Product Engineer at SunPower Systems. I'm responsible for ongoing support of our Oasis C1 Tracker utility-scale power plant product. That includes supporting plant/project design team, construction team, quality & commissioning team, and operation & maintenance teams whenever they have an issue with the mechanical panel mounting/tracking systems, electrical controls, or DC collection. I'm done when the DC coming off the panels gets to the inverter. It's a fun, wide-ranging role, covering over 1GW installed capacity these days. The green revolution is coming!
Mostly, that means that people ask me questions and expect me to know the answers. Sometimes I can answer them, sometimes I need to ask other engineers. Often, I need to figure it out on my own from codes & standards. (Reading! It's important!)
I need to write clear emails and instructions, in terms non-engineers can understand, because I'm almost never the one actually doing the work in the field (somewhat disappointing). Communication is key! It's even more important than math!
FIRST prepared me with a diverse set of skills, a strong work ethic, and my first forum for exhibiting technical leadership, and inspired me to continue assuming technical leadership in extracurricular projects during college.
It also provided the connection to my first summer internships directly after high school and freshman year of college. I swung those experiences into additional internships the following summers, and swung those internships into a Sweet Job In My Field starting two weeks after graduating from UCLA.
I am INCREDIBLY LUCKY to have had the FIRST experience to push me in this direction.