Genius Garage is a place not only to learn but also to grow on an individual and team basis. Rounding out a resume is great and will help any student succeed when they make it to the real world; however, Genius Garage gives those students a desire to succeed so immense that they go on to do great things with what they learned. During my time with Genius Garage we built a full-scale replica of a Sopwith Camel Biplane, and we built it in four months. This was a project that people in the aerospace industry thought was insane for a group of five students to take on. With the leadership of Casey and the environment of Genius Garage we, the students, never faltered in the build and managed to finish the plane by our deadline. This gave all of us inspiration and knowledge of our ability to do great things.
Genius Garage is also a place to build your team management skills. Often students that start at Genius Garage are complete strangers at the beginning of the internship. By the end of the internship everyone becomes a functioning member of an efficient machine, not because they try to but because they learn to with the effort and time put into the project. In an endeavor as big as building a biplane everyone has a job and is required to do it and they will always have someone relying on them to do great work. This breads creative thinking, communication between members, and the teamwork required to fix problems.
Genius Garage does not just give the benefits that everyone can see on the resume. It gives the students those traits that can only be seen when you get the opportunity to talk to them or see the great work that they do. Traits like work ethic, drive, and leadership. That is what I believe to be the true gift of Genius Garage and what I will appreciate the most when I start my career.