Two weeks after my study abroad in Germany, I have had time to reflect on my experience and consider some of the major takeaways of my time abroad. My international experience consisted of two weeks in Munich, Germany at the University of Applied Sciences where I got hands-on experience in an industrial engineering setting. Our group got to go on site tours to companies like BMW and Siemens, and we learned about lean production and engineering innovations that broadened my understanding of how to efficiently automate and optimize processes.
As a chemical engineer, I have grown academically through my exposure to industrial engineering principles. I loved learning about lean production and especially enjoyed the simulation activities we did as a group where we had to build a certain number of products in a short amount of time. Working as a team, we had to come up with ways to optimize our assembly line process to meet production requirements.
Personally, I see growth in my knowledge of other cultures. I learned a lot about Bavarian culture while in Munich and saw firsthand how Spring Oktoberfest influences the people of the Bavarian state and I saw how many Germans wear traditional lederhosen and dirndls to showcase their pride in this occasion. My favorite cultural experience was the Bayern Munchen soccer game we went to; I’ve never been to a professional soccer game before and this was a really amazing experience to witness how big soccer culture is in European countries.
In a professional sense, I feel as though I have grown my network of connections because I got to meet with and get to know many faculty members at the University of Applied Sciences in Munich. I think these connections with both faculty members and our German buddies will be ones that I can reach back out to if I ever am back in Germany. I am glad that I got to broaden my professional network because I now have a network that extends farther than just Pittsburgh.
My main takeaways from this program are all the things I learned both culturally and in the classroom about German engineering principles and practices. I plan to bring my experiences in Germany back to Pitt by telling other students about how amazing my experience was to inspire them to study abroad. I am also interested in industrial optimization and lean production after learning about it in Munich and hope to work in a job that adopts these practices. I would like to help with process optimization and see a great need for that in chemical engineering, specifically in chemical plants.
In conclusion, I had an amazing experience in Munich, Germany, and am grateful for the opportunity I had to reflect on my experiences through the Honors Blog. I hope to have the chance to go abroad once more and would love to visit Germany again!
