Amanda Gibbens, a former student in the Department of Biomedical Engineering, recounted her time at Texas A&M University, expressing her love for the time she spent here and all the things she was able to accomplish.
Gibbens’ journey at Texas A&M started with her undergraduate degree in biomedical engineering and led her to continue her academic career, earning a master’s degree. During this time she participated in the Engineering Entrepreneurship Program, earning her Concept, Creation and Commercialization (C3) Certificate. Among her many achievements, Gibbens received the Jackie Price Dunn ’02 Endowed Aggie Ring Scholarship, which has been her proudest accomplishment.
“The moments I cherished the most were those when I received my Aggie ring,” Gibbens said. “Wearing my Aggie ring is an honor I have hoped for ever since I first stepped foot on campus.”
At the university, she realized the ring represented everything she loved about Texas A&M, including core values, comradery and the Aggie spirit. Because of this she decided to pursue everything the university had to offer without abandon. She immediately delved into the Engineering Entrepreneurship Program by competing in Aggie Invent competitions.
“I was lucky to start my first competition with an outstanding and diverse team that achieved first place after developing a hands-free functioning prototype to solve opening/closing and unlocking/locking doors for the visually impaired,” Gibbens said.
After her first competition, Gibbens said she was hooked and went on to challenge herself in three more competitions, gaining recognition in all three. It was clear to her that the Engineering Entrepreneurship Program was meant for her.
“From making music production software more accessible to those with low vision to reducing carbon emissions in urban buildings, I loved being able to tackle real-world problems outside of my degree’s area of expertise,” Gibbens said.
She decided to pursue the C3 certificate because she found its classes to be a great supplement to what she learned in her classes in biomedical engineering. This certificate provided by the Engineering Entrepreneurship Program aims to give undergraduate and graduate engineering students a chance to hone their entrepreneurial skills and become a self-starter.
Of the many projects she has worked on through the certificate program, Gibbens said that she has developed a concept and gained customer validation for a device that allowed nonintrusive early detection of events that lead to infant mortality. She hopes to one day continue the project into the prototyping phase and establish it as a potential start-up endeavor.
Her time at Texas A&M did not come without its challenges, however. In the bulk of the toughest coursework in her undergraduate degree, her GPA dropped and she nearly lost her organization leadership positions to academic probation.
“It was a struggle to overcome the stress that accompanied what in my eyes, at the time, was a complete failure,” Gibbens said. “Luckily, I soon came to realize that a GPA is not what defines the knowledge you have gained.”
She found new knowledge through perseverance during tough times. As she wrapped up her engineering academic career at Texas A&M, Gibbens said she is very thankful for the Aggie network and the mentorship she has gained from faculty. Of the most meaningful, she appreciates the professors of practice in the biomedical engineering department and members of the Engineering Entrepreneurship Program.
“Network building, warm introductions to job recruiters, learning by example, and a plethora of advice and insight into the engineering industry are just a few of the perks that professors of practice have imparted on my education,” Gibbens said. “My sincerest thanks go to Rodney Boehm, Jim Machek and Alan Brewer, they truly make an impact on Aggie engineers.”
Gibbens now works at Fannin Innovation Studio in Houston as an entrepreneurship fellow. She chose this position specifically because it aligns with the career path she has in mind and because she was ready to jump into a workplace where she could contribute meaningfully. Gibbens knows that regardless of where she ends up, the skills and knowledge she has gathered through Texas A&M will further build her career.