Wondering how FIRST affected you. I am a freshman, but I would like to see what others have to say.
There isn’t enough space on this forum to explain how this organization has affected me. I will keep it short and to the point. I was first-off a pathetic nerd who could answer so many questions correctly that you could say I was feared by my classmates and so much so I was the last person they would talk to. Then one day in my Honors Biology class I started my FIRST upbringing when the teacher announced a demonstration by Winnovation in Rockford and from there-on I was a FIRST-er. Now if I have free time I have nothing to do, because all my time used to be taken up by FIRST and classes.
FIRST has done a lot for me because our team is made up of 4 smaller schools (I’m the only member from my school) so it gives me a chance to meet people from other schools. Most of my good friends are from other schools, not from my own school. Also it has opened a door for my interest in Welding. Because of FIRST I took a welding class and learned how to do every type of welding you can do. Although i dont wanna be a professional welder, but now i know a very useful skill that I can use.
Most obviously, I’m going to major in Mechanical Engineering (not a really big change though, without FIRST I would probably be doing either Physics, Chemistry, or Mathematics). More subtly, FIRST has really helped me learn leadership skills and time-management. Oh, and FIRST helped me learn that soldering when sleepy is a bad idea.
Quite simply, FIRST has taught me to mind my semicolons.
Plus, it taught me what I don’t know (I finally learned what a wrench is, not kidding.)
lets see, besides change my whole view on my professional life. not much. I went from wanting to study medicine to wanting to become a programmer in nothing flat. It gave me a life, and a passion. A reason to pass and to make friends. It gave me friends to have faith in. The list goes on and on, its limitless.
The obvious answer is probably true for all of us- FIRST has given me opportunities that I would never have otherwise had. Between music, drama, and languages there never will be any time in my schedule for shop classes. FIRST has been a hands-on learning experience in all sorts of useful things, from how to solder to the right way of building pneumatics to the vital skill of using power tools without killing oneself.
The most significant change in my life from FIRST has been my recognition this build season that computers aren’t actually boring. (yeah… believe it or not, a mere six weeks ago I thought that code just sort of happened!)
If you join a team with an openminded attitude and the willingness to do whatever needs to be done, you’ll learn more than you ever did in school-- and you’ll only learn things that are interesting or useful!
Also, Team 847 PHRED is my sport. I dislike athletics because I find them totally arbitrary and not all that useful in the real world, but thanks to FIRST robotics I’m able to gain the experience of working on a team.
It’s also a less militaristic way to meet interesting people. Nobody “normal” joins robotics, so it’s a perfect place for the rest of us.
I cant really explain how it affected me because I have been involved in FIRST since 2001 when I was in 4th grade. I am now a Sophomore, and honestly cant remember times before I was involved in FIRST.
I am probably one of the biggest sports fans you will ever meet, but I do have a problem with them. Most major sports are almost completely based on physical size, a thing that a person really doesnt have much control over. If you were 5’4 and 150 lbs, you could never play many sports because you are too small. You could play football and have the best throwing arm ever, but you would be too short to see over the O line. One of my favorite things about FIRST is the game because you can build your robot almost however you want. I do really get into the matches. I am one of the only people I know who can sit and watch matches all day without getting bored.
Joey
This thread is probably mentioned one way or the other; every year. I believe I posted in one of them when I was a sophomore in high school. Now I am going into my 8th season with FIRST. It’s been a long journey full of good and bad memories.
Pros: FIRST has directed me to a path that I enjoy working with. I am majoring on Mechanical Engineering at Florida Atlantic University and have had several internships/co ops with different companies. For example with Motorola (because of team 108) and EDF INC. contractor for Pratt & Whitney (because of the mentors from team 179). I have met some good hearted people who are willing to help you through your ups and downs. Most of all, I have met some inspiring mentors who have taught me more than what a book could have.
Cons: FIRST has become a drug for me. A drug that isn’t easy to quit. I told my kids that 2007 build season would be my last season with the team and FIRST; but somehow they have managed to pull me back. More so, team 108 engineers, the teacher, the kids have managed to convince me to go back to the team as well. Everything is a business and no matter what, every business turns into politics at one point or the other. I have always tried to keep myself away from “politics,” not realizing that I have to face it at some point of time.
