Howdy, I'm Ryan Rodriguez

Howdy! My name is Ryan Rodriguez, and I am currently on track to graduate in December 2022 with a degree in Industrial and Engineering Systems. Coming into Texas A&M I had very little knowledge of the true diversity of the engineering field, but as I asked former students, met with advisors, and did my own research I came to the conclusions that Industrial and Systems Engineering would be a great for me. Some of my favorite ISEN courses include ISEN 330, ISEN 413, and ISEN 355. Upon graduating I hope to secure a job where I can continue to learn and build upon my experiences here at A&M. 

My first real experience with systems engineering came in the summer of 2021, where I worked as a systems engineer for the Directed Energy Project Office (DEPO) in Huntsville, Alabama on Redstone Arsenal. The DEPO is a new organization which works for the federal government to develop various directed energy systems for the army. I was grateful to be able to work alongside two other fellow Texas A&M students as well as students from Purdue and Auburn. The specific system we were working on was DE M-SHORAD and like many high energy lasers, its mission was to track and destroy various targets while they are in flight. I was very new to this type of system as well as the army in general so I knew I would be shown things I had never seen before. I learned so much about the defense acquisition process, relationships between the government and DoD contractors, and how to conduct real testing of a system like this. This opportunity gave me insight into a sector of jobs I was unfamiliar with beforehand. This upcoming summer (2022) I hope to either continue working with DEPO or find another opportunity in the defense industry.