STEP Post-Project Reflection Prompts As you may recall from your STEP Signature Project Proposal, your project was designed to foster transformational learning—that is, learning that challenged you personally and helped you gain broader and deeper understandings of yourself, others, and the world around you. Please address the following prompts to help you reflect on your experiences following the completion of your STEP Signature Project; please give careful and critical thought to your responses.
- Please provide a brief description of your STEP Signature Project. Write two or three sentences describing the main activities your STEP Signature Project entailed.
This summer, I was able to participate in a chemical engineering internship in Minneapolis, Mn working for HB Fuller. My main project was classifying new, clean raw materials. My days at work consisted of making batches where I would tweak the batch each day by adding in a different raw material and then would QC each batch to see how they compared to each other.
- What about your understanding of yourself, your assumptions, or your view of the world changed/transformed while completing your STEP Signature Project? Write one or two paragraphs to describe the change or transformation that took place.
Going into my summer internship I thought that I wanted to work in R&D when I graduated from college. Doing my internship made me realize that I want to go into another specialization of chemical engineering when I graduate. I did not fully realize all that R&D entailed and it was a little too repetitive for me everyday which I did not enjoy. I am so thankful I completed this internship though as it has helped me narrow down what I want to do after I graduate. I have been transformed in the way that I finally feel like I have a clear path of what I want to do upon completion of my degree in December of 2024.
My internship also helped me realize what kind of work environment I want to be in once I graduate. My company was mid-sized which I think was a great fit for me. My coworkers were also fantastic and that helped shape my view of the workplace in that I understand that your coworkers can make or break a job.
- What events, interactions, relationships, or activities during your STEP Signature Project led to the change/transformation that you discussed in #2, and how did those affect you? Write three or four paragraphs describing the key aspects of your experiences completing your STEP Signature Project that led to this change/transformation.
The events and activities that led to the change of me wanting to pursue a different career path post grad was my daily schedule. I would go to work each day and print out a new batch ticket and then spend the next 8 hours making a QCing a batch. I realized this was difficult for me because I discovered I need to be constantly mentally stimulated with new things to do to keep me interested. I found what I was doing was very beneficial to the company, but I need something different when I graduate so I can stay engaged in my work and keep my interest peaked.
Another thing that helped me change my mind about what I want to work in post grad was shadowing people in other positions at my job. I got the amazing opportunity to shadow 3 people in other positions at my job and seeing what their day-to-day life looked like made me realize there are job options out there that would be a better fit for me. There are plenty of positions where each day you are engaging in something new, and it is not repetitive. This was one of the main transforming things I did over the summer as I was able to see first-hand what other positions look like and what kind of work they entail.
The relationships that helped me transform my mind about the kind of work environment I want are the ones I had with my coworkers. My coworkers were so helpful, and I knew I could always go to them if I ever needed help and they would answer my questions without making me feel stupid. They were the most amazing coworkers I could’ve ever asked for. I now know how important enjoying my work environment is because my coworkers made it a great place to go every week for 40 hours.
- Why is this change/transformation significant or valuable for your life? Write one or two paragraphs discussing why this change or development matters and/or relates to your academic, personal, and/or professional goals and future plans.
This change is significant and valuable for my life because I feel more at ease and prepared for the future. By ruling out R&D as something I want to do, I am now able to see myself in other positions in the professional work world and I know what jobs I want to apply for. This change matters and relates to my professional goals as I now have a clear goal of where I want to end up when I graduate. I would like to be a process engineer and solve multiple problems every day. Working in a process engineering role would be a much better fit for me and make me not burn out so easily. 
