First off, I\u2019m incredibly grateful to UBC Mech and my supervisor for giving me the opportunity to work as a Student Web Assistant in my final year. Last summer, I was looking for a part-time job\u2014something flexible that could work around my chaotic Mech schedule. As anyone in the program knows, Mech is intense. School comes first, but bills don\u2019t wait. I needed a role that could handle projects and last-minute assignment scrambles. And luckily, I found one that felt close to home.<\/p>\n
I call UBC Mechanical Engineering my home because this department has given me so much! It\u2019s where I did my first research internship. It gave me the chance to dive into my favorite specialization. It introduced me to some of the coolest, most talented people\u2014many of whom I now call my friends. It provided couches for naps between classes (my naps >>> any pending assignment or a class) and microwaves for quick meals. When I saw the opening for this role, I applied without a second thought, and I\u2019m so glad it worked out and here I am working as Web Assistant!<\/p>\n
![\"My](\"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/mechambassadors\/files\/2025\/04\/IMG_0791-scaled.jpeg\")
<\/a>My Nap Spot<\/p><\/div>\n
What the work was like<\/strong><\/p>\n When I first joined this role, I thought it would mostly revolve around maintaining the website, front-end bug fixes and search engine optimization. And to be fair, that was a big part of it. But what I didn\u2019t expect was how much more I would learn along the way. I got the chance to improve my Photoshop skills, explore Adobe InDesign and Illustrator, and sharpen my design abilities. And when an engineer picks up design skills? That\u2019s always fun!<\/p>\n An image of working on Indesign to get promotional content ready for the website.<\/p><\/div>\n <\/p>\n As many of you know, I love photography, and these skills will definitely help me take my hobby a step further\u2014maybe even towards creating digital art someday. But beyond the technical skills, this job gave me something far more valuable: the ability to organize my thoughts.<\/p>\n This past year has been a whirlwind. Between an intense course load, job applications, constant rejections, trying to stay healthy, work, manage expenses\u2014just life in general\u2014it felt like my mind was always racing in a million directions. As a man, expressing emotions isn\u2019t always easy. There\u2019s this unspoken expectation to always be strong, to have it together. Before university, I used to sketch a lot\u2014character portraits that reflected my thoughts and emotions. But as academics took over, I stopped, and over time, I think I lost that outlet. I kept pushing my feelings aside, telling myself that a great workout or a game of soccer would be enough. While those things do help, the question on lack of communicating emotions still remains.<\/p>\n Writing these blogs changed that. When I wrote about prioritizing mental health before exams, I think I wasn\u2019t just writing for you all\u2014I was reminding myself of it too. With the rise of generative AI, I\u2019ve barely written anything by hand in years. But these blogs forced me to slow down, to gather my scattered thoughts, and to give them direction. And in doing so, they gave me back a piece of myself I didn\u2019t even realize I had lost.<\/p>\n The best part of the role<\/strong><\/p>\n Hands down, the people. First and foremost, my incredibly talented coworker and friend, Rachel\u2014whether it was running tours, filming Mech promo videos, or just goofing around, it\u2019s been an absolute blast working together!<\/p>\n<\/a>