"Don’t underestimate the importance of communication! I have had endless opportunities to give presentations in my role as an Applications Engineer, with audiences from the CEO/President of my company, to high school students. Being comfortable with public speaking and presenting has really helped me build my career at Instron. I’ve been given many opportunities to travel across the US and to Europe to help provide training to both Instron employess and to our customers."
"Never think any job is beneath you. Use all and every connection you have, including alumni. Having someone recommend you carries a lot of weight in the job search."
"There often will be a number of qualified candidates for an open role, so distinguish yourself by who you know and how you communicate. Network, build relationships, and don’t be afraid to ask for help. Job search engines are great for identifying companies, but you’re much more likely to get your foot in the door if you build a contact there. LinkedIn is a great tool to get started with this."
"Search for medical device companies and apply to any position that looks interesting; apply to all positions even if you don’t feel fully qualified – the company can decide whether to consider you or not (i.e., don’t filter yourself out by not applying); at my company, a lot of biomedical engineers work in the quality role. the best way to land a role is to network – I did this by finding an internship when I could not find a full-time position and then used the internship to network and find a full-time position."
"Regardless of whether going to graduate school or into the workforce, first identify your interests and then aggressively pursue your options! The jobs will not come to you, but rather use all available resources, most importantly networking, to get your foot in the door. Once there, be confident in yourself and know that you’re well-trained to be successful."
"Find an area of science/engineering (or any related field) that is continually challenging and don’t hesitate to apply to positions where your qualifications may not perfectly match. Obtaining a degree in Biomedical Engineering means a student is equipped with the necessary skills to learn on the job and to lead."
"A short bit of advice for entering industry would be: Try to discover what really drives and motivates you, and also what skills you want to gain in your next career development goal. Use these pieces of information to guide you in your job search and to strengthen your interview. Most likely your first job will not be your ideal job, but once you get an opportunity to join a company, you can utilize your skillset and networking to find a job that can help you move forward in your career. (Who knows, you might discover something you didn’t even know you liked!)"
"I’ve always put the work of being a prosthetist into a unique context of including more than one activity, and/or type of activity. First, one must enjoy people, and be a comfortable and effective communicator. Second, one must understand elements of anatomy, physiology, tissue dynamics, kinesiology, physics/gait dynamics etc. Third, there are hand skills that are required to be proficient in this field, such as ability to sculpt/mold and work with tools/machines. Fourth, computer skills, CAD, software for knees/hands etc., including much more of this type of knowledge are under development. Fifth, there’s the satisfaction of fairly dramatic and short term results; can’t walk, but then they can; can’t pick up a thing, then they can, etc. And lastly, that nearly every patient presents somewhat differently, and mixing that fact with all of the various bits of engagement of the first five things, leads to a reduction of the monotony factor that can burnout others in certain jobs."
