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Mercedes Hernandez
Mercedes Hernandez
00:49

Mercedes Hernandez

Qorvo

Hillsboro, OR USA

"Being in your comfort zone is cozy and warm but it’s not going to take you to the next step."

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Mercedes's work combines: Engineering, Technology, and Problem Solving

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Day In The Life

Staff Development Engineer

I do thermal mechanical modeling for components in the semiconductor industry.

Skills & Education

Here's the path I took:

  • High School

  • Bachelor's Degree

    Mechanical Engineering

    Universidad Simón Bolívar

  • Doctorate

    Mechanical Engineering

    University of Delaware

Life & Career Milestones

My path in life has been direct

  • 1.

    I was born and raised in Venezuela.

  • 2.

    I earned my bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Universidad Simón Bolívar in Venezuela.

  • 3.

    I knew that I wanted to travel and work overseas and I also wanted to go deeper into mechanical engineering, so earning a U.S. graduate degree was the best option.

  • 4.

    The first thing I wanted to do was improve my English, so I found a good ESL program at the University of Delaware.

  • 5.

    While at the university, I met graduate students who encouraged me to apply for the Ph.D. program—I was accepted the next year and was able to pursue a Ph.D. in mechanical engineering.

  • 6.

    During my Ph.D. program, I did some work in modeling—which is what I do today—but I was mainly focused on researching coatings for aerospace turbines.

  • 7.

    After graduating, I started my career as a software engineer for Intel but realized after a few years that the environment wasn’t a great fit for me.

  • 8.

    I joined Qorvo as a packaging engineer and have since worked my way up to staff development engineer.