If I thought I spread myself too thin last semester... I had no idea what was coming! Junior year in aerospace engineering is famous for requiring super-human abilities. Below I have summarized in a random bullet list some of the hectic, crazy objectives I am trying to complete this semester:
- Juggling 18 credit-hours (times 3 is 54 hours/week dedicated to my studies): Flight structures, astrodynamics, flight dynamics, french, and thermodynamics.
- Flight Structures: Easily my hardest class, since it is based on mechanics of materials, which was the first class that I had to worry about not passing... So I will abe putting some extra effort into this one.
- Astrodynamics: Easily my hardest class, but since it is also my favorite class it really isn't *hard*. The professor also makes it a great class since he is an excellent teacher, extremely knowledgeable and has a definite passion for this subject.
- Flight Dynamics: I'm behind! (I had to wait two weeks for my book to come in the mail). Must go study! The fun part of this class is the part where we get to go to the Ames Municipal Airport and fly airplanes.
- French 101: I have to take a foreign language since I didn't *formally* take one in high school. I picked French since I already had a foot in the door, and some family members already speak it. If the University would let me I would like to learn the basics of a couple languages instead of advancing to 102 in French. For instance, I've learned a few phrases in Chinese and its a fun language to speak.
- Thermodynamics: A lot of it is easy review of physics topics, but the professor is making the class hard. Not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing.
- I have already pulled two all-nighters doing homework for classes...
- New project! More on this in another post, but it involves high-altitude balloons and rockets. Going to be a lot of time to see it through to completion.
- Need a part-time job to pay for school. I've applied to some good ones, but if I don't get them I'll have to start thinking smaller, such as working in the dining center, etc. (I have an interview today with a professor in materials engineering about a possible research assistant position).
- Applying like mad for internships! My number one objective is to land an aerospace internship for either spring or summer, or both. I have a list of about 20 companies in my sights, but have only managed to apply for 3 so far: XCOR Aerospace, ATK and SpaceX. Other options include: ULA, Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Blue Origin, Sierra Nevada, Moon Express, Virgin Galactic, and pretty much any NASA center. The list of companies is seeming to grow faster than I can apply.
More in-depth posts to come, specifically on Rockoon, and I'm considering continuing some of my YouTube series if I have the time. Stay tuned!
Fun fact: This is my 300th post on this blog!
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