Individual Project III
Engineering Ethnography
The transition from college level engineering courses to the real world work of practicing engineers is a significant step up. A notable challenge of many recent graduates is what to expect in their day to day responsibilities as well as their specific roles in projects. During this engineering ethnography, I had the chance to observe a professional practicing engineer in the workforce in attempt to create an idea of my future in the field of biomedical engineering.
Objective & Process
The goal of this project was to shadow and observe a biomedical engineer on the job. The biomedical engineer I was able to shadow actually worked as a quality engineer at Boston Scientific and oversaw the endoscope assembly line. The process included observation of the several different stations' jobs and how they came together at the end to create a finished endoscope.
Boston Scientific
Boston Scientific is a medical device company “dedicated to transforming lives through innovative medical solutions that improve the health of patients around the world.” Some of their products include endoscopes, pacemakers, stunts, and more across their several locations including their headquarters in Boston, Ireland, and Costa Rica. Jackie, who graduated with a biomaterials concentration May 2018, works as a quality engineer for her assembly which includes responsibilities such as keeping the line running, ensuring safety, implementing necessary improvements when needed, and overseeing sub-assemblies. “Quality engineers are never really sitting, myself included. I have 8 projects on my plate at the moment so I’m pretty actively moving from 7 in the morning until about 5 on a good day,” Jackie informed me.
Observation
While at Boston Scientific, Jackie took me through the endoscope assembly and was able to show and explain the process to me from start to finish. Before entering the warehouse, I had to prep in a clean room. This step is vital to the process as it keeps germs, bacteria, and dirt from coming in contact with the instruments while they’re being made and packaged. My initial reaction to the warehouse was surprise due to the fact that many of the workers were in tennis shoes and jeans under their gowns while the engineers upstairs were in more business casual attire. Another aspect I noticed about the environment was that music was playing over speakers and most seemed to be able to hold casual conversations while doing their job. Jackie also explained how at most stations along the assembly, ion fans and static grounding devices were put in place to minimize and remove the affect of human electric discharge on the instruments.
Interview
When sitting down with Jackie, I was able to ask her questions about the transition from college to the real world, one that’s similar to the transition students face when transitioning from high school to college. Jackie said the transition was a big one as her classroom experience didn’t necessarily coordinate to the job she landed at Boston Scientific. “There’s always more learning to do and that learning depends on the company and what you’re doing responsibility wise. For me I work in a job that is very fast paced and demanding with the deadlines I have to meet. It’s all a learning curve.” Something she was disappointed in was that her projects during her college career didn’t apply to her real-world experiences at her current job. Jackie also advised me to try and get work experience as early as possible since the biomedical field is competitive.
She cites her main reason for deciding to pursue biomedical engineering as to help give back to people in a way that didn’t involve the “queasy doctor aspects.” Her parting advice for me was that although Rose, and college in general, is incredibly difficult, it prepares you for the hard-hitting real world.
Reflection
There’s nothing that can show you what your future job will entail unless you see it in real day to day life
There are several doors open to a full range of disciplines all needing aspiring engineers
Earning an engineering degree takes dedication, discipline, and determination which all employers will respect and recognize in whatever path your degree takes you
Engineers don't always work in their studied discipline, many mechanical engineers fulfill biomedical engineering jobs and vice versa