Degree: Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineering, MEng 2022
LinkedIn: Nisarg Patel
What are you doing now and how does your engineering education from Waterloo help with your life today?
Currently I am working as a Project Engineer at Toyota. The co-op opportunity in my program helped me work at Toyota, where I was hired full-time after graduation. I design the weld shop to make them future models capable. As an engineer it is my responsibility to ensure robots, jigs, ergonomics, utilities, cost, cycle time and feasibility studies are done. But, sometimes it is very easy to become biased and fixated within a set of parameters which may not be the best solution. This is where the lessons learned during the MEng degree and especially the graduate diploma in design engineering help break that bias. Some of the important learnings include 'First diverge then converge', 'Focus more on finding the root cause than on finding the solution', and 'Always have empathy'. These lessons not only help with my work life but have been helpful for my personal life and relationships as well.
Why did you decide to be a part of REAC?
REAC is a great platform through which I can play my part in giving back to the university and the engineering community, who has supported me throughout my journey. The University of Waterloo has a wide network of alumni, and I am excited to play a role in uniting this network, as it would be significant and beneficial for the existing students, alumni and faculty. What is a favourite piece of advice or quote that you would be interested in sharing? Three quotes that I live by: 'Aim for the stars for even if you fall you will fall on the moon', 'You don't know what you don't know' and 'Seek Discomfort'
What was your favourite place to eat at in Waterloo?
Go-to food spots are Lazeez, Freshii and Twisted Indian wraps.
What are your plans for the near future?
Plan is to become a more versatile human being in my personal and professional life. Keep giving back to the community and the country, while trying to seek discomfort and gaining new experiences. I love learning new information and learning the latest manufacturing trends in Automotive/Tech/Space sectors, so I aim to become an industry analyst in one of these manufacturing sectors.
Finally, do you have any fun and/or interesting media recommendations? Could be a book, song, movie, documentary, videogame, etc.
Fun fact: I have completed 110 TV shows as of 2023. Top recommendations include Rick and Morty, Sherlock Holmes, Silicon Valley, Billions, Californication, Peaky Blinders, After Life and Chernobyl.