Meet a Fluid Power Scholarship Winner – Ethan Smoes

The NFPA Education and Technology Foundation has awarded 23 $2,000 scholarships to students pursuing fluid power related fields of study.

One of the winners, Ethan Smoes, is attending LeTourneau University. We asked Ethan a few questions about winning the scholarship.

What does winning a Fluid Power Scholarship mean to you?

Winning this scholarship means a lot to me. It greatly encourages me. My stress is reduced knowing that my college debt will not be bigger. Another encouragement I have received through the scholarship is the knowledge that even more people feel I have potential and if I continue to work hard, that potential will be fulfilled.

Why did you choose to learn about fluid power?
I would like to learn about fluid power because of my interest in aviation and my love for design. These interests led to my desire to become an aerospace engineer. Ideally, I want to work on aircraft or spacecraft structures, making them faster, more fuel efficient and aerodynamic. Fluids will play an important role in all this in the form of hydraulics and aerodynamics.

What are your career aspirations? What type of fluid power job do you hope to get after you graduate?

My desire is to be an aerospace engineer and be part of a team designing new, improved aircraft or spacecraft. I would love to do so in an influential company such as Boeing, Lockheed Martin, NASA or SpaceX. I also plan on doing further schooling to receive a Master’s Degree and a PhD.

A minimum GPA of 2.5 out of 4.0, 500-word essay, and letter of recommendation were required from each applicant. The NFPA Foundation’s goal is to help graduating high school students, and individuals enrolled in community colleges, technical schools and universities pursue their academic interests in fluid power.

One way NFPA members can get involved with scholarship programs is to volunteer as a judge to serve on the application review committee or mentor a robotics team as they work towards incorporating pneumatics in their designs. This year 16 judges from 13 NFPA member companies reviewed 50 student applications to the Fluid Power Scholarship program. If you are interested in learning more, please contact Haley Nemeth at hnemeth@nfpa.com.