Fascinated with the unknown and working with her hands, Dr. Andrea L. Tyler was told she matched the skillset of an engineer during a career assessment test in high school.
She disagreed.
Instead, Tyler wanted to work as a medical doctor specializing in obstetrics and gynecology.
As part of her school’s career program, she was paired with a doctor to shadow in the field. However, after learning the amount of schooling required of a medical doctor, Tyler reconsidered the engineering suggestion.
With a newly found passion for the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) field, she pursued mechanical engineering at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University.
“I love taking things apart and putting it back together,” said Tyler, who is currently the director of graduate student services and a research associate at Tennessee State University (TSU). “I’ll look at something and say, “how does it work? That car is rolling down the street. What’s making that car turn? Always at a young age thinking about the entire internal components of stuff, if you will.”
After graduation, Tyler received a job working in New Orleans at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) Michoud Assembly Facility.
