A Curious Character

ACC Ep 17: Dreams and Aspirations - What Do You Want to be When You Grow Up | Ryan Antonio

This episode is a conversation with Ryan Antonio, a computer engineer and an aspiring educator. Ryan and I spent almost two hours talking about our dreams and aspirations, how he got into engineering, how he started to love teaching and research and what wanted to be when we grow up. If you like this episode, please consider subscribing to A Curious Character Podcast on iTunes and give it a rating. I’d love to hear your feedback in the comments below and on social media using the hashtag #ACCPodcast. If you liked this episode or would like to suggest a future topic, let me know by sending me a quick message on Twitter, @ roxsalt or send me an email at roxsalt (dot) acc (at) gmail (dot) com I look forward to bringing you future episodes with inspiring individuals and ideas about pursuing a career in STEM every month! Thanks to Seth Sanchez (@ primeblissrecords) for the intro music. This post was originally published on September 26, 2021.

ACC Ep 16: A Civil Engineer’s Journey from Industry, to Academia to an Erasmus Mundus Scholarship - Richard Dean Morales

This episode is a conversation with Richard Dean Morales, an Erasmus Mundus Scholar studying Masters of Science in Smart Cities and Communities. In this episode, Dean talks about his graduate school application process and provided his tips on how to succeed with your masters program application.   In this episode, we discuss * Dean’s backgroundWhat he studied for underggrad, what he did after that and what he was doing until before being awarded the Erasmus Mundus Scholarship * Erasmus Mundus ScholarshipMotivation for applying to the scholarship The Application process How to get started Perks and benefits Application Requirements What he wrote for his motivation letter Essential contents of a motivation letter Asking for letters of recommendation * Graduate school applicationsSchools he applied to Application Timeline (Chevening, University of Tokyo, Erasmus Mundus) Deciding which graduate school offer letter to take * His career trajectory from industry to academiaWhy it took him six years post-bachelor’s before applying to a masters program Why UP after corporate work * Three pieces of advice for aspiring Erasmus Mundus Scholars If you like this episode, please consider subscribing to A Curious Character Podcast on iTunes and give it a rating. I’d love to hear your feedback in the comments below and on social media using the hashtag #ACCPodcast. If you liked this episode or would like to suggest a future topic, let me know by sending me a quick message on Twitter, @ roxsalt or send me an email at roxsalt (dot) acc (at) gmail (dot) com. I look forward to bringing you future episodes with inspiring individuals and ideas about pursuing a career in STEM every month! Thanks to Seth Sanchez (@ primeblissrecords) for the intro music. This post was originally published on August 19, 2021.

ACC Ep 15: EEEnside the life of Electrical, Electronics and Computer Engineering Students at UP Diliman

This episode is a conversation with Almira Muro (computer engineering), Iya Verocel (electronics engineering), and Michael Ngo (electrical engineering). Almira, Iya, and Mango are all undergraduate students at the University of the Philippines Diliman Electrical and Electronics Engineering Institute (UP EEEI). Mira, Iya, and Mango talk about their life inside EEE - from motivations, first impressions, struggles, and accomplishments as they navigate their degree program. In this episode, we discuss * Why Engineering? * Why they studied engineering, motivations for going to UP and pursuing STEM, expectations and realities * Mira * Iya * Mango: Why engineering and why electrical engineering * Why Mira studied Computer Engineering (edit audio) * Why Isa studied Electronics Engineering * Inside EEE: first impressions and experiences * In person visit, stories from EEEI * Introduction to programming: EEE 111, EEE 113, etc * Adjusting to college math courses * How they made friends in EEEI and their tips * Students organizations in the institute * Inside EEE: studying electrical, electronics, or computer engineering * What they are studying at EEEI and the courses they've taken * ECE, CoE, EE specific concepts * Exams * Memorable courses they had * How they study habits changed as they transition from face to face to remote learning * Their remote learning strategies, study tips! * Wrap Up * Why study Computer Engineering, Electronics Engineering, Electrical Engineering? Mentioned in this episode: * UP Electrical and Electronics Engineering Institute [https://www.eee.upd.edu.ph/] * UP Circuit [https://facebook.com/upcircuit/] * UP Engineering Radio Guild  [https://www.facebook.com/erg.weconnect/] * UP IECEP [https://www.facebook.com/IECEPUPD/] * IIEE [https://www.iiee.org.ph/] * IEEE UPD [https://www.facebook.com/ieee.upd.sb/] * Timeblocking [https://todoist.com/productivity-methods/time-blocking] * Pomodoro [https://pomofocus.io/] If you like this episode, please consider subscribing to A Curious Character Podcast on iTunes and give it a rating. I’d love to hear your feedback in the comments below and on social media using the hashtag #ACCPodcast. If you liked this episode or would like to suggest a future topic, let me know by sending me a quick message on Twitter, @ roxsalt or send me an email at roxsalt (dot) acc (at) gmail (dot) com. I look forward to bringing you future episodes with inspiring individuals and ideas about pursuing a career in STEM every month! Thanks to Seth Sanchez (@ primeblissrecords) for the intro music. This post was originally published on August 1, 2021.

