Triston Van Wyk '27
(He/Him)
Hometown: Boise, ID
Year: 2nd Year
Major: Mechanical Engineering
“I Don’t Want a Valuable Life Lesson, I Just Want an Ice Cream!” -Bluey
Hey! My name is Triston, I am a second-year student here at ISU studying mechanical engineering. I fell in love with the engineering world back in middle school when I joined my FLL (FIRST LEGO League) team 27895 The Thingamabots, and ever since have had this fascination for STEAM and robotics. I am not fully sure where I want to take my degree yet, but I did have the opportunity to be a part of Apple’s Engineering Technology Summer camp going into my senior year of high school and I loved it. So who knows I may be helping design the next latest Apple product sometime soon. I am extremely excited to be a mentor this year and to have the opportunity to help out all of you guys in your first year of college. Whether that be needing someone to ask that weird question about housing or that pesky Calculus 3 assignment you still don’t fully understand, I am happy to help in any way possible. My mentor helped start my college experience off right and I am hoping to do the same for all of you!
Outside of class time, you will likely find me playing video games or streaming to my YouTube channel. I am not very picky about what I play but my go-to games recently have been Rocket League and Lethal Company, although I am always open to trying a new and exciting game (so if you have any suggestions let me know). I also am a massive fan of the Australian kids show Bluey. I know it is kind of weird (especially coming from a 19-year-old) but trust me it is so well written and you definitely won’t be disappointed if you were to give it a watch. When I am not streaming or watching Bluey I am helping mentor the local FRC (FIRST Robotics Competition) team 1569 Haywire Robotics. I was a part of the FIRST community for over 8 years before graduating from the program and going on to college, but I just couldn’t get enough! FIRST and FRC are what made me passionate about engineering and I want to help bring that passion to many high school students through the lens of robotics. So if you want to nerd out about FRC, robotics, or the latest and greatest in technology you know who to call.
My biggest piece of advice as you start to think about college and get into the thick of it is to enjoy the journey. It may be stressful at times trying to adjust to the new environment away from home, but it is all a part of the process. It was challenging at times being away from home for the first time, and there was a lot to take in all at once. It is normal to feel overwhelmed by it all, but after about a month or so of being at college, you will start to find your friends and everything will be alright. It may be awkward at first to put yourself out there, adjust to living on your own, and getting used to how college is taught, but you have it in you to do great. So get out there and just enjoy the experience because college only happens once!