Dylan Turner, a passionate maker of music, stories, and video games, found a home here at NI, where he is able to work alongside a knowledgeable team of engineers to create innovative solutions for everyday problems.
I wanted to work at NI because, after doing an internship here, it seemed like a place where people stayed a long time and were relatively happy. I got the impression it had a healthy work culture. On top of that, I’d get to work on stuff I was genuinely interested in.
This program is great because it teaches lessons in a variety of fields while providing opportunities to interact with others in similar situations. It gets you up to speed on NI as a whole and provides a welcoming environment.
Diversity and inclusion are important to engineering because people are important to engineering. Engineers can do good things on their own, but when they’re able to collaborate with one another, they can produce mankind’s greatest achievements.
- Dylan Turner
I’m a maker. I make lots of different things. I make music with my bass, ukulele, computer, and other instruments. I make video games and electronics. I make languages. I make stories and poems. I just love to create; it’s part of who I am.
Wherever I go, I’m constantly thinking of new ideas to improve or add to various experiences. I’m always thinking of ways to make something better and what I would need to do to make that happen. I have hundreds of pages of designs for different problems and several prototypes of future software and hardware solutions that I and others could use and build together.
I got into software when I was about 12 years old. Not long after, I became really interested in embedded systems. Right around that time, I discovered a YouTuber who would go on to inspire me throughout middle school and high school: Ben Heck. He would make all sorts of cool projects, from portable game consoles to pinball machines, all while showing the build process extensively. I was hooked on his channel, and it inspired me to pursue my projects over the years.
I learned how important it was to get up early and go to sleep early even if you don’t have to get ready and go into a building. Staying on a consistent sleep schedule keeps your mind working optimally.
Ask questions. This is by far the biggest thing I’ve had to learn. People want to help you, and they want to share their knowledge. With Teams and email, you’re usually not bothering anyone by asking for help or for information about something, so ask questions because it’ll save you time and frustration.
Diversity and inclusion are important to engineering because people are important to engineering. Engineers can do good things on their own, but when they’re able to collaborate with one another, they can produce mankind’s greatest achievements. Every individual has their own experiences, culture, and beliefs that influence how they come up with solutions. Diverse and inclusive teams are better able to find a solution to any problem to progress a project forward.
I’m an artist, and engineering is an art form. My projects are a sign of not just technical skill but creativity. They’re ideas, just like the pictures that form in the mind’s eye of a painter. My creativity shines through in my other hobbies—music, poetry, conlanging—but it doesn’t necessarily shine through on a resume.
I would describe my fellow NIers as welcoming.
One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned is that I need to ask questions and that it’s OK to do so. Most people are willing to help and share their knowledge, but you’ve got to take the initiative.