My Goals

What did you / do you want to get out of your experience in AMM/ at CPP?

     I came to Cal Poly because I knew it was a good school with great programs, and it was also close to home. At first I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do, but when I found AMM, I knew it’s where I wanted to be. I started out by just taking a few AMM classes, and quickly realized I would learn a lot more than I thought I would about the industry. Since the beginning of my experience in AMM, I was constantly learning more about industry technology and terminology, fabrics, big designer names and companies. I’ve even had the wonderful opportunity of visiting companies such as VF Corporation and Critical Mass. I think the AMM program at Cal Poly is excellent and really has taught us how to prepare for the world outside of school.


CPP and AMM’s Learning Outcomes (Link here.)

     There are many different skills I learned during my time at Cal Poly, and many of these are outlined in the learning outcomes. I definitely learned communication and interpersonal skills, because many assignments in a lot of my classes required group projects, and we had to work as a team to achieve common goals, and communicate effectively to do so. This applies directly to the working world, because you will almost always be working in a group setting, and communicating with coworkers.
     We learned concepts out of textbooks, but we had to use critical thinking and problem solving to apply these concepts to real world situations. We were taught how to be the leaders of our generation, by taking different classes that taught us about leadership, ethical and political issues, and how to be professional in the working world. Specifically, we learned a great deal of knowledge about the fashion industry, apparel and textile products, consumer behavior, and the global economy. By taking different classes about specific pieces of the industry, we were able to understand the industry as a whole.
     I believe Cal Poly has provided me with many skills that I can apply to my job, and I worked hard in all of my classes to assure I learned as much as I could so I would be able to apply these skills and be successful in my career.


What skills or knowledge have you / do you want to acquire?

     In a general sense, I am always hungry to learn new skills and knowledge, and ready to take every opportunity to do so.
     Two great talents of mine are Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator. They’re programs that are constantly being updated and moving forward, so I’m always eager to learn new tools and techniques using the programs.
     I would also like to improve my language skills. I had taken many years of Spanish, but have lost touch with it, so I’m not as fluent as I’d like to be. I’ve also taken a few years of Japanese, but haven’t learned enough to hold a conversation. I’d like to get much better at both of these languages.


How do you want to grow as a person? As a learner?

     In the past few years, I’ve discovered more and more who I am. I know I’m always looking to grow and learn. I’m a very open minded person, and I really love that about myself. It allows me to create great relationships with many types of people, and allows me to try many different things. I do find I get nervous in some situations, but I hope I can learn how to be more confident so I can meet many new people along my path in life.


What kind of career are you looking for?

     I suppose my future is a bit unclear as of now, but to put it easily, I want to find the career that will make me truly happy. Of course, that’s centered around fashion, but the specific direction – since there’s so many to choose from – is a bit up in the air for the time being. It’ll take some searching, but I know I’ll find the place I belong.

Some ideas I’ve been considering:

- I’ve always love the “behind the scenes” of things, whether movies, photoshoots, fashion shows, or otherwise. I’ve thought about doing work on costuming for movies. It’d be a really big opportunity, and I could see myself having a lot of fun doing it.

- In March 2012 I got a Disneyland Annual Passport. Before then, I hadn’t been since about 2003. Being submersed in fashion in college, I definitely had a different appreciation for everything Disneyland has to offer. One thing I find myself very fond of is the costuming of characters. This relates back to behind-the-scenes work, but how amazing would it be to design the Disney Princess’s dresses? That’d be something I’d really like to do.

- On a more entrepreneurial front, I’ve considered opening my own brand, which would lead to my own boutique. I have some Japanese fashion designs in a book, but it’s definitely not enough yet. This may take longer for me to accomplish, but I think it’d be amazing to see people wearing things I have created.

- Another direction I have been considering is going into wedding gowns. I would like to try working in a bridal shop, and I think it would be wonderful to create beautiful wedding dresses.


My Short-Term Goals

     Graduate! This quarter (winter 2013), I organized all my remaining classes and realized I would be able to graduate in June (spring 2013)! I was worried because I thought I had a lot more classes to take care of, and I hadn’t yet found an internship. After going through my degree progress report and landing an internship, I realized graduation was tangible.
     After this, I want to find myself a job. I’m sure I’ll be working from the bottom up, but before I know it I’ll be at the top! Because I’ll be receiving my BS, I’ll have a lot of industry knowledge that will help get me to where I want to be.


My Long-Term Goals

     This is definitely something I haven’t thought a lot about, but now that graduation is coming up, it’s something I need to put a lot more thought into. This question ties into the above question of what career I’m looking for, because I’m going to want to find myself in a company that I love.

One thing I know I really want to do is travel.
     For the past 3 years, I’ve made an annual trip to San Francisco for a large party held by the Japanese brand Angelic Pretty, where the designers come and mingle with all of us who are interested in the fashion they design. It felt amazing to be somewhere else, to be out of the norm, and it was like a dream. This got me to thinking that travelling to unique places around the world might suit me.
     I’ve known for quite a few years now that I want to take a long trip to Japan. Everything about the country and its culture intrigues me, and I want to take the time to experience as much of it as I can. After seeing photos of my friend’s internship in London, I realized Japan wasn’t the only place I wanted to go. I think travelling is going to be a big goal of mine in life; I want to see everything. As much as I love Southern California, there’s only so much you can experience in one place, and I think I’m the type of person who doesn’t want to be at a standstill in life; I want to keep moving.