Half of my senior year is officially over and I can’t believe it. It’s been a full week since the end of finals week so I’m now getting some well-deserved rest, absurd amounts of sleep, and lots of home-cooked food!!
Being home for the holidays is the best. There’s no celebration more heartwarming and festive than Christmas in the Philippines. If you haven’t heard, Christmas in the Philippines is the longest holiday in the world (we start putting lights/trees/decorations up and busting out Christmas tunes in September). I guess you can say Christmas is more of a season rather than a day to Filipinos.
The past semester was incredibly productive. Looking back, I’m proud to say I’ve accomplished quite a bit:
- I finished strong with my ISE Senior Design Project, where I analyzed issues for my client, a professional grill manufacturing company. My team and I have been tackling software configuration and waste management issues to help the company optimize their business processes. We ended the semester with a presentation to the Chief Operating Officer of the company, the executive assistant, and our ISE professors.
Machining sheets of metal at the manufacturing plant
- I won a scholarship from the SAP University Alliances program! I’m incredibly fortunate that USC offers undergraduate classes in SAP (through USC’s Information Technology Program), allowing me to explore the vast (and expensive!) enterprise resource planning software of SAP — a prominent leader in the technology market. Read more about my scholarship and experience with SAP in this article!
- I completed my Facilities Planning and Design project, involving AutoCAD drawings and financial analyses. AutoCAD is a really powerful tool not to be messed with! It’s a handy tool for anyone interested in the 3-D design of all sorts of objects and facilities.
A sample AutoCAD drawing I worked on in class
- The USC Repertory Dance Company’s Arabian Nights production was a huge success and I had an amazing experience playing the lead character. Dancing is such a huge part of my life and performing with some of the best dancers on campus has been one of the highlights of my college experience.
Dancing in the Palace
After the show
Since I’ve been home, I’ve been meeting up with old high school friends, spending time with the family and finishing up my Christmas shopping. Soon I’ll be off to Osaka, Japan with my family to celebrate the new year!!! I won’t be blogging for the rest of winter break, but I’ll be back in January for the Spring semester.
With my best friends from high school!
Happy Holidays to everyone!!
