Original article by Nicole Zelniker at COE Communications.
Tabitha Gardner spoke with the College of Engineering communications team when she graduated with her bachelor’s in industrial and systems engineering from NC State University in May 2023.
Now, as she graduates with her master’s degree in industrial engineering, we sat down with Gardner to ask a few questions about her experience at NC State, how she balances her mental health with her class work and her upcoming plans for the future.
Congratulations on graduating! How are you planning on using your ISE degree in the future?
I’m trying to cater my career toward healthcare. I did a health systems certificate program as an undergrad, and that is the transition that took my ISE degree in a healthcare direction. I took a health policy class, and then I took a medical decision-making class.
What was the biggest difference between your undergraduate and grad school experiences at NC State?
[In grad school,] if you wanted to put in the bare minimum, you could probably put in the bare minimum, but if you wanted to learn the topic thoroughly, you could come out of it pretty much feeling like you mastered it. That’s the thing about the program that I really enjoyed.My whole class of students that I’m used to being around is pretty much gone now, other than a couple of students who graduated alongside me in my master’s program, so now, I like that I get to interact with so many younger students, and it sort of was really fun and inspiring to see the next crop of ISE students.
You served on the boards of so many student organizations in undergrad, including Acts2Fellowship (A2F) and The National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE). Were you able to continue doing so in your master’s program?
I was still president of A2F until this final semester, and now I’m helping transition a new student in. For NSBE, I was treasurer for the first year of my master’s program. I loved the organization and loved working for its mission of increasing the number of culturally responsible Black engineers to excel academically, succeed professionally and positively impact the community. I love being a part of that, but I didn’t do it my last semester just because you must have a full-year commitment.
How do you balance your mental health with all of your classes and extracurriculars?
My community is what keeps me the most sane and the most happy. Having the opportunity to break up intense work and periods of studying with going to a church event where I get to meet new people and get to have genuine conversations and relationships, or going with some of my friends to just chill and have fun.
What are your plans for after graduation?
I will be looking for a position that starts in May, and I won’t be accepting anything before then, because I’m planning on doing some travels up until that point [to Panama City and California]. I’m pretty much taking a gap semester before entering into the workforce.
