Jacob Foster

Iowa State University

Cpr E 494: General Education Reflection

As an engineering student, I have learned to generate solutions to problems. My classes

reinforce that we can solve problems in any way necessary, so long as we arrive at a workable
solution. However, during my time at Iowa State, I took advantage of non-engineering courses,
improving my critical thinking skills. These general education classes gave me a new
perspective on thinking.

The first general education class I took at Iowa State University was a political science
course, Pol S 333: Democracy and Diversity in the U.S. This class addressed issues of racial,
religious, ethnic, gender, and economic diversity in America. We also discussed immigration,
affirmative action, multicultural education, and minority representation. For the first time at Iowa
State, my solution to a problem was not significant. There was no “right” answer; no problems
could be solved with mathematical equations or StackOverflow. Instead, it was my thought
process, my justification for my answers that mattered. This way of thinking was foreign to me.
This class taught me about U.S. diversity, yes. Even more, this class taught me how to think
better.

The second general education class I took at Iowa State University was another political
science course, Pol S 355: War and Politics. This class addressed theoretical relationships among
politics, strategy, and war, the evolution of war, relationships between technology and conflict,
and global violence’s changing causes and nature. As a cybersecurity engineer, it is crucial to
acknowledge that cyber is now a warfighting domain; our adversaries are using cyber as a means
of terrorism, espionage, misinformation, and disinformation campaigns. This class introduced
warfighting strategies and ideas that can transcend into the cyber domain.

Overall, the general education classes I took at Iowa State University have helped me
become a more mindful, knowledgeable individual. I learned many skills and ideologies that I
can take as a cybersecurity engineer to aid national and domestic security. I am grateful for the
experiences I gained from these classes, and I look forward to learning and implementing the
skills and knowledge in my career.