Laura N. '09

Hey! I'm Laura, and I got this job as a blogger because I'm a loudmouth Jersey girl with an attitude problem. In the early days of the blogs (before there was a blogger application process), my fellow prefrosh and I commented regularly and linked to our personal blogs. Little did we know that certain admissions officers actually READ them. When I showed up at the first ever Meet the Bloggers as a prefrosh, I introduced myself to Ben Jones, the Blogfather. He responded, "Laura?! THE Laura? From [Laura's old personal blog title]?! I read your blog. You curse a lot and it's hilarious. You're totally blogging for us next year." The rest, as they say, is history.

This is a great story because a) it's got a fun, crufty, back-in-the-day vibe, and b) it explains why at times I struggled mightily to keep my Attitude in check on the blogs. If I were a superhero, my superpower would be using my sarcasm to save the world from people who are too uptight about the college admissions process. You have been warned.

While at MIT, I played varisty field hockey, worked at the Computing Help Desk, and organized lots of crazy events on campus, like a one-day training session certifying over 100 people in CPR and a huge cross-campus water fight. I participated in tons of activities at one point or another, so you can explore my archives for a pretty wide range of topics.

I graduated from MIT in 2009 with a degree in mechanical engineering. After that I wandered through life struggling to find my purpose and blah blah blah. Eventually I got a master's degree in Public Affairs, focusing on energy policy and economics. Now I work in the energy field trying to keep the peace between the engineers and the business/sales/government people so that stuff actually gets done.

I love books, physics, teaching, and quirky earrings. One of my favorite pairs is a mismatched set depicting Mars and the rover. When I get sick of the energy field, I plan to quit my job and become a real life Miss Frizzle.

You can contact me at lnicks [at] alum [dot] mit [dot] edu. If you enjoyed anything on my blog, or want college/career/life/the universe/everything advice, don't be shy. I'd love to hear from you!