My experiences while studying to become a mechanical engineer at OU revolve not around the classroom, but around my time with the Sooner Racing Team. This team affords its members the opportunity to learn through hands-on application. I believe this in conjunction with classroom theory gives the most well rounded education any student could ask for. Anything learned in the classroom can be seen and experienced on the Sooner Racing Team.

The Sooner Racing Team is composed of students who design, build, test, and race a miniature formula-style car. This is the summary that I tell everyone that asks about it. In reality, the Team is so much more than that. Yes you are able to build something that moves extremely fast, but the Team is about much more than just going fast and turning left. It is about experiencing problem solving instead of learning about it in a classroom. For example, a first time job/internship interview will be filled with questions about a time when a problem was solved, or a time when teamwork was required. These are all experiences that SRT members have everyday. We work within the team atmosphere everyday. We solve problems on our systems everyday. For this reason, any member of the team can answer these types of questions very easily.

This is not simply in the realm of engineering, only. Business, marketing, art, law, medical, and every other discipline are welcome on this Team. It’s not about who knows the most, it is about who has the drive to learn through doing. And I haven’t even mentioned how much fun it is! When it comes down to it, we work on a racecar everyday while we are still in school! That is awesome! Being on this Team means so much more than most realize. It means hard work, late nights, and more mistakes than we can count. It also means making lifelong friends that are passionate about what they do, and pushing that passion as far (and Fast!) as it can go.

John Pate

Mechanical Engineering