With her graduation quickly approaching, Shelby has advice for those beginning their educational journey in engineering, "Don't give up. This major can be incredibly difficult and at some points can feel extremely overwhelming. Surround yourself with good people who want to succeed, go to your classes, get involved, and find out from faculty/students/alumni what the best path is for success in the energy field." She also believes having a strong sense of purpose and being able to bounce back after setbacks will help a student accomplish anything they set their mind to.
Shelby knows this firsthand after dealing with countless health problems, including heart surgery, while in college. There were moments where she wanted to withdraw from everything and take a semester off, but she always persevered. But knowing that engineering was the best fit for her interests and with the help of many fellow engineering students, she was able to navigate through the difficult times. "We help each other so that we can all succeed", said Shelby.
Shelby added, "Success always begins in knowing you can accomplish anything you set your mind to. If I could do it all over again I would not do anything differently. This does not mean I didn't make mistakes, but they were always learning experiences and an opportunity to grow."
