Out of all the programs that one can pick for their AEO years, Engineering probably gets the worst rap. Known for the heavy courseload and high-level concepts, it is easy for students to give in to the reputation and shy away from the field. Elena Vlitas, an HBA1 who studied Mechanical Engineering, felt that her experience was actually beneficial in her pre-Ivey years; she learned lessons, developed good habits, and formed a strong community.
Elena didn’t picture herself being an engineer since day 1, in fact she didn’t know what engineering was until grade 12. Despite always being interested in sciences she discovered Engineering by a bit of a fluke: “[I was] in a lab group where a lot of people were going into Mechanical Engineering and I was like: ‘That sounds really cool. I should think about it”. She always knew she wanted to pursue business and loved watching Dragon’s Den and Shark Tank growing up. She realized that engineering was a great way to bring in a hands-on and critical thinking component. “I chose mechanical engineering because it's one of the broader disciplines and I knew it was something that I would be able to strongly use in business.” Elena said.
Reflecting on her path, Elena felt the pressure with AEO status, “being an AEO in any program is very stressful, because every single day, you're really thinking about, am I keeping my 80% average? Am I going to make sure I have enough clubs? And am I going to meet the expectations?”. She explained that the engineering community played a huge role in her success and how she could not have accomplished everything without the support of her friends.
Additionally, the HBA1 student explained how a pillar of her success in maintaining her AEO status whilst studying Mechanical Engineering was based on building good habits and mindsets. Here are some of the tips she shared for AEO students:
- If your professor posts any lecture materials that you can review before class, do it. Then by the time you go to the lecture, you're seeing it for the second time and can absorb it, and then when you go to do the homework, that's your third time seeing it. This will not just make you comfortable with the content, but help you master it.
- Be yourself. Everyone's going to have their obvious strengths and weaknesses and you shouldn't force yourself to be the best at something you’re not the best at. “Do what you can about areas you struggle in, but there’s no reason to try to force yourself to be something you’re not.”
- Take chances to do things you think you can't, because you probably can. “Apply to that club, apply to that job, even if you think you won't get it, it's such a great experience to get the interview and more often than not, you'll probably be successful.”
At first glance, one may think that engineering and business do not share many similarities. However, Elena’s experience in Mechanical Engineering has given her various skills that she uses as an HBA. She explained how both disciplines are “team sports”. “The greatest thing you can do is to help a friend and be a bridge, whether it be passing on some notes or connecting someone with someone you know that is interested in the same career as them” she said.
Beyond the value of networking, the HBA1 student mentioned the first year course ES 1050 as an example of the transferable mindsets between business and engineering: “you learn about this design thinking module, [...] the core of the module is starting from the approach of making a really clear problem statement that's very oriented towards the client or the user. In business, that's very helpful.” Elena also described engineering as a problem-solving degree, stating that it was a skill she gained. Although people may see the heavy workload in Engineering as a downside, Elena explained how it prepared her for the high volume of cases in Ivey.
The past two summers Elena has worked at a Canadian real estate investment trust. She primarily pursued Mechanical Engineering to enrich her problem-solving abilities and understand technical design to enhance contributions to the commercial real estate industry. This internship reinforced her interest in this career path, but she is also interested in pursuing her Professional Engineering license and gaining hands-on experience by working in the engineering industry.
Reflecting on her transition, Elena has enjoyed many aspects of the transition to Ivey. Her favourite is the community, she explained how despite that many may feel nervous and lost in the first week, their section will quickly become their close friends. She also expressed her admiration for the case method, stating how much she enjoyed the unique experience of sharing her opinion and getting pushback on it. The academic diversity of Ivey is also a big plus for Elena, she expanded on how “everyone's able to put something new and different into the case, and you're able to learn about so many different careers and perspectives you've never thought of before, which makes you such a stronger thinker and also might inspire you to pursue a unique and different career.”
Elena offered some final advice: “the biggest recommendation I would have for anyone at Western is to take full advantage of everything. You are at such a unique point in your life where you can kind of pursue anything that you find interesting. So, I think the best thing you can do at this time of your life, pre-Ivey, is just pursue as much as you can, build as many interests as you can, especially unrelated to business”.