This is the first in a multi-part profile series featuring the summer jobs, co-ops, and internships of women from The University of Alabama..
Liz Suttles is a Senior from Huntsville, Alabama majoring in aerospace engineering and minoring in mechanical engineering. In May, she returned to Huntsville for her second summer working at CRM Solutions, Inc. as an aerospace engineering intern.
CRM Solutions is a subcontractor for NASA and worked on developing the Launch Vehicle Stage Adapter, a vital part of NASA’s new Space Launch System. The SLS is a vehicle meant for advanced exploration into deep space. You can read more about it here.
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What are your responsibilities at CRM?
I work under Dr. Brown whose specializes in computational fluid dynamics. He set up and ran the LVSA (launch vehicle stage adapter) using a computational fluid dynamics software to make sure there was proper gas mixing for the fuel. Computational fluid dynamics software is basically a virtual wind tunnel – you put in a model of some object (in our case it’s the rocket) and you can declare what speed you want it to travel at then it will calculate all the flow characteristics.
The LVSA is the second stage rocket booster that ignites after the first stage rocket booster detaches. It’s what gets the capsule all the way into orbit.
What do you like most about working there?
Finally getting to apply all the equations and knowledge that I learn in class. I have actually had to break out my textbooks and notes, so it really makes me feel like I’m learning something useful in school.
What have you learned at CRM that you haven’t learned in the classroom?
Keep organized notes from you major classes is definitely something I’ve learned. I didn’t really think I would need my notes after I finished the class and haven’t kept really good records and now I need to start. The job has really taught me the importance of being able to research and utilize my textbooks. Everyone there has a bookshelf full of textbooks that they constantly reference.
Do you have any other tips for succeeding in the field?
Definitely don’t be afraid to ask questions. They have given me problems to solve that are almost impossible, and it was really hard for me at first to realize that they don’t always know how to solve the problems either. At school your professor always knows the solution, but at work you have to work toward a solution without all the required information. A guy at work told me that he has never been given a problem to solve at work where he was given everything he needed to know. Engineering is finding how to approximate a solution without knowing everything.
What do you plan to do after graduation?
I got to actually run my own CFD solutions last summer and this summer, so it really inspired me to declare CFD as my specialty for grad school. I am currently planning on staying at The University of Alabama for my Master of Aerospace Engineering specializing in CFD. I have applied to the scholars’ program, so I will take my first graduate level CFD class in the fall.
What advice would you give other college women looking for an internship?
Definitely look for smaller companies. You get more of a one-on-one experience. Also, don’t be afraid to go ask other people at the company what they do. You won’t always know exactly what you want to do with you major and seeing what other people do can help you see what you enjoy.