University of Maryland students obtain career opportunities by opening Challenge Box
COLLEGE PARK, Md. (ABC7) — Students at the University of Maryland College Park lined up and patiently waited for a turn at opening the box.
“I just got really, really excited just to come down and honestly just to have fun solving some problems,” said sophomore Sarah Hall.
By correctly answering the difficult engineering and computer science problems, students gained access to the 14 foot, 12,000-pound Challenge Box.
“There’s an amazing sort of cosmos 3D, 360 space experience that says, ‘You have what it takes’,” said Allison Sharpe of Lockheed Martin.
Getting the right answer required focus, patience, and time.
“It was over-complicated, and I spent about two hours on that. So then I went back another hour or two and got this answer, which also doesn’t work,” said freshman Raphael Pedersen.
The biggest challenge was solving the high-value problem which secured the biggest prize: a letter of intent to hire.
“When they graduate they are offered a position in Lockheed Martin Space,” said Sharpe.
Hall correctly solved a problem that moved her to the top of the company’s recruiting list.
“It was kind of a confidence booster just like, ‘Hey I can do this!’ That’s pretty awesome!” Hall said.
Pedersen got inside the Challenge Box by figuring out a high-level problem; an accomplishment that won him an internship.
“It feels pretty good. It lets me know my high school did a pretty good job preparing me for college,” Pedersen said.
