provides a chance to meet

new people who like similar things. I find that I feel better, and I tend to get less distracted after I

have been at the gym.

I am part of a living learning community in my dorm. It is made up of mostly mechanical

engineering students who seem to share similar interests. I dont spend all that much time with

the main group, but its always nice to have people to hang out with someone on my hall. I also

considered joining robotics, but I didnt have the time in my schedule to do that. I did get to meet

a lot of interesting people, and it really helped my adapt to the social dynamic of college.
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Spencer Kelly
Project statement paper

One of the perks of living on campus is you have all of the resources at your disposal. The

whole campus is under a dome of wifi, it has student health services, and has personal tutoring in

the library. I have yet to utilize the tutoring, but I went to student health once. Unfortunately this

didn't go as planned as I tried to go for a walk-in appointment, but I missed my chance because

they only accept walk-ins in the morning. By the next morning I was feeling better, so I decided

not to go. While I have not really utilized these to their full potential, I feel like a world class

engineer would. They would make use of the tutoring and study rooms in the library, and they

would go to student health whenever they needed.

I strive to become a world class engineer, or at least a world class engineering student. In

order to get there, I have a lot of work to do. I need to utilize all of the resources provided to me,

I need to stop procrastinating, and I need to learn to work better in a group dynamic. I have come

far in my first semester, but I still have a long way to go before I can be considered a world class

engineer.