What started as simply helping her father fix up a 1963 AMC Rambler ended up inspiring Jessica Camarillo ‘24 to pursue a major in mechanical engineering. She says getting her hands dirty, and working in her family’s painting business, taught her the value of hard work. “[It] taught me I could do anything if I put my mind to it, and my dad inspired me to pursue a field that excited me, which I discovered was engineering,” she says. “I learned all the crucial interpersonal business skills and the value of drive from my family.”
Now, after graduation, Jessica will begin her career as a systems engineer at Pratt & Whitney, where she interned last summer. But she truly got to reach for the skies as part of the Nationwide Eclipse Ballooning Project, supervised by Paul Slaboch, associate professor and director of the aerospace engineering program. The year-and-a-half-long project taught her about team building, coding, development, and troubleshooting. “Dr. Slaboch and this project allowed me to bring all the concepts I learned in the classroom and apply them to a real engineering problem,” she says. The team launched a balloon to take measurements during April’s total eclipse from an altitude of 93,000 feet.
Jessica says UHart’s small class size and excellent faculty kept her inspired and always eager to accomplish more. “The close friends I made, and the wonderful faculty who became great mentors to me, allowed me to persevere and do what I love most—learning—in a supportive environment,” she says. The connections she made to industry professionals in the business and engineering fields helped her during her time at Pratt & Whitney. “The majority of what you learn at your first job you learn as you go,” she says. “A lot of the crucial skills I learned from UHart were the critical thinking skills that are essential to be a successful engineer.”
Outside the classroom, Jessica championed an issue close to her heart by founding UHart’s first Public Speaking Club. “I came into the university with a stutter and was anxious about succeeding,” she says. “I wanted to help others who were also struggling with a speech impediment or had social anxiety who wished to improve upon these skills. Regardless of major or discipline, communication is the key contender for success.” Three years later, Jessica’s stutter is non-existent, and she says many other participants have shown improvement as well.
Jessica has also been involved in the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) and the Formula Society of Automotive Engineers (FSAE). Her advice to incoming students? Be yourself and don’t worry too much about your grades. “Although your grades do matter for graduation, there are other skills that matter just as much,” she emphasizes. I graduated with a 3.95 GPA in mechanical engineering, but I learned that the most valuable use of your time is to network with industry professionals and have fun with your friends. These four years go by so incredibly fast that the experience is the most valuable part of your young adult life.”
Jessica plans to take her own advice. Before she starts at Pratt & Whitney, she will travel to a place she’s always wanted to go: Acadia National Park in Maine.
Jessica Camarillo ‘24, College of Arts and SciencesThe thing I love most about UHart is the small classes and people from various walks of life that you get to meet. This allowed me to make really great lifelong friendships and have experiences I otherwise wouldn't have been able to experience.