Short Feature with Women's Basketball Sophomore Linden Runels
Sophomore Linden Runels, a mechanical engineering and engineering and public policy major from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, answers a few questions about student life at Carnegie Mellon, her first internship, why she chose her major, and what she likes about Pittsburgh.
1. What do you enjoy about campus life?
I love the sense of community there is amongst the students. We are all in challenging courses and are involved in a lot of extracurricular activities, yet everyone is super willing to help each other out and be there as support.
2. What do you get involved in outside of basketball?
I'm involved in Greek Community as a member of Kappa Alpha Theta, which has opened up many opportunities for me. It's amazing the amount of people I have been able to meet through Greek Life that have positively impacted my college experience.
3. Talk about an internship you've had
Last summer, I interned as an Industrial Engineer at Rockwell Collins. Rockwell Collins is an aerospace company that produces various products that go into an airplane, from the seats for the passengers to all the instruments that pilots use to fly the plane. As an Industrial Engineer I worked specifically with the display products that go into the cockpit, and my main job was to analyze how the products were manufactured and find ways to make the process more efficient. I also got to spend time doing some 3D printing which was fun since I've had some previous experience with that here at CMU. I was really excited that I was able to get an internship with a company in the aerospace industry as that was a main reason why I decided to major in mechanical engineering.
4. What are you excited about this semester?
This semester I'm really excited for Spring Carnival and all the exciting events of that weekend like buggy and booth.
5. What are your summer plans?
This summer I am heading back home to Cedar Rapids, Iowa, where I will return to Rockwell Collins again for an internship. This time I will be interning as a Mechanical Engineer instead of Industrial. Besides working, I am planning on going on vacation to Florida with my family and hopefully attend a few concerts with friends.
6. Why did you select your course of study?
One of my favorite parts of visiting my grandparents when I was younger was when my grandpa would take me to the Air Force base and show me all the different airplanes he used to work on. Years later during high school, I was exposed to different classes and competitions that involved engineering principles that I really enjoyed. From these early experiences, I decided to major in mechanical engineering because it provided a broad base of knowledge that would allow me to purse my interest in the aerospace industry later down the road. I also decided to add the Engineering and Public Policy (EPP) additional major because it was interesting to think about how the things that engineers create impact the economy, politics, and society.
7. What class has been recommended by your teammates (or past teammates) or friends as a MUST TAKE class at CMU?
A lot of my friends have recommended the Body Politics class which covers a lot of the misconceptions and stereotypes there are in society about how our bodies work and how we treat them. This class sounds super interesting, so I'm definitely looking to take it before I graduate.
8. What have you enjoyed about living in Pittsburgh?
I really like the various neighborhoods and districts that make up Pittsburgh. Each one is so unique and has its own vibe and it's fun to get out and be able to explore what each one has to offer.