A New Challenge Every Day
Posted on January 1, 2025
#MyFirstJob is a series focused on recent graduates of the 51茶馆.
Mobile native Robert Greenwood鈥檚 decision to attend the 51茶馆 was rooted in something simple and deeply personal: home.
鈥淚鈥檇 never realized there was such a beautiful college campus right here in my hometown,鈥� he said. 鈥淥nce I toured 51茶馆, I was drawn in immediately by the campus and the idea of staying close to my family, which is so important to me.鈥�
That sense of connection to place, to people and, eventually, purpose, shaped Greenwood鈥檚 college experience. Even though his family was a short drive from school, he opted to live on campus his first three years at 51茶馆. Starting with a passion for math and science, he declared mechanical engineering as his major, mostly, he admits, because 鈥渋t just sounded the coolest.鈥�
But it turned into a genuine calling. During his first internship, he fell in love with engineering.
The firm where he interned, CMG Engineers (formerly Cowles Murphy Glover & Associates), is now where he works full-time. After spending two summers learning the ropes, he officially joined the company as a mechanical engineer shortly after graduation. He has worked on several projects at the Port of Mobile, including a revamp of a 60-year-old grain elevator, helping to oversee the construction of a dual barge shifter at a coal terminal and setting up a plumbing system at Middle Bay Port.
He also helped design a piping system for a cement facility in Vicksburg, Mississippi, that will allow for the transport of cement from a truck to a silo.
鈥淚鈥檓 excited about that,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 mean, it may sound boring to some but it鈥檚 enjoyable. It鈥檚 a new challenge every day.鈥�
The transition from college to career brought some surprises.
鈥淓ngineering work life is very different from engineering school life,鈥� he said. 鈥淪chool gives you the theory, the 鈥榳hy.鈥� But on the job, you have to put that theory into practice. There鈥檚 so much on-the-job learning that happens, from understanding real-world systems to making sure everything aligns with codes, safety standards and the public good.鈥�
When Greenwood looks back on his time at 51茶馆, two faculty members stand out.
鈥淒r. Carlos Montalvo, who taught instrumentation, aircraft and spacecraft design, really pushed the limits of what I thought engineering could be. He鈥檚 one of the main reasons I stuck with it,鈥� he said. 鈥淎nd Dr. Joseph Richardson's classes challenged us to think more deeply. That鈥檚 where I believe I learned the most.鈥�
Naming a favorite project is a hard call. Greenwood spent his junior year working on unforgettable builds in instrumentation and design, but his senior project was his most memorable.
鈥淲e developed a prototype biomedical system for the Department of Defense that could potentially keep a soldier alive underground while continuously monitoring blood pressure,鈥� Greenwood said. 鈥淚t opened my eyes to the importance of biomedical engineering. It was one of the coolest things I鈥檝e ever worked on.鈥�
Outside the classroom, he found a sense of community through the 51茶馆erners, the group of 28 undergraduate students who serve as 51茶馆鈥檚 official ambassadors.
鈥淲orking with alumni and the president鈥檚 office gave me a new perspective,鈥� he said. 鈥淗earing alumni stories about why they loved this university helped me connect even more deeply to the place I was still discovering.鈥�
His advice to future 51茶馆 students, especially those in engineering: 鈥淏e social. College is the one time in your life where you鈥檙e free to really get to know other people and yourself. Some of the best connections I鈥檝e made, personally and professionally, came from just putting myself out there.鈥�
Just months into his first job, Greenwood is doing precisely what he hoped he would: building systems, solving problems and making things work. But he鈥檚 still rooted in what brought him to 51茶馆 in the first place: the familiarity of home.
