(A)Musings

As promised many a day ago, the following is an essay that I wrote and turned in verbatim, minus the part from Borat because I was too lazy to cite it...

Vincent Zhu

Tester

Technical Infrastructure

Curam Software

Short Essay 1

Why? I suppose “why” is the definitive determinant of the human concept of intelligence. By asking me “why [I] chose to participate in UIP,” you flatter me with your assumption of my omniscience. I may never fully come to know why I chose to participate in UIP, but I can offer a few words dedicated to the journey towards this ever elusive “why.”

I arose from my futon, bright and early one sunny morning and realized just one thing before heading towards the shower. I am late. I am late for class, late for work, late for dinner dates, late for life. It was my third year of study at the University, and I had wasted so much time being late, that my life as a student nearly went out the door without me. It was that day that I decided I absolutely must study abroad during my stint as a university student. Meanwhile, Responsibility called and nagged to me about finding internships and searching for jobs. As fate would have it, my housemate, Sarah Sievert, informed me of a wonderful academic internship abroad program offered over the summer. Meeting both my own needs, and Responsibility’s needs, I excitedly placed my name on mailing lists, scheduled appointments, and ended up here, in Dublin, Ireland.

My goals for this preciously short period of my life are numerous. To appease my higher brain functions, I intend to learn valuable, marketable skills in the workplace at Curam Software. While there, I intend to engage in plenty of social activities to develop an understanding of workplace social dynamics, and effective leadership techniques while still at the bottom of the totem pole. I hope to be able to remember my lessons from these few months when I gradually claw my way to the top. Higher brain functions aside, I seek adventures in total cultural immersion. Time taken for personal happiness is time well spent. As such, I fully intend to explore Ireland and the neighboring countries in Europe. My eternal fascination with these regions of the world fuels my quest of self-discovery and discovery of those unlike myself. It is such that immersion in the sights, sounds, and scintillating scents of these nations gives me a small measure of peace.

Over the course of the next several weekends, and the two weeks post-internship, I hope to cut a beeline through Western Europe. Should all go according to plan, I will spend a couple of days and nights in Ibiza, Paris, Austria, Switzerland, the Alps, Venice, Rome, and Vatican City. Along the way, I will create wholesome, user-friendly, photo-filled blogs for consumption by friends, family, and coworkers. By doing so, I can practice my on-site photography, and expository writing skills, all while enjoying my surroundings. Over the course of the next several weekdays, I plan to refine my programming skills, rehearsing JavaScript until it becomes a permanent member of my cognitive skill set. I also hope to gain key insight into the technical research, design, and development process on which my future career will depend.

During our numerous briefings, I found the sections on Irish culture to be of my liking. I anticipate that a good portion of my time abroad will be dedicated to the study and, eventually, the understanding of many cultures other than my own. Other than satiating my undying curiosity, these “cultural learnings for make benefit glorious” person of Vince, will surely come in handy in the future when working with international business partners. In addition to my cultural education, I hope to learn how best to socialize with the older crowd present at my workplace. Employed and married will inevitably end up on my 1040 forms in the future; I would like to be prepared. I expect to be fairly well versed in European cultures and in workplace and late twenties social life by the end of my overseas journey.

The goal that I have placed furthest down the road should be fulfilled around the age of forty. At the time of my mid-life crisis, I plan on purchasing a new Porsche Cayenne Turbo to satisfy my existential angst by road tripping across the United States. To get there, I must first get a well paying job at a defense contractor skunk works, such as at Lockheed Martin, working on integrating Psychology and Systems Engineering. With these two fields, I will work on human interfaces with machines, using knowledge of mind, body, and machine to improve interaction efficiency. To get such a position, I would imagine needing a master’s degree in Systems Engineering and Psychology. That means graduate school, preferably somewhere well known. Enrollment will be determinant on how many eligible candidates I can surpass during my time between undergraduate education and graduate school applications. That means getting work experience in technical and psychological fields in the meantime. As such, my internship at Curam Software is all but perfect. It satisfies my needs for international culture and office place social and technical education. I could do nothing better with my last summer in college.