I've looked at a lot of resumes for electronics positions, so I thought I'd share some of my opinions on what should or shouldn't be on there. Nothing formatting specific, so much as how to get across your interest and passion in electronics. I used examples that are resumes meant for engineering internships, but a lot of the info can be generalized to anyone. Hope you enjoy the video!
Oh hey, remember me? Yeah, I'm the guy that's supposed to be running this site. Sorry for the long absence. I've been consulting, recording my electronics radio show, managing a multi-blogger engineer site and even getting married! Jeez, it's been a busy time. Anyway, things have cooled off a bit, so I've freed up some time (for now, never know what'll happen).
I decided to dive into a new project after a long hiatus from hobby type activity. I plan to put an MP3 player and output stage board into an antique radio enclosure. I also decided to document the process, specifically using the open source board layout program, KiCAD. I've been talking about learning the software and doing the videos for a while now, so here it is! The first installment is the schematic capture. I'll add more as the board gets more complex and I need to dive more into the process of actually getting a board fabbed. I'm excited! Hope you enjoy the video and the ones to come!
I was contacted a while ago and dragged my feet, like any good engineer. But today I was the "featured engineer" on EE Web! Exciting!
Aside from the fact that it was very nice of them to think of me, I'm just as excited to be featured on there along with friends from the electronics scene! My co-host of The Amp Hour (who probably won't let me forget who was interviewed first), Dave Jones has been featured in the past. My co-conspirator for the recently completed 555 contest, hackmaster elite Jeri Ellsworth has been featured. And someone else I really respect from the hobbyist scene, Limor Fried of adafruit.
If you haven't checked out EE Web, I suggest it. They have a really clean interface which I like for browsing their articles. The forums are still a bit light on participation but hopefully will fill up with knowledgeable people soon. Thanks again to EE Web for featuring me!
I'm guessing if you follow me at all on Twitter or Facebook or just about anywhere else on the internet (I'm not too hard to find), you might know about the 555 contest. I have been talking about it quite a bit on various channels, all except here.
So I thought I'd discuss some of the aspects I might not discuss on other forums because they wouldn't be relevant. But since this site is basically about me and my interests...well I get to write whatever I want! Sweet!
First off, I thought I should mention Jeri. Honestly, I didn't know her well when we got started working on the contest. Mostly just talking on Twitter and watching her videos. It's been nice getting a chance to chat though. She's just as bright as her videos let on. And it's always interesting meeting new engineers with similar past experiences. Many of the same struggles I've gone through in the past, she has as well. Since she has more experience than me, I've been learning stuff from her. When I'm not learning from her, we usually make fun of Dave together! (kidding Dave!)
Next, I thought I should mention the spontaneity of the articles about us and the contest. Have a look at some of them:
A few other originals and a few that syndicated content from above.
So here's the dirty little secret: we know most of the people that wrote about us. Yup, it's true. But the interesting part for me is thinking just how often this kind of things happens. A friend/acquaintance calls up and tells you about an upcoming design contest, you might want to write about it, right? Welcome to the world of PR! I'm super happy all these wonderful people decided to write about us, and I don't think they would have unless we had something fun and intriguing; but still, I thought it was interesting and wonder if the contest could be even bigger if bigger names were setting up the contest in the first place.
And finally, I should point out that as much as I enjoy working on the contest, it's a ton of work! I'm not trying to complain but it makes me appreciate those that run other similar events (and in the past I didn't consider it). Sending emails alone and trying to coordinate sponsors across distances can really wear on you. If nothing more, it's a lot of typing! So not difficult per se, but time consuming. Not to mention my stellar timing of jumping into this project a week after EngineerBlogs.org started; I really set myself up for a bit of time sitting in front of a computer.
So that's all from me for now. In case you've been lamenting my lax writing schedule, I'm signed up for at least one post a week over at Engineer Blogs, usually on Wednesdays. And I can continue to be heard weekly on The Amp Hour radio show. And if you really want to grab my attention, be sure to check out the 555 contest site and start your entries today!
I have lots of thoughts about education, especially higher education. The theme that keeps popping up in my head though is that school isn't too far removed from teaching yourself. Honestly, let's look at the learning process:
Encounter a "problem" that needs to be solved.
Do background research and look at past examples of how it was solved.
Apply your newly gained knowledge to the problem at hand.
If a new problem arises that is not encompassed by the recently acquired wisdom, go back to step 2.
Report on your findings to others.
Doesn't this sound like work? Or studying on your own? Or doing a hobby project? How is this any different?
Since I've had this debate with friends before I can tell you what others say. They say that the classroom environment and being shown some of the methods before doing the problem is helpful. That having the theory explained directly helps the brain to acquire the necessary knowledge. That being able to step into the professor or teacher's office and ask a question is a nice luxury to have. But does this always happen? I know I've had teachers I don't understand (or very much disliked), notes that didn't make any sense upon second reading and semesters where I've taught myself completely out of a textbook (and of course it happened to be the worst textbook of all my classes that semester).
Furthermore, there are resources today that allow individuals to continue learning on their own. Video resources like MIT Open Course Ware (OCW) can replace or augment self learning on particular topics. Message boards can provide a forum to interface with experts and to keep up on recent developments in your industry. The prices of equipment have nosedived in the past 10-15 years, allowing many more people to have a "lab section" in their house. And things like hackerspaces allow for social interactions and places to flesh out more advanced ideas.
So what's really left? Motivation. When you're paying $30,000 a year or are spending every Tuesday and Thursday in a classroom somewhere, you're going to make the most of your time there. You're going to do the homework and go get the help you need to figure out the subject matter because you aren't allowed to put it off a month or a year. You're going to be motivated by the piece of paper you receive at the end of your degree program saying that you completed all of the necessary requirements and did so while meeting or exceeding the expectations of your institution. Or you might even want to just prove you can do it. All of them really are valid reasons, they just don't exist when you're teaching yourself at home. External motivation is needed for many people (myself included) to pick up a book on a subject. In fact "motivation, momentary lapse of" is how this post came about. I was reading about active filters for a side project (where the motivation is showing off the side project and becoming "internet famous") and I started thinking about how similar my current situation is to my former schooling. And all of the self-teaching and gained experiences are occurring without paying the $31,000 a year (yes, you read that right, tuition went up just since the last time I listed the number).
Do I hate higher education? No, I think there are some factors that make it invaluable to those that pursue it (and many more that benefit from the output). I may still try to get back to grad school myself some day. I love that there are institutions dedicated to research that might never get done otherwise. I'm glad that there are institutions that stress the rigor of the scientific method. I love that there are places where learning and advancing knowledge is the main purpose and task of those that attend. But all I'm saying is sometimes this happens in basements and bedrooms too.
Is learning at home without the structure of schools possible, especially in higher education? Does anyone ever teach themselves at home and why do you do it? What problems do you have with it? People currently enrolled in a University, do you find any fault with this thought?
