“Combining an internship with a degree in a field relevant to the student’s interest, like accounting or communications would place students in a good position.”
Dr. Ellen Ochoa, a veteran astronaut, was the 11th director of the Johnson Space Center. She was JSC’s first Hispanic director, and its second female director. Her previous management roles include Deputy Center Director and Director of Flight Crew Operations.
Ochoa joined NASA in 1988 as a research engineer at Ames Research Center and moved to Johnson Space Center in 1990 when she was selected as an astronaut. She became the first Hispanic woman to go to space when she served on the nine-day STS-56 mission aboard the space shuttle Discovery in 1993. She has flown in space four times, including STS-66, STS-96 and STS-110, logging nearly 1,000 hours in orbit.
I had the opportunity to connect with Dr. Ochoa via email and sent her questions that I believe will benefit women and young students everywhere who are interested in the space industry!
- What specific advice would you give to students who want to pursue a career in the space industry?
- Fortunately, there are lots of opportunities these days, with so many more companies entering the industry. In addition to putting in hard work in school, look for internships. NASA’s internship opportunities can be found athttps://www.nasa.gov/learning-
resources/internship-programs/ For younger students, NASA also provides a number of STEM engagement activities, including learning resources and challenges. See the range at https://www.nasa.gov/
learning-resources/for-kids- and-students/ Many companies in the space industry also have internship opportunities for students. There are also specific opportunities for women in aerospace like the Brooke Owens Fellowship, http://www.
brookeowensfellowship.org. In addition, many colleges have student branches of organizations like the Society of Women Engineers, Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers, and the National Society of Black Engineers; those are a great way to get to know other students who are interested in STEM careers as well as faculty mentors.
- Fortunately, there are lots of opportunities these days, with so many more companies entering the industry. In addition to putting in hard work in school, look for internships. NASA’s internship opportunities can be found athttps://www.nasa.gov/learning-
- For young students who are not STEM-oriented but still want to work in the space industry, what activities or opportunities should they get involved in What non-STEM jobs and opportunities do you see emerging in the space industry over the next 50 years? What non-STEM jobs and opportunities do you see emerging in the space industry over the next 50 years?
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- NASA, and other companies, have a variety of positions that support their mission, including financial analysts, human resources personnel, lawyers, procurement specialists, communication specialists, and facilities support people. In addition, skilled technical workers are needed in the space industry (and many other industries), and certifications are available through community colleges.NASA’s internships do include non-STEM opportunities, so again that’s a good place to start. I suspect space companies do the same. Combining an internship with a degree in a field relevant to the student’s interest, like accounting or communications would place students in a good position.
Bio Information Courtesy of NASA.Gov
