Huyen Vy Pham

Iowa State University

Fall 2023

Cumulative Reflection Essay

I started my education at Iowa State University university in Fall 2021, after transferring
from Augustana College. At Iowa State University, I began my electrical engineering program
with a lot of excitement. My first introductory class was EE185, Introduction to Electrical
Engineering and Problem Solving I, which was taught by Dr. Mani Mina. In the class, I got a lot
of exposure to problem identification and formulation and approaches to solve such problems. In
the course, I learned about the importance of life-long learning and critical thinking. In addition,
I was prepared with some math, such as complex numbers, geometry, and different coordinate
systems for my other engineering classes. I believe that the course set me a good foundation
early in my program with that knowledge.

Later in my program, I have been taking many technical courses that require me to do a
lot of different projects. Working on those projects gave me opportunities to practice both soft
skills and hard skills. For many times, I have to work in a group that gave me the experience of
collaborating with different people and encountering conflicts, from which I have grown up as a
person and have learned to navigate and behave more professionally in the workspace. Another
aspect of the in class project is that I can enhance my knowledge in the course and to realize
what I actually know and what I think I know but I don’t. For example, in EE230, my lab partner
and I made a spectrum analyzer using three bandpass filters. In the process, we learned that there
are more than one type of design topologies, and the design we needed was not covered in what
we learned. However, with the materials we were taught, we were able to understand the
working principle behind the new design before implementing it in our project. Without the
project, I would not expand my scope of learning as much as I did and would have chances to
know different stages of design.

Now, as a senior student working on my senior design project, I feel more confident with
my engineering knowledge and skills. I am also applying my teamwork skills from those in-class
projects to work with a larger group of people with different backgrounds, such as Software
Engineering and Computer Engineering. The scope of the project is much bigger than any of
those I have worked on, as it contains a lot of subsystems. The technical complexity is higher as
it involves a lot of skills, knowledge, and tools that might be outside of courses that I have taken.
This is a great opportunity for me to learn and to showcase my engineering ability at the end of
my engineering program.
 During my time at Iowa State, I had chances to work as an Undergraduate Research
Assistant at the Millimeter Lab at Center for Nondestructive Evaluation. It has been a precious
learning experience. I have interacted with Dr. Reza Zoughi, Professor M. Tayeb Al Qaseer, and
many talented graduate students at the lab. The lab was where I started to learn about
electromagnetism, microwave engineering, and how to use Vector Network Analyzer to conduct
different measurements. I have become more proficient in using MATLAB in analyzing data
through my work. I also learned from my interactions with other people in the lab, such as their
working styles or their passion for their research. From my experience at the lab, I have decided
to continue my education with a Master of Science program following my Bachelor’s degree.

In the pursuance of my life-long learning, I have taken on several internships while at

Iowa State University. I got my first internship at my first career fair in 2021. I was encouraged
to step out of my comfort zone by professors and career advisors and participate in the fair, even
though I just started my engineering program. With that experience, I was able to keep getting
more offers in my upcoming years. In the previous summer, I got to work as an Application
Engineer at Analog Devices. The opportunity broadened my knowledge and got me to study a lot
of new technologies. Next summer, prior to my Master program, I will do a co-op with Skyworks
as a RF Validation and Design Engineering Intern. Thanks to electromagnetics, antenna, and
microwave engineering classes that I have been taking, I am more prepared for my upcoming
exciting journey.

As my time as an undergraduate student at Iowa State University has come to an end, I

begin to reflect on my years at Iowa State University. If I were to go back to the beginning, I
would have planned better for courses that I would like to take. In addition, I would have
participated more in other activities outside of classes and joined a club. But, all in all, I am
grateful for my journey and for what I have learned and done. My time at Iowa State University
has been an amazing period, in which I learned who I am, what I want to do and make
meaningful connections.