Isabel Maier truly traveled full circle going from a participant in MSOE’s Carter Academy to working as a program assistant. The Carter Academy is a unique bridge program that admits students who may need more academic preparation before entering MSOE’s engineering programs.

“My role is to help incoming students adjust to MSOE life by taking precollege courses,” said Maier. “I am a mix of a mentor, friend and RA. Our goal is to help students feel like they can take on MSOE.”

Maier’s impact on the MSOE community doesn’t stop there. She also is a new CREATE Institute Student Fellow. The CREATE Institute fosters the MSOE Mindset and ensures students receive educational experiences that enhance the relevancy of their learning.

“I love helping out with the community by volunteering and making a difference. I joined CREATE to get MSOE students involved in the community and implement the MSOE Mindset.”

Originally made up of faculty fellows, this year the CREATE Institute added student fellows to drive the MSOE Mindset across campus and get the community involved in experiential learning. Maier was initially attracted to MSOE because it was close to her hometown of Muskego, Wisconsin, and it was one of a handful of Wisconsin universities offering biomedical engineering. After diving into her major, she realized she missed being creative and decided to change her major from biomedical engineering to user experience (UX) with a minor in psychology. UX at MSOE provides foundations of visual design and multimedia production, human factors, usability, content management, and information architecture – offering the perfect creative outlet for Maier.

Maier spent her summer volunteering at Girl Scout Camp Potawatomi Hills for one week after returning from New Zealand where she studied abroad for one semester. 

“I loved meeting people from all over and learning about the different countries they came from. Getting to know everyone was the best part of my study abroad experience.”

Maier stays busy by participating in multiple campus clubs including Phi Beta Lambda (PBL) business club, social chair in the Kappa Sima Mu (KSM) multicultural sorority, and swim club.