With the end of the quarter coming near the end of November, seniors are racing to get their Senior Project plans in motion, looking at their future career plans and signing up for scholarships. Through these next few months, seniors will be developing their projects and getting to experience a bit of what their dream career is actually like.
A prime example of a senior with a large ambition would be Brando Padilla.
“My project is going to fall under automotive mechanics, which for me, is going to be turning a regular street car into a race car,” he said. “The car I plan to modify is a 1997 Integra, and I want to essentially make it faster as well as improve its acceleration and track performance so it’s easier to handle and control at quick speeds”.
Padilla started his interest in auto mechanics rather recently.
“I’ve recently been getting interested in automotive engineering since a year ago,” he said. “I’ve always been into sports cars, so the trajectory of my career would probably fall into that same category as a mechanic. This project is a good way for me to get used to working with vehicles and prepare me for the challenges I would face at work as an automotive engineer.”
This project has many different steps that must be taken. There is a level of unpredictability that’s at play, seeing as vehicles are known to have spontaneous issues that require immediate attention in order to work properly. Now the question is, what about automotive engineering sparks his interest exactly? How does this project fit into his interests for the future?
Padilla explains, “Not only is it a good skill to learn, as you can work on cars yourself instead of paying a mechanic to do it, but I find it fascinating that my handiwork can help make a vehicle go over 200 mph,” Padilla said.
Carlie Harwood has also started to make strides in her senior project, although she has a different career interest in mind.
“I’m making a short film to practice my cinematography skills and help me develop the skills that they use within the industry,” she said. “I strive to own my own media production company and possibly work as a director of photography in the future.”
For Harwood, movies and TV shows have been a big part of her life ever since she was young.
“I grew up watching movies and shows with my family every night,” Harwood said. “My family is not afraid to critique stuff, so I have slowly become very critical when it comes to movies and TV shows, which has led me to develop a specific style of cinematography that I favor and wish to create within my own work.”.
Harwood has also displayed her interest in film work through her contributions in Theater Production, where in her third year she serves as Technical Director. As she stands as a manager within the production team, not only will her senior project give her experience for this career path of hers, but her years of experience managing will also aid her efforts in becoming a Director of Photography, helping guide her through the stress of pursuing a career within this field.
Vadim Kabardin has also started his journey for his senior project, with a very unique field in mind.
“I am covering a diplomat but my project is more within the broad field of law,” Kabardin said. “For my fieldwork I’m thinking of attending the Nevada County Superior Court so I can watch some of their proceedings. I am also thinking about contacting a diplomat that I know in Irvine to see if I can gain some real world experience.”
Kabardin chose this career field as it lines up with many of his overall interests that he plans to pursue.
“I’m very interested in history, government, as well as foreign languages,” he said. “Alongside this, doing this project will help me gain insight into the diplomatic field, and being a diplomat includes constantly working alongside others which I am very passionate about, with open communication and structured discussions.”
The process has been eye-opening for Kabardin.
“The first couple of assignments were difficult considering the amount of research that needed to be put into them, but now that I’m more secure in my career choice, it’s been easier to make decisions going forward”.
All in all, this year is looking great for the seniors and their chosen projects, and as they continue to explore their field of interest. They will begin to get a better understanding of what their job of choice truly entails, not only providing useful information for their future as a whole, but also preparing them for the real world.