Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1457913
30 DESIGN007 MAGAZINE I MARCH 2022 Feature Interview by Andy Shaughnessy I-CONNECT007 Rea Callender is the new vice president of education for Altium. He has a background in business development and entrepreneurship, along with experience in K-12 education. is seemed like a pretty good combination, so I asked Rea to share his thoughts on the best avenues for design education, as well as strate- gies for setting up a lifelong PCB design educa- tion plan. Andy Shaughnessy: What advice do you have for PCB designers who would like to set up their own strategic learning plans for their career in design? Rea Callender: Technology moves very quickly, and it can be difficult for designers to keep up with the technological developments that are most relevant to them specifically. e first place to start is obviously to keep up with developments from CAD vendors who are constantly updating versions of their soware and tools. e new features they announce can help you be more efficient. We also recommend that designers subscribe to some electronics industry publications. PCB publications are important, but there are other publications that can give you an inside view of new technologies as they start to hit the market. ese publications can also give you access to webinars, white papers, eBooks, con- ference notifications, exclusive articles with useful design information, and more. Shaughnessy: What criteria should designers keep in mind when evaluating their educa- tional needs in the industry? Callender: Probably most important is to keep an open mind and take advantage of resources—because you find them interesting, not just because you need them for your job. You never know what you'll learn in a webinar, conference, or free workshop. Because board designers participate in a lot more than board Planning Your Design Education: Keep an Open Mind