Connor Sendel, M&T ’19
Hometown:
Denver, CO
Engineering Major:
Mechanical Engineering
Wharton Concentration:
Some combination of operations, entrepreneurship, and management. Considering a custom concentration.
WHY M&T?
I always knew I wanted to study engineering, but in the end, I choose M&T because of my interest in entrepreneurship. I felt that M&T gave me an opportunity to learn the skills demanded by tech startups and, being here, I can see it certainly does. That said, my interests have moved more towards the technology sector in general as opposed to a focus on startups. M&T has provided me with the flexibility to explore either area, and I’m sure my interests will continue to evolve throughout my time here at Penn.
ACTIVITIES IN HIGH SCHOOL
In high school, I engaged in Speech and Debate, FIRST Robotics, Scientific Research, National Honor Society, and an Independent Video Business.
FAVORITE CLASS
My favorite class to date is Management 101 taught by Drew Carton. In this class, we learned about managing groups of every size in an organization. From a full company all the way down to one-on-one interactions, I took away specific and actionable lessons about management. Every week, I looked forward to Professor Carton’s entertaining lectures. He combined his energetic and informative teaching style with multimedia and active class participation examples to further the understanding of that class’s lessons. What I learned in these interactions I have practiced daily.
LIFE AT PENN
I think the thing that most surprised me about life at Penn is the camaraderie. Through the tough times around midterms, and the fun times of NSO and Spring Fling, I feel like all Penn students really are in it together. Beyond that, (as cliché as it sounds) Penn really does allow you to follow your passions. For me, that meant getting heavily involved with Penn Electric Racing. Through my participation in this organization, not only do I get great experience, but I also get to build a crazy fast race car, something I will definitely always be passionate about.
ACTIVITIES AT PENN
I’m involved in Penn Electric Racing, WeissLabs Startup Incubator, and the Penn Club Ski Team.
M&T COMMUNITY
The M&T community was another big reason I felt M&T was a good fit for me. Not only do M&Ts constantly work together to learn even more than we would otherwise, many M&Ts are my best friends. I live with six other M&Ts in an off-campus house. But, being in M&T has in no way limited my social interactions outside the M&T community. For me, the M&T community has been formative to my Penn experience, both academically and socially.
FAVORITE THING IN PHILADELPHIA
Reading Terminal Market. The summer in between my freshman and sophomore years, I was lucky to be able to work just half a block from the renowned market. I definitely fell in love, eating there for most lunches and stopping in after work to buy ingredients for dinner. Philly is full of easy to love spots like Reading Terminal.