For Anastasia (Asia) Motta '22 '23, her first post-college job happens to be everything she could have dreamed of.
After earning her BS in Engineering Management in 2022, then completing a Master of Engineering Management the following spring, Motta is now a continuous improvement engineer with Covia Holdings, based in Oregon, Illinois.
Motta, from Rockford, Michigan, fills a brand-new role for the sand mining company. Her position is tasked with evaluating mining operations and sand processing to identify inefficiencies, safety concerns, and areas for improvement. Then, she develops and manages collaborative projects focused on those key issues.
"I have free rein to go out and collect whatever data is needed to learn about the processes to truly understand the plant. I use the data and observations to identify my own projects that I can prioritize, plan, and manage—from cradle to the grave," she says.
Motta, who served as a peer career coach on campus, says her work responsibilities allow her to use the full set of skills she gained at Tech from project management to data analysis, to presentations, entrepreneurial thinking, and much more.
Though she is firmly rooted in her path now, that wasn't always the case for Motta. She began her Tech journey in civil engineering before coming to a realization halfway through the semester: it wasn't for her.
Switching to engineering management in the College of Business, Motta admits she still felt a bit lost when it came to her career focus. It wasn't until she landed in Roger Woods' quantitative problem-solving class that everything started to gel. "I loved everything about that class," she says, "and it led to an internship in continuous improvement, where I became certain CI was my calling."
After taking a course in Six Sigma, a set of management techniques to improve business processes, and advanced project management—also with Woods—Motta approached graduation with a growing confidence in her passion.
The Covia interview process was still intense, though. Motta had two online interviews, two in-person sessions, and a plant tour over spring break prior to being offered the position. On her resume, the experience in project management she'd built as a student stood out. "They said one of the key highlights was the Advanced Project Management class. During the interview I had explained to them how the class revolves around real-world scenarios," she says, describing her class as "focused on a ransomware protection and prevention plan," and explaining "that we work in small teams to fully develop a plan to present at an intercollegiate competition." "It's as close to real-world project management as one can get without being a project manager," Motta says.
The ownership Motta would get from the role sold her on accepting the job offer. "I'm not just adding to projects, I am leading them—right out of college!" she says. "I am making a real difference for the company, our customers, and our employees."
"I truly thank Tech, the College of Business, and Roger Woods for this amazing opportunity."
Michigan Technological University is a public research university founded in 1885 in Houghton, Michigan, and is home to nearly 7,500 students from more than 60 countries around the world. Consistently ranked among the best universities in the country for return on investment, Michigan’s flagship technological university offers more than 120 undergraduate and graduate degree programs in science and technology, engineering, computing, forestry, business, health professions, humanities, mathematics, social sciences, and the arts. The rural campus is situated just miles from Lake Superior in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, offering year-round opportunities for outdoor adventure.
