What is your full name, and what name do you prefer to go by? How do pronounce it phonetically?
My name is Moya Korpela and I go by Moya. To pronounce it just think of saying soy with an m instead of a s and add an a at the end!
Which pronouns to do you prefer? (e.g. she/her/hers, he/him/his, they/them/their)
He/Him/His
What is your birthday? Are you OK with having your birthday publicly acknowledged/celebrated?
My birthday is August 23rd, 2001 and I love to celebrate my birthday!
Where did you grow up?
I grew up in Washburn, Wisconsin which is a great little town on Lake Superior.
Did you have any fun nicknames while growing up? Do you have any now? What is the origin (if you feel comfortable sharing)?
I didn't really have any nicknames growing up and I don't really have any now.
What holidays do you celebrate (if any)?
I celebrate Easter, Christmas, Thanksgiving, and most other national holidays.
Academics
What is your academic life like?
What year in school are you?
I am a 3rd year undergraduate student.
When do you expect to graduate?
I'm doing an extra semester so I expect to graduate after the fall of 2023.
What is your major? How did you choose that?
I'm currently working towards a mechanical engineering major. I chose mechanical engineering because I enjoy understanding how things work and I like to work with my hands.
Do you know what you'd like to do after you graduate?
I would like to get my masters degree in automotive engineering and get a job in the automotive industry.
Interests
What do you like to do when you're not in class/working for STS?
What do you like to do for fun?
I enjoy doing pretty much anything outside (skiing, mountainbiking, running, snorkelling, etc) and kicking back with my friends.
Do you have any hobbies or groups that you participate in?
I'm in the UW Gymnastics club (you should join, it's great) and want to join the Baja Team.
Do you have any other jobs or internships?
On top of STS I do landscaping and heavy machinery operation in the summer.
Any exciting plans for summer/winter break?
I have been training for a marathon coming up in august which I am excited for. I'm also excited to party with some of my friends over the 4th of July.
Neat Facts
What are some interesting, unexpected, or surprising facts about yourself?
What is something that might surprise someone who just met you?
I spent the summer before my senior year of highschool in Alaska and managed to create a lot of good stories.
Where is somewhere you have always wanted to travel?
I have always wanted to visit Finland and am hoping to make that a reality in the summer of 2022.
Have you ever met anyone famous?
The most famous person I've met was Garrison Keillor, the host of NPR's A Prairie Home Companion radio show.
Life at STS
Talk a little bit about your time with STS
What is your favorite topic to teach?
I haven't been able to teach a course yet but I look forward to teaching solid modeling and programming languages.
What is something you are interested in learning?
I'm interested in learning more about html and web design.
What has been the most challenging part of working at STS?
I'm not quit sure yet as I haven't had the full experience yet.
Miscellaneous
Other potentially interesting bits of information about yourself
