My name is Sheldon Bennett,  i study computer engineering at The New York City College of Technology or City Tech for short. I am reflecting on my major and i plan to enter a career in computer programming. I believe that this is the best career choice for me because i always wanted to be an engineer, i have an interest in computers and i always wanted the chance to contribute to the innovation in the technological field. I will begin by discussing the background of my major and career. I will continue by going into the reasons as to why i chose this major and career. I will finish off by discussing how i am preparing to go into this career field and give some advice to whoever is interested in becoming a computer engineering major.

A photo of a City Tech folder that i titled “City Tech”

    To gain more of an understanding of my decision to be a computer engineering major and my aspirations of becoming a computer programmer , its essential to know the following facts. Computer engineering involves doing a number of things that have to do with computers. According to the New York city college of technology 2014-2015 catalog, “it is multidisciplinary  in nature in that students are taught the fundamentals of electrical and mechanical technology, computer hardware, software,  data communications and networking”(CityTech Pg230). With a degree in computer engineering,  i will be able to earn a job as a computer programmer. A programmer does work that determines how a computer works. According to the bureau of labor statistics, “Computer programmers write code to create software program”. “They turn the program designs created by software developers and engineers into instructions that a computer can follow”(Statistics Par1). I find this to be a pretty interesting career because we already know that computers can do a number of amazing things so its nice to be one of the people that are involved in that kind of process.

       Now that you know more about the background of my major and my career choice, I will begin to talk about my reasons for choosing my career and major. The first main reason is that I want to be able to contribute to the innovations that we see in the technological field. I always believed that innovation was an incredibly important when it comes to progressing whether as a nation or even as a business. According to “Evolutionary study on collaborative innovation in SMEs and public policy innovation based on complicated network”, there are levels that show how developed certain countries are as opposed to others and it has a lot to do with economic position and also technology. It says that “some developing countries like China, India, Brazil, constitute the third echelon. However ,despite the economic levels of these countries , all of them have been fully aware of the significance of technological innovation for their economic development and social progress”(Zhong Pg 1247). Technological innovations are extremely important to development even in countries and simply want to be one of the people that contribute to something thats so important.

        My next reason would be that I have an interest in computers. I have always been interested in computer hardware and software just because of the fact that there is a lot of attention and detail that goes into making such a complex machine. According to “Computer ethics”, “Computers are universal tools that can be shaped and molded to perform nearly any task. Computers can do anything we can describe in terms of input, process and output”(Lodewyckx Pg 90). This is pretty amazing because as we can see today, computers have become a giant part of our lives ranging from use in terms of pleasure and even to business uses. The idea of creating a machine like this seems pretty fantastic and it is even more interesting to learn the various codes that are used when it comes to programming them. Overall , i just believe that the whole process is something that is interesting to see and even more awesome to do.

A photo of a dell laptop that i titled “Laptop”

      My final reason would be that I always wanted to be an engineer. There are a number of amazing and difficult careers, but I always found that being an engineer is definitely something that’s satisfying. Engineers do various jobs from working refrigerators and air conditioners to working on cars and even airplanes. It was pretty obvious that i should major in computer engineering since i always wanted to be an engineer and also because of my interest in computers. It is definitely a field of study that has a bit of demand especially with the direction that we are going in terms of how we operate in businesses and even in leisure. According to “We Have Never Been Digital”,”That will be our destination rather than our starting point, as we look back at the long history of the idea that adoption of computer technology is a revolutionary moment in human history”(Haigh Pg24).

     I will now shift over into discussing how my education and opportunities will prepare me for my career. Preparing for a career is definitely something that is p because it can be the difference between you getting a certain job or not. In terms of education, i am going to complete my 4 years here at city tech in order to earn my bachelors degree. During my interview with my interview with my technical graphics professor, i asked her how i should begin to prepare for my career. She responded by saying “Internships. You should begin to look for internships. That will allow you to practice and know the real world”(Infante Par1). So During these 4 years i will engage in various internships and clubs that will get me closer to attaining that job in the career field that i want to be in. While i make an attempt to to complete these tasks, i will also take advantage of the resources that are given to me here such as the various electives that will help me develop helpful skills and also refine certain skills that will definitely benefit me when i start my career. These skills include things like public speaking and even writing.

A photo of the book that i am reading for one of my electives i titled “Effective speech”

       So now that you know more about why i chose my major and career, i will now try to give some advice as  to how you should go about researching. There are a number of careers that come with being a computer engineer and one of the first things that you should begin to do is research the job that your are interested in whether it be working with computer hardware, software or even being a programmer. The next thing to do is find a school that provides the major that will prepare you for that specific career choice. After doing all of that and starting your educational career, i would definitely recommend joining clubs that correspond with your major not only because its something interesting to do, but also because of the various opportunities that will come from doing so. The journey is yours to make so choose whatever path you would enjoy the most. In terms of my journey, i look forward to continuing my school work and getting the chance to finally move into the exciting career of computer programming. I really enjoy the career path that i have chosen just because of the fact that there are a number of things that i find interesting. It is also because of the fact that i feel happy when i see the kind of work that i will be doing once i enter this career field. I really enjoy the career path that i have chosen just because of the fact that there are a number of things that i find interesting. It is also because of the fact that i feel happy when i see the kind of work that i will be doing once i enter this career field.

