Catching up

November and December were very busy months, so we are just now getting around to posting some of our notes from the National Conference in November. First of all, it was awesome. A lot happened, and so while Megan and I have a ton of things to share, we are going to divide it up into a couple of posts. To start with, here are some of our general impressions...

From SWE Con Baltimore 2008

Megan: I am in Baltimore, a city I have never visited. I’m at the National SWE conference for the first time, meeting a large variety of phenomenal women, and my mind keeps drifting to an American Express commercial. If you haven’t seen Diane von Furstenburg’s Amex spot, it’s available at this link:http://inside.dvf.com/dvf_magazine/2008/10/05/american-express/

I was immediately drawn to this ad during my obsessive viewing of Project Runway, and I think its appeal reached deeper than beautiful fabrics and the haunting music. Something about the concept of the woman I wanted to become resonated and became an internal theme for me at this year’s conference.

Bianca: This is my 9th SWE National Conference. Last year, I was so focused on recruiting that I had very little time for seminars and networking and other fun things. This year, I cleared my calendar so that I had total freedom of choice to make the most of every day there. My only two firm agenda items were the SWE Magazine Editorial Board meeting and the panel I moderate on Rotational Programs. Otherwise, I planned to attend as many sessions as possible, talk to and meet lots of people and enjoy myself. And pick up some fun freebies at the Career Fair!

Megan: My memories in college career fairs involve trying not to muss my clothes or resumes, and nervously targeting booths in hopes of making a positive impression to someone out there. For those who have never been to conference, the SWE career is in a league of its own, and I found value in attending even though I wasn’t looking for a position. After a fantastic performance by the Harlem Gospel choir, the career opened to a good crowd and a fairly relaxed atmosphere. I had a fun evening visiting booths and asking questions, especially for those that I wouldn’t normally think of as “engineering companies,” such as Kellogg, Hallmark and Weyerhauser paper.

Megan: One of fields I have always been interested in is biomedical engineering. My 7^th grade science project was on my mom’s cochlear implant, and it has always appealed to me that I might someday be able to change people’s lives in such a personal and pivotal way. However, I was fortunate enough to accidently sit in on a session of self awareness. There was a session in the program called “The Power of Passion.” I thought it would cover a career discussion of finding a career that really drives you. However, the passion these ladies had was for a procedure called deep brain stimulation that involved a detailed discussion of brain surgery, complete with pictures. If it was not for my friend Kate distracting me, I think I would have been on the floor. I commend and applaud this industry, but have decided my way of serving lies elsewhere. I’m happy to stick with jet engines and things that don’t bleed for now.

Bianca: On Saturday, I went to the panel of Executive Women, who openly shared their personal experiences on achieving success, making mistakes, and navigating a career path. The panelists were very diverse and all had valuable advice to offer. I also attended the "Technical Poster Session" which had a diverse offering of topics including STEM educational programs, RFID technology, the impact of 3D Virtual Worlds. My favorite was 3D Virtual Worlds presented by Deepa Nair. She was so obviously passionate about the possibilities beyond the gaming world, and really engaged my curiosity.

Megan: The final activity I attended was the SWE Outreach fair. I picked up some interested pamphlets and websites on this and learned about Agilent’s premade science kits. I want to make a final plug to anyone out there that might want to help with South Ohio SWE’s outreach programs. I believe outreach is one of the more vital pieces to SWE’s mission, and one that we are currently shorthanded on.