CAPS engineering strand paved path for CF grad

When CAPS was introduced, at the time senior Kabeer Bhatia had an interest in the engineering strand and was convinced by counselor Erin Gardner to take the course. 

CAPS can cause lots of difficulties and put students under lots of pressure, and Bhatia struggled at first.

 “You have so much to learn, but they help you in the long run so I wouldn’t consider them struggles,” Bhatia said. “You can only gain more comfort when dealing with recurring problems. It’s hard to just make them go away.”

Through all the hardships he was faced with, Bhatia continued to attend CAPS and quickly got comfortable with a company called Kryton Engineering. His CAPS location set a homebase in their facility, and he became interested in their metal spinning services. 

“They presented me with an opportunity to work for them in a contract. I decided to stick with Kryton even after CAPS because it gave me the ability to proudly say I had a job lined up for me after I went through College,” Bhatia said. 

After attending Iowa State University and gaining a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering, Bhatia resumed his contract. Looking back on his high school years, Bhatia said, “For someone who’s picture or name wasn’t in the yearbook, I wasn’t expecting to be where I am. At the time, all I did was create a stepstool, but after seeing what processes I was put through for an end product, I realized how CAPS and Kryton built me up to success.”

Bhatia said CAPS was able to build his professional skills and push him to his best. “It was more of the communication and professionalism they provided me, that could be used in really any field. Emails, handshakes and resumes can get you really far.”

Bhatia is closely involved with the current CAPS programs and has become someone students look up to when working on projects. Five years have gone by, yet he still looks back on his CAPS succession to reach for motivation. “I would absolutely recommend the program for everyone, even if you aren’t interested in CAPS. If you go into a field that you don’t like, at least you learn that you shouldn’t pursue it in your future.”