Amanda Hildenbrand

Sophomore in Mechanical Engineering

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What high school did you attend?

North Allegheny

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What activities are you involved in outside WEPO?

Campus Crusade for Christ, E-House, Girl Scouts Saturdays, Exploring Your Horizons, Wind Energy Club, SWE

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What Internship/Co-Op/Study Abroad or Research experience have you had?

Studied Abroad in San Sebastian, Spain during summer 2017 for two weeks

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Why did you choose to come to Penn State?

I choose to come to PSU because of the community and support for female engineers. SWE and WEP are great ways to get involved in the engineering community. WEP Wednesdays helped me to get ahead of the curve on things like the Career Fair. Also, I loved the idea of having a vast alumni network as a resource for internships, jobs, and general advice.

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What is your best Penn State or engineering memory?

My favorite PSU memory is the Ohio State game. No contest. My feet were frozen and my voice was hoarse, but it was the best feeling to cheer on our Nittany Lions with thousands of "family" members at home or in the stands. My favorite engineering memory was when KAM Squad (my two best friends and I) made the curriculum for and conducted the spring Girl Scout Saturday on Net Zero Energy. It was so much fun to get young women excited about engineering!

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What advice would you give a first-year engineer?

One bad exam will not kill your GPA. Learn from your mistakes and make changes as you see fit. We are all learning together. Please do not be afraid to ask for help. We are a community, and we are all in this together. (High School Musical pun intended.)

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What was your favorite class you took as a freshmen?

My Egyptian mythology class because it was a different way of thinking and a nice change of pace. Take advantage of your Gen Eds.

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What is a fun fact about yourself?

I have walked in a shark tank while sharks were in it! It was super cool!