Through FIRST, you will face a lot of real world “problems,” whether it’s business related or personal. It’s a challenge that I face everyday and try to get through it. There are times when FIRST will make you smile and there are times when it will make you upset.
I have involved myself with several committees down here in South Florida as well as the regional committee. I am involved with FLL committees down here as well. I am also a full time mentor on 2 FRC teams. FIRST keeps me busy enough for me to not to worry about little things when I am not at work or school or with my family. As far as sleep goes, I have learned to deal with 2/3 hours of sleep during the week.
The effectiveness of FIRST in your life can be different for each individual; It all depends on how you let FIRST effect you as a son/daughter, brother/sister, husband/wife, student, employee and a human.
Thanks for letting us know that it made a difference. As a mom who has driven several places to demonstrate the robot (and I do it much less than our coordinator!), it’s nice to know that maybe it really does count for something.
I’ll take the opposite and discuss how FIRST didn’t affect me.
When I was in High School (in the 90’s,) my school was not involved because FIRST was just starting and really wasn’t in a lot of schools. Anyway, I went into engineering because I was good at math and science, and I liked my electronics class. Some justification for a career choice, huh! When I did get involved in FIRST (as an engineer) I see how much this mirrors what you will be doing as an engineer. Learning the process now, in High School, has so many benefits for college and your future. You are exposed to many engineering areas and can make up you mind on actual engineering experience and not on whether your good at physics or not. I’m glad the career I chose, but FIRST would have helped out so much back then when I was trying to decide what I wanted to do.
If this means anything Carrie, I have been continually impressed by the leadership shown in the animation threads by BuddyB309. Because of the consistent quality of those posts, I made a point of trying meet members of Winnovation while at IRI last summer. It was a great opportunity to learn more about your team and how hard all of you work.
You never know how a team will impact - it is like a pebble in a pond, rippling out and touching everyone with inspiration. Amazing really.
FIRST makes me tired and sleepy. Last year I lost a pound a week from kickoff to the CMP.
This year I’m still tired and sleepy and eat burgers and ice cream trying not to lose more weight.
I’ve never had so much fun being so tired and sleepy 
I can definitely relate to the views that FIRST has become somewhat of a drug.
I first learned of FIRST in the fall of 2002 whilst working on a Fibreglass Canada Goose project for our school library, when the teacher was co-mentoring our school’s first FIRST team. I joined on the spot. That was in Grade 10.
In grade 11 we competed again, but in grade 12 (2005 season) due to lack of sponsorship, 1075 didn’t compete.
I learned through the lead mentor (whom I’ve made good friends with over the years), that the team was back for 2006, and I elected to aid the team with the programming aspect of the game, as this was my primary area of expertise. In 2007 and 2008 I have been a very active member of the team, despite my being a now 3rd year university student.
FIRST is like a drug. For six weeks out of every year, the lead mentor (Mr. Smith) and I eat, sleep, and breathe everything robots. His family goes without their Dad for those six weeks, and they should be applauded just as much as he should. 1075 has always had notoriously bad support from the teachers in our school, so its basically just the one teacher, all the time.
Mr. Smith and I both are thoroughly addicted to the world that is FIRST. The challenges are many, and never stop challenging us to better our designs and develop a truly fantastic machine.
I have always been the kind of person that has to know how everything works. FIRST has taught me how to convert that knowledge into how to MAKE something that works. While I may not be the best at manufacture, I am quite capable of very functional designs. FIRST has done me a great service. Its also consumed the last 5 and a half years of my life.
!!! I just spent like 45 minutes writing a huge thing about how much Robotics has affected me… and CD TIMED OUT!!! as if!!
so, starting again…
I’m 17 and in my 3rd year of highschool and have been on the Local Robotics team since my grade 9 year.
Prior to joining this team I was a sissy girl (yes, I’m admiting to being a priss when it comes to getting dirty) and I’ve spent a bulk of my time each year for three years with a group of about 25 tech savy boys. DO YOU HAVE IDEA HOW THAT CAN AFFECT A PERSON? Basically, it changed me completely. I have an all new respect for these people and, of course, love them to death.
