A young alum’s career takes flight
By MARISA MATA, Student Writer
Audrey Goral (2008), a double major in mathematics and physics, offers this advice to current Fresno State students: “Make connections in your field of study and stay in contact with fellow classmates and instructors. Sometimes who you know will help you get your foot in the door and your resume/experience will take care of the rest.” This is advice that she has followed, that led her to her career as an operational flight test engineer at Edwards Air Force Base.
It was a family friend that passed on Goral’s resume to the base, and after a supervisor saw the skills that she had to offer, Goral was called in. She met with supervisors and toured the base. She thought that the job sounded interesting and, not really having a plan for what to do after college, she decided to try it out for a couple of years.
Goral’s job as a flight test engineer entails testing programs for aircraft to help Congress make informed decisions about purchasing and fielding those programs on entire fleets.
“My days are spent writing test plans, data analysis plans, coordinating and conducting flight tests, developing data analysis tools, doing data analysis and reporting the results. Our reports inform Congress on whether the program tested is operationally effective and suitable,” Goral explains.
When Goral was first hired in 2009, she figured she would try it out for a couple of years then move on, now, after six years and rich experiences, she considers this her full-fledged career. What made her decide to stay there? Goral attributes it to the “great group of people” that she works with and the recognition she and her colleagues receive for the good work that they do.
“Air Force Operational Test and Evaluation Center, the organization that I work for, does a good job of giving recognition where it is deserved. I have won Air Force level and Department of Defense level awards.”
In 2014, Goral traveled to the Pentagon to receive the Department of Defense’s David O. Cooke Excellence in Public Administration Award, which she deems to be her greatest accomplishment while working at Edwards Air Force Base. This award is given to one of 800,000 civil service employees each year to recognize their work that “exemplifies the namesake’s talents.” Cooke worked with the Department of Defense for 45 years and “earned recognition as a public official that championed cooperative spirit and improved operations.”
Goral says, “It was a huge honor to accept the Cooke award and I will continue to strive to better myself and become one of tomorrow’s leaders.”
