Hello coders, gamers, and other entertainers, it’s the LME and I have a Youtube addiction. No joke as of writing this I am subscribed to 347 Youtubers. Do I watch all of them every day? No. However, there is one Youtuber I’ve been subscribed to since I started in tech that I recently had the chance to interview. If you haven’t seen the channel STEMinine, click the link at the end of the article and check out her channel because she is pretty awesome. Jessica Droujko, the creator of STEMinine, is a mechanical engineer with a specialty in combustion. She’s currently doing her master’s degree in Switzerland, but she still made time to talk to me which I am so grateful for. So if you want to check out our interview, keep on reading and don’t forget to subscribe to her at the end.
Work & School
What’s the best part of having a Youtube channel based around your career?
The best part is seeing how other people react to it. Originally I only intended to interview other people and not be on camera, but’s hard to find someone to interview each week so I started talking about my own experience and people liked it. I’d get comments from people saying ‘Oh that’s so cool you get to do that’ or ‘That’s what I want to do’. I never thought I’d be on Youtube, so that’s pretty cool.
How has engineering influenced your life outside of school?
The biggest thing I’ve learned is to live in the moment because you are studying all the time. The work seems like it never stops. During my bachelor’s degree, I thought ‘I’ll have more time for this later’, but during my third year I realized I needed to do the activities that I enjoyed like kayaking with my friends. It’s about finding a balance in life because it never ends. It’s about time management and figuring out your priorities.
What advice would you give to people trying to balance their school life and getting the college experience?
During my undergrad, I would make a list of things I need to do for the week and then I would set up a reward system so that I would be motivated to get everything done by a specific day. For example, if I got all my work done by Friday I would get to go hang out with all the other engineers at Blue’s Pub. This way I would have a goal to work towards.
How do you see STEM growing in the next few years?
While women in STEM is one of the slowest growing fields, it’s cool that companies are acknowledging the problem and are trying to fix it. There are coding organizations like Black Girls Code, Women Who Code, and even Vogue is starting a coding project. These influencers are doing a good job and I feel they are going to be the ones encouraging the next generation of women.
In your opinion, do you think coding should be mandatory in school?
Yes. I think most people should learn how to program because it helps you become a problem solver and helps you become more confident in your abilities. There is this notion in programming that you either have it or you don’t and that causes some people to quit the field altogether. However, those that push through that initial learning curve even though they don’t understand it develop a lot of discipline and drive very early on.
Hobbies & Interests
Just curious, how did you get into kayaking?
I went to an intense kayaking camp when I was a kid. At first, I was terrified, but my parents kept sending me and I grew to love it.
You have several vlogs about traveling abroad. How has that influenced you?
It has put things into perspective. There are people out there who have nothing and are happy and then here I am worrying about a test. It taught me to be more down to earth.
Last, but not least. If you could change the ending of any movie or tv show, what would it be?
I HATED La La Land because of the ending. Lol. All I wanted to do was punch Ryan’s Gosling, Emma Stone and the producer in the face.
Wrap-Up
I want to thank Jess again for taking time out to do an interview. She is really knowledgeable about engineering and is one of the most down to people I have ever met. Please check her channel linked below and subscribe to her channel. Question of the day, what movie would you change the ending of? Until next time, keep calm and keep coding.
STEMinine’s channel:
Thanks so much for interviewing me Mel! The post turned out great:) Wish you well in your software engineering career! Keep in touch!