                         WORKS CITED

Bennett, Sheldon.” City tech”. Flickr. 6 December, 2014. Web. 7 December, 2014.

Bennett, Sheldon. “Laptop”. Flickr. 7 December, 2014. Web. 7 December, 2014.

Bennett, Sheldon. “Effective Speech”. Flickr. 7 December , 2014. Web. 7 December, 2014.

 Haigh, Thomas. ” We Have Never Been Digital “. Communications of the ACM. September 2014. Vol 57. Issue 9. P24-28. Academic Search Complete. Web. 29 November, 2014.

Infante, Carmen . Personal Interview. 4 December, 2014.

Lodewyckx, H. “Computer Ethics”. Value Inquiry Book Series. 2014. Vol 276. P90-92. Academic Search Complete. Web. 29 November, 2014.

New York City College of Technology 2014-2015 Academic Catalog.Web. 30 Nov. 2014.

United States,  Department of labor: Bureau of labor statistics “Computer Programming “. Bureau of labor statistics. Dept of labor. 8 January , 2014. 29 November, 2014.

Zhong, Zhaoqing. ” Evolutionary study on collaborative innovation in SMEs and public policy innovation based on complicated network ”. Journal of Chemical & Pharmaceutical Research. 2014, vol 6. Issue 7. P1246-1249. Academic Search Complete. Web. 29 November, 2014.

INTRODUCTION

I was given the chance to actually sit down and focus on how my thoughts would affect my future success in different aspects. First i began by simply writing down my thoughts for one specific day. I then continued to take photos that corresponded with the thoughts that i jotted down. Finally i was able to think rhetorically and reflectively in terms of how my thoughts are structured and whether i want to change how i think or not.

THINKING IN WRITING

10:00-How much longer do i have to watch this pot??
10:30- yay law and order svu is on
11:00- its looks nice outside
11:30-wow it really looks nice outside
12:00-I should probably go watch sword art online
12:30- oh look no more Naruto shippuden fillers
12:30- never mind
1:00- oh look mothers home
1:30- its really nice outside
2:00- I should probably go skate
2:30- hmm what should I wear??
3:00- wow it is really nice out here
3:30- “I wanna hold your handddd”
4:00- ” remember when they said that what we want can never be done well look who’s laughing now”
4:30- that was fun
5:00- I should finish reading after I eat
5:30-i should go play dishonored
6:00- wow this game does feel like bioshock
6:30- I should go finish my drafting hw
7:00- should I transfer after 4 years?
7:30-i should go make my blog post. Yeah ill do that tomorrow
8:00- almost finished
8:30-alright im done time to go on youtube
8:30- oh look black veil brides
9:00- “we’ll be home soon so dry your eyes”
9:00-wow danny looks so different in the final episode

THINKING VISUALLY

  My first photo is simply a number of different album covers from different bands such as Asking Alexandria, Sleeping with Sirens and Falling in Reverse. I titled it “Array of album covers”.

  My second photo is of the city tech folder that i was given on orientation day. I titled this one “Academic career”.

My third photo is of the main characters in the anime sword art online. I titled this photo “Intense arc”.

 My fourth photo is of the game known Dishonored. I titled this photo “Bethesda’s Dishonored”.

THINKING RHETORICALLY AND REFLECTIVELY

          My name is Sheldon Bennett, I am currently an undergraduate student studying computer engineering here at city tech. I decided to record some of my daily thoughts in kind of a day of thoughts format . The basic purpose of this was for me to examine them and deduce whether they are beneficial to enabling my future success or just random scattered thoughts. After carefully looking through my thoughts believe that my thoughts are focused on things that are important to me in the present, but it also has a small percentage of thoughts that involve my future.

         When it comes to my future academic success or even professional success, the way that I think is pretty beneficial due to the fact that my thoughts include a wide range of ideas, but they allows involve things that are important to me such as my academic life and even my personal life. My thoughts are arranged where I always find myself thinking about 4 specific things which would be school, anime, music and gaming. I try to stay focused on my schoolwork and furthering my future career, but I also try to spend time relaxing which is where the last three things come into play. Balance (which I will be mentioning a number of times) is something that I believe is super important not only for me but also for most people due to the fact that we always have a number of activities that we participate in whether it is work related or even hobby related. It is definitely a concept that actually gives us the ability to create free time for the many other tasks that we have to complete.

