Alumni Spotlight

My name is Joseph Rosales, AISS and Century High School Alumni of 2021, and I am a 2nd-year Mechanical Engineering student at UC Berkeley. Before AISS, I was uncomfortable doing presentations or public speaking and working with others. However, during my time in the program, I was constantly pushed into those situations. It felt like being thrown into a pool to learn how to swim. Those soft skills never felt natural to me and it was a big struggle. It still is, but the difference now is I do not back away from those situations. I face them straight on to see where I need to improve.

 

Beginning my first year of college, I did not want to limit my experience or opportunities so I made use of my newly learned skills and decided to join any club that seemed interesting. 

I am now co-lead of the materials division and paddling team of Cal Concrete Canoe. For every team meeting, I do mini-presentations on logistics or plans for the day and generally, keep the folks updated on our progress. Something I didn’t fully realize before was how collaborative engineering projects are. There are so many components that need to be accounted for: the design, types of materials, the quantities of materials, the mold, etc., and for each item, there is a team dedicated to it. Communication and delegating workload amongst ourselves is especially crucial to ensure deadlines are met and no one person carries all the burden

 

Overall, lots of my personal growth has been a result of AISS. If it weren’t for the struggles I faced during my time there, I would not have made it this far. It was through AISS that I had the opportunity to self-reflect and become confident in myself to try new things and be outgoing.