I don’t think any other program or organisation could have exposed me to such a completely respectable and admirable group. I have learnt so much from these people and have gained so much self confidence that it makes me smilee just thinking about it.
Lastly, I want to say that at the beginning of this season my mentors showed us a FIRST insipirational video about Robotics and it’s entirety and I was crying… I’ve never been so happy to be apart of something so great. It brings tears to my eyes to see the level of success and achievement teams around the world are receiving through FIRST… and that doesn’t mean just metals… it refers to EVERYTHING this organisation has given us 
(many others have posted the specifics e.g. time management, teamwork etc.)
and tears of joy
Okay, so that was the emotional impact… as for the physical…
I CAN WELD!! I can omg! weld!! I didn’t weld anything on the current robot because I’m a wuss butttt I can totallly weelDD!! (Special thanks to our team captain Mitch for his graciousness and extreme patience <3)
Also, I’ve been apart of the Electronics team since the beginning and am completely and utterly capable of wiring the whole entire (complicated bundle of metal) err… I mean ROBOT. And, I know like everyone on this forum can do it with their eyes closed… but I’m so proud of it and so completely overjoyed that I, a bookworm, can wire and be partially responsible for a beautifully functioning robot
I want to thank everyone who has been a part of FIRST. There isn’t one person out there who deserves anything less than the biggest most exstravigant applause known to man. We’ve done an amazing thing…
Lots of love, Lindsay Erin of 1535 The Knights of Alloy.
Hmmm how has first effected my life? There are not many kids around here who are interested in the same things as I am. I spent a lot of my life with my brother(who got me interested in robotics). When I became an official member of the team freshmen year I expected great things. FIRST has inspired me to be proud of the “nerd” that I am. I’ve met so many great people through competitions and through CD. FIRST has also made it possible for me to go to the colleges I would like to go to after I graduate. I think that without FIRST I would not be the same educated, proud person I am today.
I don’t think it would be too much to say that FIRST has completely changed my life. In ninth grade, I joined FIRST because my sister had, and my friends were, and I dragged one of my other friends into it with me. I expected to have no fun, and be on the Publicity team, writing articles and laying low until the six weeks were over. What actually happened was much different. In the pre-season, everyone was shop-trained. Though I had done well in middle-school tech classes, I hadn’t expected to take to machinery. After the training day, I seemed to be a natural. It was not even a question, I was joining the building part of the team. By the end of my ninth grade season, I could mill, drill, cut, and everything except lathe with the best of them. I was fully involved in this fantastic organization. My sophomore year I became a student leader and learned how to use every machine possible. I had become more social, outgoing, and happier. I had friends from the other schools on my team, and had become better friends with the people from my own school. This year, my 11th grade year, I started programming, and continued to be one of the team’s student leaders. Though I am not going to be an engineer or programmer for a living (silly me), FIRST has improved me socially and expanded my horizons.
Thanks Jane! I hope we get a chance to meet this summer at IRI 
This is our second year with FIRST and I can’t believe how much it has changed our family life (not to mention the multi-day LAN parties at our home and the homes of other team members…)
Pete is great. He meets with the animation team during the summer and teaches them. He has some amazing ideas and LOTS of energy and the team really likes working with him.
I’m actually a sophomore in college right now, so it has been a full 4 years since I joined Robotics for sophomore - senior years of high school. I don’t think I really realized the full effects until now. To name a few, concisely:
- Comfort in the shop: This is a very semi-conscious thing for me, but I feel comfortable in shops, with machines, with basics that a lot of entering college students in Engineering school surprisingly don’t know.
- Engineering love: I am in Engineering school purely because of FIRST. I would have probably gone into Bio or Chem had I not had interest in design. I started in Biomedical Eng and ended up in CS - crazy how these things work!
- Amazing friends: Some of my best friends are from robotics competitions. It’s awesome to grow with the organization, and to realize that you have found a group of friends that will always understand this special part of your personality.
Wolf, I love to hear that!! I think it’s fabulous that were able to become more social, outgoing and happier. I think that’s really important and life, and it’s fantastic that you have been able to find something to help you.