My cousin’s words echoed through my ears. “I was the only girl in my class”. As a mechanical Engineering student, at her university, she was the only female student in many of her classes. Though she did have several friendships, this made her feel isolated. As one of two women in my high school physics class I was afraid this would be reflected in my Engineering experience at USC Viterbi, but I could not have been more wrong.
USC Viterbi
At convocation, before even beginning my journey getting into the line at the USC Viterbi banner, looking down the row I was shocked. Almost every other student was a woman, (maybe even more than half). I myself stood between two girls who I spent all of the ceremony talking to and sweating with (unfortunately our convocation was during a heat wave). At this moment I knew USC Viterbi would be the place for me.
Walking into my first BME class my freshman year, I saw that the proportions of this line were representative of what I would see in my classes at USC. I also had the privilege of joining the WiE or Women in Engineering Mentorship program. I was paired with Tara, a BME student that was one year older than me. I could not recommend this program more. As someone who had gone through similar, if not the same experiences as me, she was able to provide mentorship, as well as just be a soundboard for ideas and long rants. If I had any questions for classes I could go to her with no hesitation. My biggest recommendation to incoming freshmen and underclassmen is to make these upperclassmen connections, they are invaluable to teach you to not make the same mistakes as they did. I received a built-in older sister. This past weekend I had the privilege of attending a BME conference, and through this process made 5 more incredible BME friends, who were all inspiring women, even rooming with 4 of them during the duration of the conference.
Additionally, my BME 101 TA, Advaita, was instrumental in shaping my undergraduate experience. I still say today that I would not be in this position without her guidance. She was a class advisor, but she was also my light at the end of the tunnel. She heard me complain, and cry about my transition and sat with me and worked me through every obstacle. I would not have made it through 101, and thus not be a BME student today without her guidance, and to me that exemplifies the power of the connection between women in engineering at USC Viterbi.
