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Editor’s note: This interview was originally recorded at IPC APEX EXPO 2024 as part of a series of interviews with IPC Emerging Engineers.
At last year’s IPC APEX EXPO, former IPC Emerging Engineer Hannah Nelson had the opportunity to reflect on her inspiring journey into the world of engineering, from her education at Valparaiso University to her internship and her first job at Texas Instruments. From pivotal moments and the unexpected turns that helped shape her early career and passion for electrical engineering, her story highlights the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration, taking opportunities that arise early on, finding confidence in one's voice, and the rewards of pursuing one's passions within the engineering field.
Hannah, please share an overview of your career path so far and highlight any key factors that motivated you to pursue a role in engineering.
Hannah Nelson: It started in high school when I joined FIRST Robotics. I was on the mechanical build side, building the frames for the robots, and I got involved in the safety training stuff on our team. When I was younger, I was told that I was good at math and science, and I should pursue that career path. That stuck with me.
I played French horn, so I wanted to pursue a degree in music performance. I also wanted to pursue math, so I started with a double major in music performance and math.
When I took an Intro to Engineering course, things changed. I got to play around with Arduinos and build cool things, and I just loved seeing the artistic side of engineering. I loved the problem solving and being involved in interdisciplinary teams was incredibly rewarding for me.
Soon after, I dropped both my double majors and switched to electrical engineering. I haven’t looked back. I got involved with IPC during my junior year, and that’s when I really started enjoying my electrical engineering courses. I got more involved in the RF side of PCB design, which is what I do in my career now.
To read this entire conversation, which appeared in the February 2025 issue of PCB007 Magazine, click here.
