I was interested in solving problems, especially problems that could have an impact in health and quality of life. I pursued mechanical engineering as an undergrad thinking that would be the path towards being a product design engineer. The professional opportunities I had at the time were aligned with that path, but I realized that in my field there seemed to be few opportunities to work on problems where I could connect and interact with people outside of my teams. I was doing undergraduate research in design processes with an industrial engineering professor and I learned about the field of human factors and ergonomics. Around that time, I was also introduced to human-centered design in my year-long senior design project. I felt like I was just getting started on something I was really enjoying, so I decided to pursue graduate studies to gain a deeper interdisciplinary understanding of design.