Celina Lazaro:
Amazon Future Engineer
When recent SBCC grad Celina Lazaro received the news she had been awarded a 12-week full-time internship as an Amazon Future Engineer (AFE), it was as if someone had granted her fondest wish. Working at Amazon is her #1 choice of dream jobs and serving as an intern would get her one step closer to achieving that dream.
Crediting the support and encouragement she received from SBCC’s MESA (Mathematics, Engineering, Science Achievement) program for giving her the confidence to apply, she was selected to be part of the team at the Amazon office in Phoenix, Arizona. There she worked with two mentors (a technical mentor and a “Women in Engineering” mentor) along with fellow AFE interns on various creative and innovative projects.
Discovering that she was the only intern to have come straight from a community college, she said “I was proud to say I was from SBCC. I would tell everyone that the reason I was at Amazon was because of SBCC's MESA program."
One aspect of the internship that impressed Celina was the sense of teamwork and how highly valued it is at Amazon. "I was learning not only to develop myself as an engineer, but I how to listen to different ideas and perspectives and to collaborate well with others," she reflected.
Having graduated from SBCC in Spring 2018, Celina was accepted to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo where she now studies computer engineering. One of the friends she made during the internship is an almuna of Cal Poly, with whom she has stayed in contact. There is also an Amazon office in San Luis Obispo, where she hopes to intern part-time.
When asked about her plans for the future during a recent interview, Celina responded, "I want to be a mentor, like all of those who have mentored me. I want to give back, to open the door for others to follow."
