Garret Lawlor

About Garret

Garrett Lawlor is a sophomore at Virginia Tech.  He is majoring in Materials Science Engineering and minoring in Biomedical Engineering.  He is a member of the newly formed QL+ Club on campus.  Garrett and his teammates are designing and building an accessible-to-all miniature golf course.  The design of the course must take into consideration necessary safety precautions and must include safety railings and minimizing the complicity of the course without taking away from the amusement of it.  The team wants the course to be mobile which will be accomplished by building pieces of the course that will be fastened together to make the entire product.

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Why did you choose your major? I chose Materials Science Engineering and Biomedical Engineering because I wanted to work with polymers within the biomedical field and this combination gave me a strong foundation for such a career path.  I chose to major in engineering in general because I’ve always enjoyed helping people.  When people help me, it is such a great feeling just knowing people are willing to make your life easier.  Making a career out of helping others and helping the community is such a rewarding experience.

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‍Describe your experience working with QL+ so far.  What is the biggest challenge?  What has been rewarding?  I am the Project Lead for this team, and it has helped my leadership skills regarding gearing a project with multiple people in the right direction and combining everyone’s ideas to create a finished product that goes above and beyond what we are required to do.  Because we are a new club, the biggest challenge for our group is finding the supplies and lab space to complete our tasks.  However, we have been addressing this problem head-on and will have a useable lab in the coming week.  The most rewarding aspect has been meeting the people of NeuroRestorative and getting to know them.  When you actually meet the individuals that the product will help, your whole mindset on the project changes.  Bringing the project on a more personal connection changes everything because you see how much the project will help them and how they envision it.

‍What would you say to other students about QL+? I would say that although this club heavily focusses on engineering, it is not just for engineers.  It is for people that want to go out into their community and make a difference in any way that they can.  This club is unique because it has so many different dynamics within it that are geared towards bettering the quality of life of anyone who should seek it.  

‍What are your plans after graduation? My plans after graduation are to get a job within the medical field dealing with polymers or prosthetics and to use my experience with QL+ as a solid foundation for those jobs.

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What has been the proudest moment of your college career? The proudest moment of my college career has been just coming to this college from Connecticut, not knowing anyone and networking the way that I have and getting to know the people around me.  Knowing that everyone I meet and everything I do at Tech has all stemmed from the work that I put into it, is a very rewarding experience.

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What three words best describe you? Creative.  Diligent.  Understanding.