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Lucas Jackling
CA BOCES Pre-Engineering Graduate
Mechanical Engineer
Oil & Gas Industry

Currently, I work as a mechanical engineer in the oil and gas industry in Houston, Texas. In my role, I help potential customers decide how my company’s equipment would work best for their application. The equipment we make is very specialized and very expensive, so it is important that we get it right for the customer, but also to ensure the equipment will operate safely. My job allows me to use the engineering concepts I learned in college at Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT), but I often find myself leaning on the skills that I learned in the Project Lead the Way (PLTW) program at the CA BOCES CTE Center at Belmont in high school. My road to becoming an engineer started with attending the PLTW program at BOCES in my junior and senior years of high school, followed by a 4-year college program to obtain a Bachelor of Science degree. My advice to any current high schooler thinking about a career in engineering would be: 1) It is never too early to start learning about what engineers do and becoming curious about the field 2) Never stop being curious – continuous learning is essential in the world today, and 3) Always have fun with whatever subject you study! My CTE program helped me gain a solid introduction to the field I chose to study – engineering. The program gave me a head start on learning the fundamental tools and skills that engineers use, like 3D modeling software and 3D printing, the problem solving process, electrical circuits, and machining. I also met great people at CTE and learned the importance of building a professional network. In fact, I still talk to my BOCES teacher frequently to this day! More than anything however, I felt that when I got to college, I was ready to hit the ground running because of the education I received at CTE.