Srivathsan Babu Prabu

H. Intro. To Eng.
10/05/10
1. Interview Notes: Question 1: What is your working day normally like?

The interviewee works 7-8 hours a day as a computer engineer. He

leaves approximately 8 in the morning and comes back anywhere from

4 to 6. Throughout the course of the workday, he coordinates the

implementation of various novel organizational programs for the

company. Additionally, he also attempts to maximize the processing

speed of the company’s computer servers by releasing old data of past

customers and implementing the new data of current customers. Each

new customer is treated as a project and his or her needs are directed

to the sales department of the company, which in turn transmits the

data to the engineer.

Question 2: What do you like most about your job? The interviewee

most enjoys working with people of various backgrounds to solve critical

issues the company faces concerning the computer department. “You can

always expect to learn something new from others around you while working

with them on a specific problem.” “Knowledge is abundant in the

engineering filed I am in”, he added.

Question 3: How did you feel when you first entered an engineering job? In

the beginning, he stated that he felt like he was not using his knowledge that

he obtained during his undergraduate years. As time passed, however, he

slowly climbed in rankings within his company and once in a managerial

position, was forced to use ideas highly concerning the technical aspects of
engineering. Now, on a daily basis, he is relearning some material for the

implementation of a new project.

Question 4: Are you happy being an engineer? The answer was blunt: “Yes,

the job requires a combination of both creativity and social skills. I am

continuing to improve on social skills on a daily basis.”

The discussion I had with the engineer was very enlightening. Though I am

not very much interested in computer engineering, I was fascinated by the

enthusiasm the interviewee should for his job. Despite the major workload,

the interviewee has not once thought of his job in a negative manner and

considered leaving the engineering field. Certainly, though he initially

disliked the fact that he was not employing all the knowledge he gained

during his undergraduate and graduate years, he is now very much pleased

with the creativity the engineering curriculum bestowed upon him. He

frequently mentioned in the interview that if he lacked the creativity that he

gained in college, he would not be able to succeed in his current job. As an

example, he mentioned that everyone can code a program to perform a

function, but only a few can do so within a few lines—this talent only comes

from engineers. Unlike the stereotypical computer engineering job, I was

pleased to see that engineers in this field too were engaging in a great deal

of interaction among themselves.

In the future, I hope to acquire this time of enthusiasm so that I too can

live life on a daily basis loving what I do rather than dreading it. In my

opinion, the most important aspect of a job is that it is appealing and

engaging. If any of these factors are missing, then the job would become a

burden and slowly deteriorate one’s life. Additionally, the job should also be

rewarding—both in monetary and mental ways. These two coupled will drive

one’s passion to most contribute to his job.

2. The average score = ~4.

Based on the standards provided, I would rate myself as a fairly good
student: I lack in the ability to manage my time for studying. In the
future, I hope to improve this aspect of my academics so that I can
efficiently manage both my social life and academic life. I am most
good at setting a goal for myself, which currently is to enter medical
school after graduating from the engineering department.
Additionally, I would also like to improve my ability to cope with the
amount of work. This would allow me reach great heights in life.
3. Aerospace Engineering—I have some interest in the field as I am very
much fascinated by the ability of an aircraft carrying 1000 passengers
to take off with ease. I would like to learn the physics of lift and drag.
Biochemical Eng—I have a great deal of interest in both Biology and
Chemistry. This would be next ideal choice if Rutgers did not offer a
Biomedical Engineering degree.
Biomedical Eng—throughout my life, I always disliked the idea that no
cure for diabetes exists. As a biomedical engineer, I would like to aid in
the research of diabetes in prominent research institutions.
Bioenvironmental—I have high interest in this field as well for the idea
of helping the environment is very relevant to the modern world.
Further, it integrates all the variety of sciences.
Chemical—I have a high interest in this subject because chemistry was
one of my favorite subjects in high school. I competed in various
chemistry competitions and hope to, perhaps, transfer the knowledge
to this field.
Civil—I have a very low interest for civil because I do not like the idea
of formulating modern world’s infrastructure. Further, the field requires
a great deal of creativity, which I hope to develop in the near future.
Computer—since young age, I have seen many computer engineers
and therefore, simply lost the appetite to become one. I enjoy
programming, but not to such an extent that I will want to become a
computer engineer.
Electrical—As with computer engineering, I have seen many electrical
engineers throughout my life. I hope to develop my knowledge in this
field, perhaps through a minor, but most certainly not a major.
Environmental—I am interested in bioenvironmental not environmental
because, from research, I found that this engineering primarily studies
ecology—a subject I found to be dull in previous years of study.
Industrial—I have very little interest in this engineering because as
with civil, it requires a great deal of creativity. Further, industrial
engineering is not related to my favorite science—biology.
Materials—after the tour, I have some interest in materials engineering
as they contribute to the medicine field by developing various
equipments to minimize the load of equipments on a patient during a
major operation.
Mechanical—I have some interest in this filed because my brother
graduated from this department. He highly recommended the
professors and advised me to enter the field with a great deal of
passion.
Packaging—I have very little interest for packaging engineering simply
because I don’t have a sense of what type of research and study they
engage in the laboratory.