Meet one of our new Sci Chic models showing off the fashionable side of science, Lindsay Rorbeck! Lindsay is a senior aerospace engineering major at the University of Florida and a huge fan of space and science. We sat down with her to ask her a few questions about her engineering journey so far.
How did you get into engineering, and aerospace engineering specifically?
Growing up my dad was a computer software engineer at Lockheed Martin and I was always raised in a science environment. My mom was a school teacher, so I always had an aptitude and a love for science. As I got older and I got into higher learning I figured I wanted to apply this science. I want to do something, I want to help people. I am good at math, I am really good at science so why not be an engineer? You get to build cool things. So I went into my senior year of high school and took my first “Intro to Engineering “class. I have always been a space nerd. I love space, I love rockets, I love going to the Kennedy Space Center (That’s my favorite place to go). Combining the two, space and planes, aerospace engineering was perfect for me.
What is the coolest thing you have gotten to do while studying engineering so far?
The coolest thing I have gotten to do while studying engineering, other than going to the Kennedy Space Center for free with one of my organizations, would have to be the impact I see when I do K-12 outreach. I didn’t know that in college you can start impacting people’s lives and their interests in science that early.
When do you graduate?
I graduate May 2017.
What do you hope to do with you degree when you graduate?
Once I graduate I really want to work as an aerospace engineer on a military base. I think the military is cool and it’s really awesome. I want to help secure our nation’s defense and that is the best way that I think I can do that.
What advice to you have for kids thinking and pursuing science or engineering?
My advice is just to go for it, especially as a girl in engineering. I have never had someone come up to me and tell me no you can’t do it, but the stigma is always been there of, “there are not a lot of girls here” and you can see that when you get into your classes in college, but just go for it! Your mind is the same as anybody else’s or maybe even greater because it’s your own.
