By Holly Hodges `10

Every little kid has an idea, a dream of what they want to be when they’re older. While I had many possibilities that didn’t quite pan out, being the tooth fairy or performing on Broadway, one interest stuck with me. Growing up in Southern California, surrounded by amusement parks, I always had a strong desire to design rides. It wasn’t until I began my engineering courses at Bucknell that I realized someone actually has that dream job, and it was often engineers. This was when I decided to avidly pursue turning my childhood dream into a realistic career.

Half way through my sophomore year, I went to the Career Development Center for help with my new career goal. I told them I was interested in working in the amusement industry, and they scoured their vast database of Bucknell alumni. They put me in contact with Justin Schwartz, a fellow mechanical engineer and Bucknell alum of ’04, who currently has my dream job as a Ride Engineer with Universal Studios in Orlando, FL. Immediately he was eager to offer advice on ways into the industry, organizations to research, professors to meet with, classes to take, and most importantly his work on his latest project. Even after only being with the company a few years, Justin was already placed in the position of Ride Engineer on the project team of Universal Studios’ newest roller coaster, Hollywood Rip, Ride, Rockit.

Over the next year, I remained in contact with Justin updating him on things at Bucknell and receiving back updates and pictures on how his coaster was progressing. When the time came, I asked him if there were any internship opportunities with Universal for the following summer. He graciously arranged a phone interview for me, even while I was studying abroad in Prague. The phone call I received in Prague telling me that I was offered the summer internship with Universal Creative, Engineering and Safety department, left me speechless. This was the ideal opportunity.

Arriving in Florida for the summer, I had no idea what to expect. I didn’t know who I would be working with or what kind of work they’d have me doing. I finally met Justin in person the night before I began work, and he informed me they were in the final stages of opening his ride and that it would be a hectic, busy, even stressful time. I didn’t hear about the stress, I just heard that the ride was still being worked on and that I might have the chance to help out with the attraction I’d heard so much about. My first few days of Universal were spent getting acclimated in the department, but after work one night, I went to the platform of Rockit to meet Justin at the start of his night shift. Besides being in awe of where I was standing and the work that was going on around me, a huge smile came across my face as I looked across the platform and saw Justin sporting a Bucknell shirt and cap. It made me feel the comfort of Bucknell even a thousand miles away. That night, Justin took the time out of his work ‘day’ to show me around the site and explain as much as he could. While the amount of information was overwhelming, it was also possibly the coolest thing ever.

Soon enough I was being given assignments and helping out the Rockit team in any way I could. My biggest projects revolved around the safety tests they were conducting nightly in order to get riders on it. I did everything from writing, re-writing, and formatting the tests to helping conduct them and keeping the 20,000 pages organized. It was a lot of work and long hours, but I loved every minute of it. After a while, they started to give me more responsibility and soon I felt like a contributing member of the project team.

My internship with Universal was a unique experience that I feel lucky to have had. Thanks to the help of the CDC and the continual support of Bucknell alum like Justin, I was able to gain this work experience in the industry I want to work in. The last week of my internship, the ride finally opened to the public. I stood outside in the park, watching as thousands of people lined up in anticipation of it opening. I got to watch as the wall covering the entrance was taken down and the first people got to go on the ride. It was an overwhelming sense of pride and accomplishment seeing something that I was able to contribute to, open and be enjoyed by guests. I’ll always remember the smiling faces, applause and cheers of the guests as their vehicles returned to the station. My internship not only confirmed that this is what I want to be doing, but being part of an opening team of a new roller coaster, it truly did make my childhood dreams come true. And now, to making them come true again.

-Holly Hodges `10

Find your “dream internship” at the Internship Fair! Save the Date: Tuesday, January 26, 11-3 pm in Davis Gym

Join the Bucknell Engineering Network on B-Link

Join the Bucknell Media & Technology Network (BMTN) on B-Link or connect with Mackenzie Horan ’11, student liaison for the Media & Technology Network.