Enrolling in grad school, especially online, is never an easy decision. But for 小蝌蚪APP industrial technology graduate David Saucier, continuing his education through the M.S. in Systems Technology was an obvious next step.
小蝌蚪APP淚t touches on so many areas of a field I love, it was hard for me to pass up that opportunity,小蝌蚪APP says Saucier. 小蝌蚪APP淎nd it offers so many new opportunities in the engineering workforce when you're touching on subjects such as quality control, quality management, product design, and project management. Whenever employer looks at that, it really makes you stand out.小蝌蚪APP
Saucier, 22, had some anxiety going into the online program having had only one experience with online learning. 
小蝌蚪APP淚 was like, 小蝌蚪APP榯his is going to be so difficult,小蝌蚪APP櫺◎蝌紸PP Saucier says. 小蝌蚪APP淚 was very surprised at how much the professors wanted you to succeed and wanted to push you to be better in the online program.小蝌蚪APP
Among those professors was Dr. Joe Jordan, who encouraged David to take a would-be side project into the forefront of his academic research.
Saucier was working as an intern at Bosco Machine Shop when he realized that the small company小蝌蚪APP檚 operations had exceeded its ability to track its stock of potentially valuable remnant materials.
小蝌蚪APP淚t's a small machine shop, and you can't control everything,小蝌蚪APP Saucier says. 小蝌蚪APP淭heir focus for quality had always been with the machines and what the machinists were doing and what the machinists were outputting. So, as the material area grew and their material inventory grew, the only protocols in place were for receiving it and getting rid of it, but not storing it. I wanted to help.小蝌蚪APP
Saucier turned to Dr. Joe Jordan for guidance because of Jordan小蝌蚪APP檚 expertise in quality and operations management. Dr. Jordan encouraged Saucier to develop his idea into his capstone project.
Systems technology prepares students to improve processes and management of equipment, technology, and materials, Dr. Jordan says, whether that小蝌蚪APP檚 related to a single machine, a factory, or an entire industry.
Saucier小蝌蚪APP檚 proposal aligned perfectly with those goals.
小蝌蚪APP淚t小蝌蚪APP檚 more substantial than your typical project,小蝌蚪APP Dr. Jordan says. 小蝌蚪APP淗e built a system for them to be able to quickly identify where a particular part is, not just with what小蝌蚪APP檚 on hand, but going forward being able to keep track of what they小蝌蚪APP檙e adding to it.小蝌蚪APP
Being able to identify and manage on-hand materials gives Bosco the ability to fill orders more quickly and efficiently, saving time and money.
小蝌蚪APP淚 saw just how big of an impact it could make on a small company, especially whenever every dime counts,小蝌蚪APP Saucier says.
Ensuring Bosco could continue managing the system was also important for Saucier.
小蝌蚪APP淭he main worry I had was if I leave the shop can they keep this going. It's very easy with a system like this that once the person that installed it moves on, nobody can keep up with it,小蝌蚪APP Saucier says. 小蝌蚪APP淚'm at a point right now where I don't have to manage the inventory to watch it keep going. I'm very happy with it.小蝌蚪APP
As Saucier prepares to graduate from UL Lafayette for a second time, he says he小蝌蚪APP檚 leaving with greater perseverance, time management, and an open mind.
小蝌蚪APP淚 understand now that sometimes you小蝌蚪APP檝e got to attack the problem from a different direction, and think outside the box," Saucier says.
小蝌蚪APP淚t's a big world, and there小蝌蚪APP檚 so much you don't know, especially in the field of engineering where so many things are being discovered every day. You have to be open to different perspectives, especially going to these larger companies that are worldwide, because if you're not, you're going cause your company to fall behind.小蝌蚪APP