Matthew Burger

Background

About Matthew Burger

I did not always possess the enthusiasm for engineering that I have now. In school growing up, I had a fondness for reading novels and hanging out in the wooded creeks nearby. Academia was far from interesting to me, and the sciences were undoubtedly my least favorite subject. However, in high school I was required to enroll in a physics course. It was then that I learned there were specific rules which governed physical interactions. I was enraptured by physics and the way it could be used to predict and/or design entire systems. Until that physics class, I had imagined myself going to college for computer science; I had to make a choice. I elected to study mechanical engineering after asking multiple mentors about their own journies as mechanical engineers. I wanted to be able to apply the theoretical knowledge I would learn and design something functional and practical. The idea of conceptualizing a system and then seeing it physically realized was too tantalizing a prospect to pass up. After attending community college, I had the opportunity to pursue my BSME at San Jose State University (SJSU). I found many opportunities to expand the breadth of my knowledge and also put my skills to use. The projects I was able to work on at SJSU were varied and intriguing. I felt challenged and was continually pushed to grow. I recently had the pleasure of interning for California Water Service (CWS). Though my work was not solely mechanical engineering, I enjoyed learning new tasks on the job and seeing how professional engineers collaborate together. Despite doing work that I never imagined myself doing, I discovered that engineering is much more diverse than I had understood it to be. The different disciplines had more crossover than I imagined and complemented each other, filling in the gaps- I had the opportunity to work as a member of the Spartan Hyperloop team- I have hands-on experience with Computer Aided Design using Autodesk, Solidworks (CSWA), and Creo- I have taken courses in C++, Java, and MatLab- Graduated with an emphasis in control systems and mechatronics- Currently studying Python