
Show Notes
What happens when the lessons learned building and competing with a Baja SAE vehicle carry over into a professional engineering career?
On this episode of Beyond the Competition, Mike Sorg and Scott Schultz are joined by Baja SAE Program Manager Damon Andring and members of the Oshkosh Corporation team to explore how the Baja SAE experience prepares students for the engineering workforce.
Todd Cimermancic, Zac Hassman and Jake Gates share their experiences with SAE University Programs, including their journeys from student projects and competition weekends to engineering careers with Oshkosh Corporation and JLG. They discuss how skills such as problem solving, communication, teamwork, design iteration and project management translate directly into professional engineering environments.
The conversation also explores Oshkosh Corporation's continuing involvement with Baja SAE, its memorable custom competition trophies, the new “Hammered Back” endurance award and the importance of building genuine relationships between students and engineers at competition.
Plus, the group looks toward the future of mobility and engineering with discussions about autonomy, active safety, connected equipment, electrification and the technologies today's students may soon be developing themselves.
For students preparing for their own careers, the message is simple: get involved, ask questions, talk to the engineers around the paddock and make the most of every opportunity Beyond the Competition.
More from Beyond The Competition
Can an EV battery cooling system stop thermal runaway?
Get ready for Baja SAE Ohio 2026 with everything you need to know before arriving at Briarcliff!
Recorded live during Formula SAE IC 2026 at Michigan International Speedway, this special panel discussion brings together accomplished leaders from across motorsports, automotive engineering, mobility technology, and manufacturing to share their career journeys and lessons learned along the way.
In this episode of Beyond the Competition, hosts Mike Sorg and Scott Schultz sit down with three engineers who have taken different paths from university engineering programs into industry careers. Joining the show are Ben Baize, Controls Engineer at Pratt Miller, Evan Wiedemeier, Rotational Engineer at Oshkosh Corporation and former AutoDrive Challenge student, and Land Barnum, Electrification Engineer at Oshkosh Corporation.
As teams prepare for Baja SAE New York 2026, Mike Sorg sits down with Baja SAE Program Manager Damon Andring and event organizers Steven Shurski and Andrew Beckmann to discuss everything competitors need to know before arriving at Hogback Hill.