ACC Ep 14: Dr. Philip Fullante on Medicine, Surgical Innovations, and UP SIBOL

"The process of surgical innovations, it's a very long process. It's not like a one-year project that you can bring an idea to become a product." - Philip Fullante, MD This episode is a conversation with Dr. Philip Fullante. Dr. Philip is an Otorhinolaryngologist (ENT specialist) and Clinical Associate Professor at the UP Manila College of Medicine. In 2016, he underwent surgical innovations fellowship training at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF). He's also a program administrator of the planned Surgical Innovation and Biotechnology Laboratory (SIBOL) program of the UP Manila College of Medicine and the Department of Science and Technology. In this episode, we discuss * Undergraduate story and motivations for going to medical school * Experiences in clinical practice and choosing specializations * Surgical Innovations Fellowship How he landed the opportunity Experiences during the fellowship Key Takeaways * Projects involvements in biomedical innovations * UP-SIBOL Program * Wrap Up Advice for medical students who want to get into innovations in healthcare? Advice for engineers who want to work with clinicians and health professionals What’s next for biomedical innovations? If you like this episode, please consider subscribing to A Curious Character Podcast on iTunes and give it a rating. I’d love to hear your feedback in the comments below and on social media using the hashtag #ACCPodcast. If you liked this episode or would like to suggest a future topic, let me know by sending me a quick message on Twitter, @ roxsalt or send me an email at roxsalt (dot) acc (at) gmail (dot) com. I look forward to bringing you future episodes with inspiring individuals and ideas about pursuing a career in STEM every month! Thanks to Seth Sanchez (@ primeblissrecords)  for the intro music. This post was originally published on April 20, 2021.

ACC Ep 13: Engineering and Medicine: Miguel Aljibe on being an Engineer and a Medical Doctor

"You realize, actually, na the whole thing is a partnership. It's not about you, it's about the patient. Parang you're partners para sa health nila.. And even as engineers, di ba, we realize that it's a partnership between the engineers and the end users. We get so obsessed with Iron Man and Marvel na yung engineers 'yung bida but at the end of the day it's the the ordinary people, and we're using engineering and medicine to make life better. - Engr. Miguel Aljibe, MD This episode is a conversation with Miguel Aljibe. Migs obtained his Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering (BS ME) at UP Diliman. He then studied Medicine at UP Manila. Migs is now working at the intersection of engineering and medicine as part of the UP SIBOL program. In this episode, we discuss * Engineering School Why he studied engineering Interests in undergraduate as a mechanical engineering student Finding clinical problems with engineering solutions Deciding he wanted to pursue medicine * Medical School Application Process Challenges and advantages of going to medical school with engineering background Adjustments from engineering to medicine Key Takeaways * Wrap Up What's next for Migs His three pieces of advice for students who want to pursue a similar career trajectory and study medicine after engineering If you like this episode, please consider subscribing to A Curious Character Podcast on iTunes and give it a rating. I’d love to hear your feedback in the comments below and on social media using the hashtag #ACCPodcast. If you liked this episode or would like to suggest a future topic, let me know by sending me a quick message on Twitter, @ roxsalt or send me an email at roxsalt (dot) acc (at) gmail (dot) com. I look forward to bringing you future episodes with inspiring individuals and ideas about pursuing a career in STEM every month! Thanks to Seth Sanchez (@ primeblissrecords)  for the intro music. This post was originally published on March 12, 2021.