Student Spotlight: Amanda Marturano

Amanda Marturano is a senior in Mechanical Engineering who plans to graduate next May. She just finished an internship at Howard J. Moore as a production assistant this past summer. Here’s a Q&A with Amanda:

What interested you in coming to Stony Brook University?

I had visited Stony Brook University three times before I became a freshman and each time what made me love the university was the campus. Don’t get me wrong, I heard about the mechanical engineering program and the WISE Honors Program which I was hoping to get into at the time and I knew it was a good place to get a great education. However, I love going outside, to parks, and hiking as much as I can, and Stony Brook University was everything I pictured my college campus to be. It was huge without being a maze, welcoming without being pushy, and most importantly a place where I could see myself growing into a mechanical engineer. 

Talk about your experience with the WISE Honors Program?

The WISE Honors Program was my first introduction to freshman year at Stony Brook since the orientation was held a couple of weeks before. It was encouraging to see so many women involved in STEM majors especially to see some fellow mechanical engineering students. The biggest impact the WISE Honors Program had on me was the mentoring program for freshman year. The mentoring program was split into majors so mine was a study group of freshman mechanical engineer majors. We did homework together and shared our experiences of getting used to college life as a freshman. My mentor at the time was super friendly and was a great resource of advice for mechanical engineering. It was also the place where I met one of my first friends at Stony Brook, who I still hangout with three years later. The mentoring program was a great experience and because of that it encouraged me to try and do the same for others which is why I spent the next two years as a WISE mentor. 

What do you plan to do after graduation?

After I graduate my plan is to get an entry level manufacturing engineering job. I had an internship this past winter and spring at CIRCOR Aerospace where I got the chance to experience the role of a manufacturing engineer. This included making an assembly process more efficient by creating new tooling for the staff on the floor. This not only included design work and problem solving, but I also got the hands-on experience of making the prototype for the tooling I designed and was able to see it in use before I left. The opportunity to be involved in each aspect of the engineering process was thrilling for me and the idea that what I was doing was going to make someone’s life easier made the job meaningful. The knowledge that I can obtain to be able to make a person’s life easier, more efficient, and/or safer is one of the reasons why I went into engineering. I don’t have any particular area of interest in manufacturing engineering that has grabbed my attention yet, but I don’t mind trying things out till I get there!  

Are you involved in any activities, clubs, or professional organizations?

During the school year I am involved in Stony Brook Motorsports and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME). Last year I was the treasurer of Motorsports which was a great way to get involved in aspects of the club like eboard that I had never experienced before. Although it was sad that the competition got canceled since that is what we work towards all year. In ASME my favorite project that I have worked on is being a part of Go Baby Go. Through this program we help modify off-the-shelf toy cars to make them handicap accessible for kids with disabilities. In addition to this being their main side project the physical therapy place that we work with, Keep Moving Forward Inc., also gets creative when modifying toys and anything else that may help their patients and at the same time bring them joy. Most recently I worked with them to design and construct a specified walker for a child who has trouble balancing and walking. It has been very rewarding work and I hope I can continue as a volunteer after I graduate. 

What advice do you have for freshman MEC majors?

Some advice that I would have liked to have heard as a freshman in mechanical engineering would be to try to get as much hands-on experience as you can while you are in college. The machine shop class and labs help you gain some of that experience, but the clubs and time I spent at the iCREATE lab really helped all that knowledge stick. Also, it is never too early to start looking for an internship and get some out of classroom experience. As a freshman it can be hard to get one, but the resume reviews, possible interviews, and application processes are all great experiences for when employers start coming your way. You will have the confidence and knowledge to look professional and the nerves hopefully will not be as prominent so you can show them just how great of a job you will do. 

Did someone inspire you to study Mechanical Engineering? If so, who and how did they inspire you?  

My inspiration to get into a STEM major came from my grandpa. My grandpa used to be a chemical engineer, so he has always been a science guy. He likes to question how things work and learn as much as he can. When I was younger, he used to get these science catalogs of all different science toys to pick from. Sometimes he would get different toys or puzzles to show me and my sisters and other times I got to buy something I was interested in. He still brings me science or math books from his collection at home or rents them out from the library for me to read. Whenever there is something he questions, he researches it and comes back to share what he has learned whether it’s what planets you can see in the sky tonight or how many watts go through the lights in our backyard. My interest in science along with my enthusiasm to design, build, and create led me to the mechanical engineering field. 

Can you share a fun fact about you? … favorite food, hobby, pets… these are just some examples, feel free to be creative!

A fun fact about me is that this past summer I learned how to ride a motorcycle! I have been eyeing them ever since I was a kid, so it was awesome to get to handle the clutch and ride one for myself.