"From that point on I was trying to loosen up, be more confident, be proud of who I am, and fill up that room like she said," Rosie explains. It was the pivotal moment of her internship and set her on her way to a career at Abbott. "I learned to stop calculating it and be myself," Rosie said.

"Rosie almost brought me to tears when I first saw her begin to make this transformation. From the first few weeks when she joined us, to when they provided their final presentation at the end of the summer, there was a different young lady." Corlis said.

At summer's end, each intern had to present their work to a large audience comprised of parents, teachers, colleagues and mentors. Incorporating all she had learned in her work and about herself, Rosie's presentation was a success, and people were blown away by her confidence.

"The primary thing about the internship is to help young people understand the vastness of opportunity that exists out there," Corlis said.

Rosie went on to college where she graduated with a degree in Mechanical Engineering in a class that included only 4% women. After graduation, she returned to Abbott as a mechanical engineer and is currently in her first rotation through the Abbott Professional Development Program. Rosie continues to 'fill up the room' with her contributions and sees engineering as a continuation of the interests she has had since childhood.

"I was always good at science, math, art, music, and I found a way to bring it together and do engineering which is a little bit of everything. An engineer can be anything. As long as there is a problem, an engineer will be there using math, science and technology to solve it," Rosie said.

Her imagination shines through when Rosie is asked to visually describe an engineer. "I picture a brain. One without gender or ethnicity. It's all about the power of thought," she said.