UHart alumnus Daniel Hostetter graduated in May 2021 with a degree in Mechanical Engineering with a concentration in Turbomachinery and a minor in Mathematics. Shortly after getting his undergraduate degree, Daniel returned to the University of Hartford for a Master's in Mechanical Engineering. After graduating this May, Daniel landed a position at Pratt & Whitney as a Mechanical System Advanced Military Design Engineer.
During his time at UHart, Daniel was a member of the Formula Society of Automotive Engineers (FSAE), a club that designs, manufactures, builds, and races a mock Formula 1 racecar. He began as an Electrical Understudy, and then assumed a leadership role where he oversaw any car component that utilized electricity. This included car wiring, engine control unit (ECU) tuning and component placement such as batteries and switches.
Daniel’s FSAE involvement did not cease after graduation. While completing his master’s program he passed on his leadership position to an understudy and now acts as a generalist, helping out with various car needs. The team recently traveled to Michigan during May 18-21 to race against other FSAE clubs worldwide. “FSAE would be my greatest non-academic takeaway from UHart. It gave me hands-on experience and applicable knowledge that I can use in my future work as an engineer.” Daniel stated.
Daniel Hostetter '21 M'22, Mechanical Engineering, CETA“UHart has taught me how to think like an engineer: Have the ability to look at a problem and think through the conditions and plan out what the correct solution or next step is.”
When reflecting on his time at UHart, Daniel explained that “UHart helped me become the best engineer that I can be. Mechanical engineering is such a broad and expansive field that it can be daunting to tackle and memorize it all.” He went on to add that “UHart has taught me how to think like an engineer: Have the ability to look at a problem and think through the conditions and plan out what the correct solution or next step is.” He appreciated UHart for offering hands-on experiences that helped him apply his thoughts in new ways and encouraged him to find new solutions when facing a challenge.
As Daniel transitions toward his next step at Pratt & Whitney, he feels that UHart equipped him well to enter his field. Most of his junior and senior courses were project-based, which allowed him to improve his collaboration skills and get that industry experience.
One memorable project was his senior capstone, which he completed with Pratt & Whitney. “I worked with Pratt & Whitney to develop a new method of induction heating parts to allow tighter and better interference fits on turbine production and manufacturing. It was essentially finding the best method to heat up a compressor rotor.” He shared.
Daniel has a bright future ahead of him, and his advice to UHart students was to “Find something you are passionate about and put your full effort into fully understanding it. Then, rinse and repeat.” He is expected to begin his new role on May 30, 2022.