Dorothy Szymkiewicz was the new kid at school when she showed up to her first MATE team meeting. A colleague of her mother had a daughter on the team, and though Dorothy thought it sounded a little bit lame, she decided to check it out anyway.

That was when she was a freshman. By senior year, she was the team captain leading her team to internationals. MATE gave Dorothy her first opportunity to practice being a leader—and a whole lot more. Though her team had to make it the public pool by 7 a.m. to practice their mission before the pool officially opened, that time spent with her teammates taught her how to work on a large team.

“I learned how to take on a daunting task… and break it into smaller chunks to solve the puzzle in the most effective way,” she said.

Dorothy also wants to remind participants that yes, you’re learning valuable skills and gaining practical, resume-building experience during your time at MATE—but it’s also supposed to be fun. If you’re struggling, take a step back and find someone who can help.

After graduating as the valedictorian, Dorothy took her love of making things to MIT. She decided to pursue mechanical engineering, which felt like the perfect field to use her creativity to solve tangible problems. She has an artistic side, too, and enjoys dance and photography.

After a few years at one biosciences company, Dorothy recently started a position as an advanced robotics engineer at biomanufacturing start-up Multiply Labs. She also judged a MATE competition for the first time recently and says that seeing it all from a new angle was different than she thought—and that the judges really are there to help you.

Her advice for current participants? Don’t worry so much about the future. Even though Dorothy competed in ROV, she never thought she would end up working in robotics.

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