The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
Engineering course provides opportunities for THS students
TORRINGTON — Torrington High School students taking a new Introduction to Engineering class are learning about the multitude of opportunities that an engineering degree can make available to them.
After an initial unit learning about the history of engineering and the engineering design process, students are hosting speakers from various engineering disciplines to speak to the class about their work.
“The goal is for students who are interested in studying engineering in college to learn about the wide variety of engineering disciplines and the many career possibilities that a bachelor’s in engineering can open up to them,” said teacher David Ressel, a former ocean and facilities engineer with the U.S. Coast Guard.
“If you look at ratings of the best jobs you can get with a fouryear degree, 29 of the top 50 are engineering jobs. Engineers are in high demand and are being offered entrylevel salaries ranging from $65,000 to $90,000 right out of college,” he said. “Once hired, many employers will pay expenses for an engineer to pursue a master’s degree.”
This year, the class is hearing from engineers in the mechanical, chemical, civil, electrical, robotics, plastics, aeronautical, industrial, and marine engineering fields. Students are selecting additional specialties to research themselves, including biomedical, software, structural, transportation, power, nuclear, thermal, automotive, sports, and paper engineering.
Several area businesses and the City of Torrington have been very supportive by making their staff engineers available to speak to the class. These include Dymax Corp., Wittmann-Battenfeld, Altek Electronics, Sikorsky, Pratt & Whitney, NextGenSmartyPants, and the Torrington City Engineer’s office.
The information from engineers who have “been there, done that” has been wellreceived by the students.
David Teti, a senior, said, “What surprised me most was the number of places you can go with an engineering degree.”
Jackie Torlai, a junior, has learned about the amount of job opportunities. “(T)he starting salaries for general engineers are fairly high, even with just a bachelor’s degree,” she said.
Senior Harrison Lanczycki said he appreciates learning about “the classes you take as an engineer, the amount of math you need, and how being an engineer opens up your job opportunities.”
These students are learning the advantages of pursuing an engineering degree, and how it can enable them in the future to do what engineers do: design and build structures, vehicles, systems and devices that make life better for people everywhere.