Mechanical Drafting Alum Stays Open to Evolving Career Path

A version of this story originally appeared in our 2024 newsletter. View other featured stories

For Amanda Mager ’20, manufacturing and design are family affairs. Her father is a manufacturing engineer and her brothers – one older, one younger – have both been students in Anoka Technical College’s mechanical drafting and design program.

“It was funny how it ended up working out that way,” she says. “But obviously we’re very, very similar in the way that we’re interested in things.”

Amanda’s interest in mechanical drafting and design was piqued thanks to a high school course that allowed her to experiment with creation through design software and manufacturing tools. She used programs like Adobe Photoshop to design and dabbled with other software and tools to create custom designs on wood or stickers on vinyl. “My dad recommended, based off how much I was talking about enjoying that class, that I look into drafting,” Amanda says.

Early in her time at Anoka Tech, representatives from Great River Energy presented in one of her courses. They were recruiting interns at the time. After a year of interning with the company, Amanda was hired on full time. She says her work has evolved during her time with the company. Where she started with mechanical drafting, her days are now filled managing a broader portfolio of tasks. She transitioned to a new work group and she found new opportunities to lead in the creation of work processes and structures.

“A lot of my job isn’t just drafting right now. It’s a lot of document management. It’s creating standards. It’s all sorts of things,” Amanda says. “I get a lot of variety in the work I do.”
She says branching out professionally, while uncomfortable, has been fulfilling.

“I’d encourage people to not be afraid to try something that might be a little bit out of the scope of what they have been learning throughout their education,” she says. “It’s sometimes taking a shot in the dark of trying to learn something new with the experience that you’ve gathered through school. People shouldn’t shy away from those opportunities because you might miss out on a great one.”