To begin, I am going to mention one of my thoughts when it comes to my academic career would be “I should go finish my drafting homework”(Bennett/Sheldonb214. Par#19), and also “should I transfer in 4 years?”(Bennett/Sheldonb214. Par#20). These thoughts are accompanied by a photo entitled “Academic career”(Bennett,Academic). The first thing isn’t really special due to the fact that it is just another small that I always have when I either finish class or even when I am trying to figure out what to do next. The more important one would be the second thought.  I always seem to have this thought because my current career path involves getting my bachelors in computer engineering and also getting my masters in audio engineering so I always think about whether I should pursue that career path here at city tech or to continue it at another college. I was actually planning on starting here at city tech and then continuing the rest of my studies at City College or maybe Colombia University. My reason for wanting to transfer was because of the fact that I wanted to go out and study at another college after I complete what I needed to complete here at city tech. That’s more of a preference because I want to try and explore , but one of the main reasons as to why I wanted to leave was that this school lacked athletics which is something that I believe is a big part of a student’s life especially my own.

A more “personal life” example would be “we’ll be home soon so dry your eyes”(Bennett/Sheldonb214. Par#25). This thought is simply a snippet from asking Alexandria’s song “a prophecy” which is on their second album called stand up and scream. Not only is this one of my favorite songs, it also comes from one of my many favorite bands. I always find myself repeating song lyrics in my head not only because I love music but also because certain lyrics are so memorable that I just need to repeat them in my head every day. Another example of song lyrics that I always find myself repeating is” remember when they said that what we want can never be done well look who’s laughing now”(Bennett/Sheldonb214. Par#14). This is a snippet from the song “do it now, remember it later” which is another favored song of mine from a band called sleeping with sirens. These thoughts were accompanied by the photo entitled “Array of album covers”(Bennett,Array). Music isn’t just a big part of my life, It’s also going to be a part of my career so I always find myself trying to find opportunities to show off my engineering skills and even studying a wide range of music going from rap and r&b all the way to rock and techno.

When it comes to anime though, I always have thoughts such as “I should probably go watch sword art online”(Bennett/Sheldonb214. Par#5). This thought is accompanied by the photo entitled “Intense arc”(Bennett, Intense). I have been having this thought for a while now because i missed 2 episodes of sword art online and this was around the time in which the anime’s arc was reaching an incredible climax with Kirito and Death gun. Another one that came specifically that day was “oh look no more Naruto shippuden fillers”(Bennett/Sheldonb214. Par#6). This came just because I actually decided to start watching Naruto again after a very long hiatus that was caused by a long list of reasons. Anime is really a huge part of my life, not only as a means of entertainment but also as a means of growth. This thought comes across my mind every Friday and Saturday due to the fact that it’s apart of an agenda that I have when it comes to watching anime. This is more so a personal thought because like I said, I try to stay focused on school work, but also I try to take some time off in order to relax and calm my mind. This is a very important part of my success because I try to make a habit of working and also relaxing in order to lower the overall probability of any stress.

There’s always a certain point when I have connected thoughts. An example of this would be “I should go play dishonored”(Bennett/Sheldonb214. Par#17). This thought was accompanied by the photo entitled “Bethesda’s Dishonored”(Bennett, Bethesda’s). This thought was followed by “wow this game does feel like Bioshock”(Bennett/Sheldonb214. Par#18). I feel like they were connected because as i started to play Dishonored, it felt so similar to the game Bioshock because of how the game play was structured.I haven’t really gotten a chance to sit down and just play a game because I have been just doing homework and going to sleep shortly after, so I decided to finally get back into my usual routine of work followed by gaming, anime and finally a good amount of sleep. This thought is simply just another one that involves my personal life/ I am an avid gamer and gaming is another big part of my life so I always try to balance out things in order to give myself enough time to just kick back, relax and play some games. In general, I believe that not only is gaming a huge part of my personal life now but also it will still continue to be a huge part of my personal life even if I don’t have as much time as I would want to.
After carefully going through this, what does that mean for my future?  When it comes to my thoughts, I believe that on top of thinking about important things in the present, it’s also beneficial for me to think about my future especially when it comes to my academic success. My thoughts may have a wide range to them but it’s important to note that I always think about the 4 things that I mentioned which are anime, music, gaming and school. So what does this mean for my career future? I believe that the mindset that I have of work when I need to and relax when I need to is super beneficial because when I begin my career I want to be able to work efficiently and effectively so this kind of mindset is really helpful. There aren’t any notable improvements with the way that my thoughts are structured and I am content so far with how things are going. My main goal is to reach that point at which I am not just successful in my career, but I also want to reach that point at which I am still content with my personal life where I still have that key balance between work and also relaxation.

Works Cited

Sheldonb214(Sheldon Bennett ). “Re: Project 1: Thinking in Writing. “OpenLab. ENG 1101 D377 English Composition 1, FA 2014. 21 September 2014. Web. 13 October 2014.

Bennett, Sheldon. “Academic career”. Flickr. 12 October 2014. Web. 13 October 2014.

Bennett, Sheldon. “Array of album covers”. Flickr. 12 October 2014. Web. 13 October 2014.

Bennett, Sheldon. “Bethesda’s Dishonored”. Flickr. 29 September 2014. Web. 13 October 2014.

Bennett, Sheldon. “Intense arc”. Flickr. 13 October 2014. Web. 13 October 2014.