Co-op Ambassador:
Mikayla Bridges             

Major: Mechanical Engineering
Graduation Date: May 2018
Co-op Company: Michelin

Why did you decide to co-op?
You always hear now how competitive the job market is. I saw co-op as a way to make myself stand out in the giant crowd of graduating engineers. Mechanical engineering is a very broad field so it also gave me the opportunity to narrow my scope about things that I want to do in the future.

What types of projects did you work on?
My co-op was able to give me projects with much more responsibility than my internship. I was able to do very research based projects that would be near impossible to get as an intern. I was able to design testing equipment and procedure, and then develop simulation tools and software to predict behavior of products.

Describe your relationship with your mentor(s) and other colleagues:
I had amazing relationships with all of my mentors and colleagues. They welcomed me into the department immediately upon arrival, and when my co-op was moved to France, my mentor had me over for dinner with his family multiple times when I started to get a little homesick. Co-op is a good chance to practice working in a department setting, knowing how to go to colleagues for help.

What was your most memorable moment on assignment?
I was lucky enough to do my third rotation abroad, at Michelin’s international headquarters in France. I got to be there over the summer that they won the world cup, which is definitely a memory I will never forget!

What aspect of your co-op assignment do you feel will be the most beneficial after you graduate?
I finished my first co-op rotation and decided that the area of work I was in was not something I wanted to do in the future. I was very nervous about telling my boss about this, but finally got the courage to ask for a different department. The department I moved to ended up being my dream job and the job I will be going to after graduation. Co-op taught me what I liked and what I didn’t like, and ultimately put me at a job I will be very happy at in the future!

What advice do you have for other students looking to complete the co-op program?
Go into the process with an open mind! If you told me before starting interviews that I would end up designing aviation tires and loving it, I would have thought you were crazy! Really look through what previous students at each company have said their experience was like and what kind of projects they were doing. That is the most important thing to focus on: what kind of experience that company can give you, not necessarily what the actual end product is.