--- title: "Inspired Youth, Inspire You: The FIRST Student Point of View" description: Connor Osborne, FIRST alum and Energy Architecture Engineer at General Motors, discusses how FIRST prepares students for careers in Computer Science image: https://community.firstinspires.org/hubfs/24996928802_ae3a9914b7_c-1.jpg --- **Meet *FIRST*® alum Connor and learn how General Motors is using Computer Science to impact sustainable energy – and how his *FIRST *experience prepared him for his career.** ** ** **Inspired Youth, Inspire You: The *FIRST *Student Point of View** is an ongoing blog series dedicated to showcasing the unique perspectives of* FIRST *students and alumni about how to foster a more diverse STEM field, what they’ve learned from their *FIRST *experiences, and more.   Computer Science is everywhere – and it’s making a huge impact on the ways we can make positive change in the world of sustainable energy. Connor Osborne is a* FIRST* alum and an Energy Architecture Engineer at *FIRST* Strategic Partner General Motors. We had the opportunity to discuss with him the important role Computer Science plays in achieving General Motors’ sustainability goals and how* FIRST* prepares students to step into Computer Science roles at leading companies like General Motors.   ***FIRST *Staff: What skills did you learn on your* FIRST* team that have helped you in your Computer Science career at General Motors?**   **Connor: ***FIRST* taught me that it isn’t about getting it right the first time, and you can’t be afraid of failure before you start trying. I would tend to get caught up in the details before I even started writing code but learned that you just have to start and you will learn along the way.     ***FIRST* Staff*:* What does General Motors’ work in the sustainable energy industry currently entail?** **Connor:** General Motors’ vision of a world with zero crashes, zero emissions, and zero congestion means we have the obligation to shift the automotive market to be sustainable for our planet. We have pledged to electrify our vehicles by 2035 to help us reach our zero emissions goal.   *** *** ***FIRST* Staff*:* What is a Computer Science role at General Motors that contributes to this work?**   **Connor:** General Motors is driving a dramatic shift toward electrification and developing vehicles and products shaped more by software than hardware – Computer Science is front-and-center in us reshaping transportation. Our developers working on innovative features like hands-free Super Cruise are essential for us to reach our goals.     ![17107581590_296264372f_c](https://community.firstinspires.org/hs-fs/hubfs/17107581590_296264372f_c.jpg?width=621&height=414&name=17107581590_296264372f_c.jpg)       ***FIRST *Staff: What advice can you give to *FIRST* students looking to start a career in Computer Science?**   **Connor:** Computer Science is a wide and diverse field that can take many shapes and sizes, but the most important thing in the Computer Science industry is experience. My best advice is to start practicing with software and code writing as often as you can. Through your *FIRST* team, you can look to read and help write your team’s software. Also consider reading other teams’ shared software to gain a new perspective on potential solutions.   *** *** ***FIRST *Staff: What’s your favorite *FIRST* memory related to Computer Science?**   **Connor: **I got to work on my team’s software to help write and calibrate our PID control loop for the robot’s mecanum drivetrain. One of our software mentors had helped me write the basic code feedback loop and I was driving the robot around a small room to tweak the performance until it was just right. Being able to see my code come to life and witness that small changes have an instant impact really impressed upon me the infinite capabilities of software.     ![undefined-Dec-05-2022-05-08-12-4078-PM](https://community.firstinspires.org/hs-fs/hubfs/undefined-Dec-05-2022-05-08-12-4078-PM.png?width=550&height=367&name=undefined-Dec-05-2022-05-08-12-4078-PM.png)           *   "FIRST* *taught me that it isn’t about getting it right the first time, and you can’t be afraid of failure before you start trying. I would tend to get caught up in the details before I even started writing code but learned that you just have to start and you will learn along the way."*             *               *Photo courtesy of General Motors*   ** [Inspired Youth, Inspire You](https://community.firstinspires.org/topic/inspired-youth-inspire-you) #### Share it: [** ](https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https://community.firstinspires.org/inspired-youth-inspire-you-the-first-student-point-of-view-connor) [** ](https://twitter.com/share?url=https://community.firstinspires.org/inspired-youth-inspire-you-the-first-student-point-of-view-connor) [** ](http://www.linkedin.com/shareArticle?mini=true&url=https://community.firstinspires.org/inspired-youth-inspire-you-the-first-student-point-of-view-connor) ![Default Author Image](https://community.firstinspires.org/hubfs/Community%20Blog%20v2/images/FIRST-author-icon.svg) Author [FIRST Staff](https://community.firstinspires.org/author/first) These blog posts have been contributed by members of *FIRST* staff. *FIRST* is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization headquartered in Manchester, N.H. ### Related Posts ** [Alumni](https://community.firstinspires.org/topic/alumni), [STEM for Everyone](https://community.firstinspires.org/topic/stem-for-everyone), [Inspired Youth, Inspire You](https://community.firstinspires.org/topic/inspired-youth-inspire-you) Inspired Youth, Inspire You: The FIRST Student Point Of View September 13, 2022 ** [STEM for Everyone](https://community.firstinspires.org/topic/stem-for-everyone), [Inspired Youth, Inspire You](https://community.firstinspires.org/topic/inspired-youth-inspire-you) Inspired Youth, Inspire You: The FIRST Student Point of View February 17, 2022 ** [Inspired Youth, Inspire You](https://community.firstinspires.org/topic/inspired-youth-inspire-you) Inspired Youth, Inspire You: The FIRST Student Point of View March 31, 2022 ![](https://www.facebook.com/tr?id=1200203950045814&ev=PageView&noscript=1) ![](https://ct.pinterest.com/v3/?tid=2615041699514&noscript=1) ![](https://ct.pinterest.com/v3/?tid=2615041699514&event=PageVisit&noscript=1)