Mechanical Engineering Overview - Overview PDF - PowerPoint - Podcast

	MS, Mechanical Engineering, MIT BS, Mechanical Engineering, Cooper Union
	Vice-President of Engineering Services, providing consulting services in the areas of environmental noise, vibration, and architectural acoustics.
	"Be really open-minded. Some of the best jobs are not the traditional jobs."

Alexander: "Oh, I wanted to be an astronaut. I really got interested in engineering and science, because the space program was just unbelievably fascinating to me. Then, as a teenager, I became very interested in automotives. So, I made the decision for mechanical engineering between the aeronautics of old interest, and the automotive interest. And, I was a musician, playing in a number of groups in high school and in college. And I did some studio work. And I became very, very fascinated by the technical aspects of the recording industry, and how a recording studio was built, and the electronics of this. And, so, this acoustics interest sort of lay dormant, almost, through my career."

Alexander: "What got me through it was, I knew I'd find another job. I networked. And I viewed it as an opportunity that I might not have taken, had I not been laid off. I might not have left the job. But having been left of the job, it forced my hand to make a little bit of a career change. And, so, in hindsight, I view it as a positive aspect. I mean, we all have to live through it, and you have to make the best of it, and look at it as an opportunity to do something better."

Q: What did you want to do when you grew up?
Alexander: Oh, I wanted to be an astronaut. I really got interested in engineering and science, because the space program was just unbelievably fascinating to me. I can remember being ten or eleven years old, and saying I want to be an astronaut, but I wanted to be involved in the sciences. And in aeronautics. And that was sort of my first interest. Then, as a teenager, I became very interested in automobiles. I mean, you know, hot rods and sports cars, and I got extremely interested in how cars are designed, and how they actually work, and the various aspects that make cars do what they do. And I had a very close friend who was also interested in that. We sort of fed on each other, and actually became roommates and went through college together. So, I made the decision for mechanical engineering between the aeronautics, of old interest, and the automotive interest.

Q: What kind of advice would you give to students? ...
Alexander: I think they really have to be open-minded. And ask the right questions. I think most engineering students know they want to be engineers, but I don't really think they know what engineering -- the breadth of engineering careers involve. And that can be really wide, from working for a large corporation to private practice, as a design engineer. They should recognize that interpersonal skills are important, and see if that's what they like to do. You know, if that's where their strength is, are they comfortable with that. They need to develop it, anyway, because you're always going to be working with other people. But they need to be really open-minded, in terms of -- some of the best jobs are not the traditional jobs. I have a good friend who works for Imagineering, at Disney. And he designs the acoustics for the rides. I mean, I'd give my eyeteeth. That's the greatest job in the world. I mean, it's got to be -- you're making things fun. So, you really have to be open-minded, in terms of careers, and keep your ears open, and talk to a lot of people. And, they'll give you insight. Your professors are a help. Especially if you have some sort of part-time professors, who are at the university, while they're having -- while they have a normal job. I had a lot of teachers like that, at Cooper. And those people can give you a lot of insight into what goes on, in the corporate world, and their real life experience.

Q: You mentioned, earlier, that you were laid off. How did that happen, and what got you through it?
Alexander: Oh, that was in Nineteen-eighty/eighty-one. And business got real slow. The economy was slow. And the fellow I was working for decided to close up shop. It turned out to be a temporary situation. And he laid off the staff. Actually, in a strange sense, it was the only long vacation I've had. At about three weeks in, I knew I was going to get another job, and then I just painted the house. What got me through it was, I knew I'd find another job. I networked. And I viewed it as an opportunity that I might not have taken, had I not been laid off. I might not have left the job. But having been left of the job, it forced my hand to make a little bit of a career change. And, so, in hindsight, I view it as a positive aspect. I mean, we all have to live through it, and you have to make the best of it, and look at it as an opportunity to do something better.

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