- Please provide a brief description of your STEP Signature Project. Write two or three sentences describing the main activities your STEP Signature Project entailed.
The main activities of my internship at Olympus as the R&D Engineering Intern were surgical device redesign, device prototyping modeling, design validation, and design verification. I also dealt with FDA compliance projects and company machinery/tool replacement and calibration.
- 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.
Prior to this internship, I didn’t have much knowledge of the application of engineering within the medical device field. Through this program allowing me to attend the internship in person, I was able to discover the intricacies of the inner workings of a global surgical device company and the cross-function dynamics between each department to allow for such success. I was taught the technical skills to succeed as an engineer and realized how much I still have left to learn.
I was also able to network across all departments and create relationships that I will carry with me into my future career. I got to see how the different departments and the different roles interacted with one another and how each other’s actions influenced the other departments. I saw my future within this industry.
- 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 first I want to talk about is my improvement in my technical skills. On my second day there my mentor had shown me a closet of machinery and tools used in testing. He tested me over what each one was and then proceeded to test me through the process of making a test method. It had taken me hours to come up with the initial test method and every time I thought I had finished, he would make me refine it even further. However, by the end of creating the test method, I was able to cut down the testing time from 5-6 hours to only 2 hours. After this he made me struggle through writing my own design validation and verification alongside writing up reports into the Agile PLM system. I was then given some of his projects that included compliance, root cause analysis, device redesign, prototype production, and modeling. Some of these included working with other companies as well. His motivation and pushing of me towards my limits made me learn more than I ever had in 3 short months. The struggle I went through to catch up to my mentor allowed me to increase my limits and learn a new array of technical skills.
The other aspect is my newfound understanding of the inner workings of the corporate environment. When I had to work with the compliance case as well as the mold tool replacement, I had to work with the marketing team, the product stream department, the manufacturing department, as well as the finance department. When I worked on the root cause analysis, I had to work with other engineers from our supplier companies and even got to visit the other companies and employees. When I worked on device redesign and obsolescence, I had to reach out to the other departments for help in order to quickly understand the problem, and device, and come up with ideas in such a short amount of time. All my projects and tasks called for a cross-functional team, and with it, I got to see the interactions between every one as well as everyone’s willingness to help. I learned that these adults were nothing to be afraid of and that the imposter syndrome is just a figment of imagination in the mind.
The last aspect is all the connections I was able to make and the help I received from my peers. All my projects required collaboration with others on some level, and through those projects, I was able to create deep connections with a large amount of people – from interns to employees. The company held employee events that interns were allowed to attend, and with those, I was allowed to meet even more people across different departments. Cross-functional meetings also enhanced the networking experience. These relationships I had made are connections that will be cherished, and I still am in contact with these people. They had helped me gain other connections as well in other companies to help my future career.
- 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 internship has shown me what I want to work with in my future career. I have come to realize that I would like to continue to pursue the R&D engineering route within the medical industry. The need for me to improve upon some of my technical skills has shown me that I would like to attend courses that relate more directly to the mechanical side of engineering. Olympus Surgical Technologies of Americas has also given me such a warm environment that this is a place that I would love to return to. I was also given a welcome back next year as well as when I graduate. My growth in technical skills and the connections I made will carry me throughout my next steps toward this career field.
