In honor of Engineers Week, Aerospace is spotlighting a few of our many great engineers and getting a peek at the exciting projects that they’re focused on. Keep checking back to Meet Our People all this week! 

Name: Thelma

Alma Mater: University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA)

Department: Software Systems and Acquisition

Can you tell us about the work you do here at The Aerospace Corporation?

I am a Senior Engineering Specialist in the Software Systems and Acquisition Department in Chantilly, VA. I provide software and systems engineering support as well as objective technical analyses and assessments to many programs. I work with customers in the acquisition and verification/validation of major space and ground software systems.

Who or what inspires you? Why?

My father inspired me to study and become an engineer. He came to this country from Mexico City and worked as a car mechanic. He always emphasized the importance of an education and encouraged me to do well in school. He loved to read, to learn new things, and always did his best in anything that he did. He would take apart anything and try to fix it. He was a great role model.

When was the moment you realized that you wanted to make this your career?

I don't think there was a specific moment. I always liked and did well in math and science in high school. I enjoyed solving problems. I could not imagine myself in a business or a medical field but I could see myself as an engineer.

What work outside of your own department is Aerospace doing that excites you the most?

The work being done with CubeSats is interesting. Aerospace is building and launching a satellite in a compressed timeline and conducting experiments in space to evaluate new technologies.

Why did you choose to work at Aerospace?

I wanted to work at Aerospace because I wanted to work on space programs and they support many different major space programs.

What advice would you give to an engineer joining The Aerospace Corporation?

My advice to a new person at Aerospace in ETG, would be to always do your best in the tasks that you are given and deliver a good product. Cultivate your working relationships with your colleagues because it is very important for getting tasks, forming teams for tasks, and knowing whom to suggest for meeting a task need.

If you're interested in joining the Aerospace team, be sure to visit our careers page.