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CAREER OUTLOOK


Job Horizon W


RECRUITED BY NAVAIR


illiam Redmond, 27, is an electrical engineer with the Core Avionics Division of the Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR). NAVAIR was created in 1966


as the successor to the Navy’s Bureau of Naval Weapons. NA- VAIR supports naval aviation aircraft, weapons and systems in research, design, development and systems engineering; acquisi- tion; test and evaluation; training facilities and equipment; repair and modification; and in-service engineering and logistics sup- port. Redmond is responsible for providing engineering support and technical recommendations to program management for the communications systems on the United States Marine Corp’s H-1 helicopter. He has a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from Morgan State University, and a master’s of business admin- istration from the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Redmond spoke to USBE&IT about how he got hired at the Black Engineer of the Year Awards (BEYA) Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) Global Competitiveness Conference.


USBE&IT: What year, or years, did you attend the


BEYA STEM job fair? William Redmond: I attended my first BEYA STEM job fair in 2005 while pursuing an associate degree in engineering at Baltimore City Community College, and also in February 2008 during my senior year at Morgan State University. During that career fair, I was recruited by Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR), and extended a job offer shortly afterward.


USBE&IT: What expectations did you have about the


job fair, and were they met? William Redmond: For my first career fair I did not know what to expect, but BEYA set the bar high for career fairs to follow. I was overwhelmed with the number of corporations and government organization that participated in the job fair. Not only were they there to just take resumes, but there were compa- nies there conducting interviews on site.


USBE&IT: What was it about your employer that at-


tracted you? William Redmond: NAVAIR attracted me because I was very interested in the work that civilian employees do on the Navy and Marine Corps aircraft platforms. I was able to inter- view with NAVAIR at the job fair and meet people in leadership positions within the organization. After talking with them about the entry-level programs, mentoring opportunities, and opportu- nities for continuing education I felt very confident that working for them would be a great choice for starting my career.


USBE&IT: What do you wish you knew as a student prior to attending the job fair?


www.blackengineer.com


William Redmond, electrical engineer with the Core Avionics Division, NAVAIR


William Redmond: The honors program director at Bal- timore City Community College prepared me very well for the job fair. The program placed us in seminars that taught about dressing for business, appropriate greetings, business protocol, and provided other helpful tips to prepare us.


USBE&IT: If you knew then what you know now how might you have changed your academic focus as a student to fit your employer/sector? William Redmond: As a student I would have continued to focus on the electrical engineering theory, but placed more em- phasis on its application. I would have also taken advantage of the project management and other soft-skill courses because as engineers we are trained to think logically and solve problems, but sometimes we don’t develop all of the soft skills necessary for the workplace.


USBE&IT I WINTER 2013 99


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