Mechanical Engineering 2022
General Option
A little bit about me…
My name is Allysia, I grew up in East Van and I am completing my final year (Year 6 XD) as a General Mechanical Engineering Student. I love puzzles, karaoke, crochet, skiing and scuba diving. At first, I was a little apprehensive about whether I would be a good fit to the Mech Program; but as time passed, I made friends, found academic success and found my family within SUBC, UBC’s submarine design team. I now feel confident that I made the right decision to be in the Mech and am excited to see where this degree will take me. I am a total extrovert and I love talking to new people and making friends so please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or just want to chat.
I wish I had known before I came…
Getting involved in a design team is not as hard or intimidating as it seems and commuting can be tough. I have a lot of respect for those who commute from far away and confidently achieve success in school. In first year my trip to school was 1-1.5 hours one way and it really drained me and caused me to burn out faster as I did not have much time outside of going to school and studying. I moved closer to campus for Mech 2 and it helped immensely. I was able to spend more time studying effectively and was able to have a better work-life balance in the long term by giving myself more social time as well as active time at the pool or the gym. I also joined SUBC in second year which became a support system for school and a source for advice and exposure to older students and alumni who have already gone through all the struggles I was having. I never joined a team in first year because the time commitment seemed large and I didn’t feel valuable as someone who didn’t have much technical experience coming into university but I learned in second year that most people join a team with no experience and enthusiasm and determination can bridge the gap. The experience doing hands on work and putting the design practices I learn in the classroom to use has been very valuable to me finding co-op positions and amassing practical knowledge.
I chose mechanical engineering because…
I like the diversity of Mechanical engineering. Almost every design problem which has a physical output has some mechanical problem to solve. I also wanted to choose a degree that would remain relevant and useful to me throughout my lifetime. As well, I like the satisfaction of watching the creative ideas in my head be turned into reality in the machine shop and end with something that is tangible that I can see and touch.
Mechanical engineering at UBC in one word…
Resilience
What I like best about my program…
I like the atmosphere of how everybody is working towards a common goal and tries to help each other out along the way. I have never felt alone in the Mech program. I know that someone is always at my back when I am having a rough day or a tough time with a problem. Everyone is working together to achieve our best.
Outside of the classroom, I am involved with…
- SUBC – UBC’s Submarine Design Team Advisor (Ex-Captain)
- Diving
- Skiing and Snowboarding
- Bouldering
- MECH Student Services
Favourite moment/memory so far…
Going to the European International Submarine Races with my design team last year. I got to travel to England on a subsidized trip with my friends where we got the opportunity put all our hard work and effort put in throughout the previous year to the test. I had the opportunity to see how other people took on the same design problem and see how they differed in the decisions that they made compared to our own and meet new people who shared my interest in submarine design.
Articles
Taking a Break: Extended Degrees and COVID-19
Student Team Competitions: ISR 15 Part 2
Student Team Competitions: Takeways from SUBC’s Trip to the International Submarine Races