Tuesday, July 05, 2005
Did I make a mistake along the way somewhere?
Guys, I got some bad news. Engineering doesn't seem that fun to me anymore and I don't think I'm good at it.
My plan is to still carry through with this and finish my degree up next year, heck maybe even stick around for the masters. And afterwards I'll get an "engineering job" whatever that is. The unfortunate parts boys is that I don't really see how this is going to be fun. Maybe it won't?
I like cool stuff like Monster Garage and Mythbusters but I don't really see people lining up around the block to pay me to screw around with cool gadgets.
I wrote that earlier part when I was depressed. I guess I'm not in that bad of a career place. Hahahaha better than most of the younger people I know, save for the boys boys boys.
P.S. that was a damb fine weekender fellas. We needa do it again when Doug gets home from Europia. The best fireworks in the world are the ones you light on your own front lawn.
My plan is to still carry through with this and finish my degree up next year, heck maybe even stick around for the masters. And afterwards I'll get an "engineering job" whatever that is. The unfortunate parts boys is that I don't really see how this is going to be fun. Maybe it won't?
I like cool stuff like Monster Garage and Mythbusters but I don't really see people lining up around the block to pay me to screw around with cool gadgets.
I wrote that earlier part when I was depressed. I guess I'm not in that bad of a career place. Hahahaha better than most of the younger people I know, save for the boys boys boys.
P.S. that was a damb fine weekender fellas. We needa do it again when Doug gets home from Europia. The best fireworks in the world are the ones you light on your own front lawn.
# posted by Sam Arsenault @ 8:37 AM 
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Listen closely,
every young person feels the same way you do. The only difference is that a) you have a blog, and b) you have the guts to say it. We're the newest generation that is subject to the "get an education and get a 'good job'" philosophy. Then when your education comes to a close, here come the questions. I don't know about you but I don't have the patience to tell everyone the intricacies of an upper education. The question of "what are you going to do" is one that scares a lot of people. Not just uncomfortable, but SCARED. It's very hard to say that you like something so much that you want to do it for the rest of your life...thinking about it that way is kind of depressing.
Sometimes you need to do something else just to show yourself just what it is that you love. It's certainly worked for me. I totally switched gears with my Masters degree into something way more applied than was my undergrad work. What I realized is how much I miss fundamental science...what makes physics great, really. It also took a trip to another university to realize how amazing UPEI is.
To answer your question: no. You took engineering because you like it. Sometimes you can be disinterested in subjects within your program of choice (ie. me with solidstate physics). Once you find something that you like you'll find yourself reading and tackling problems like you never knew you could. I did this at UPEI but never noticed until I left.
Keep in mind that you haven't had a good supervisor yet. You're being treated like a Master's student in that you're given a problem and told "go to it". That's tough. In a Masters, your supervisor is just as important as your subject. The right person can make anything seem great. Of course, this is easier if you already like the subject.
For me, my supervisor is great. I lucked out. But I realized that the subject isn't something that I want to pursue. Make no mistake -- I'll see this through to the best of my ability, but I'm reverting back to my physics roots when this is over.
Doing this masters has paid off already. I've learned much about the atmosphere, but what's more valuble is the fact that I learned something about myself...something incredibly important.
Neil
every young person feels the same way you do. The only difference is that a) you have a blog, and b) you have the guts to say it. We're the newest generation that is subject to the "get an education and get a 'good job'" philosophy. Then when your education comes to a close, here come the questions. I don't know about you but I don't have the patience to tell everyone the intricacies of an upper education. The question of "what are you going to do" is one that scares a lot of people. Not just uncomfortable, but SCARED. It's very hard to say that you like something so much that you want to do it for the rest of your life...thinking about it that way is kind of depressing.
Sometimes you need to do something else just to show yourself just what it is that you love. It's certainly worked for me. I totally switched gears with my Masters degree into something way more applied than was my undergrad work. What I realized is how much I miss fundamental science...what makes physics great, really. It also took a trip to another university to realize how amazing UPEI is.
To answer your question: no. You took engineering because you like it. Sometimes you can be disinterested in subjects within your program of choice (ie. me with solidstate physics). Once you find something that you like you'll find yourself reading and tackling problems like you never knew you could. I did this at UPEI but never noticed until I left.
Keep in mind that you haven't had a good supervisor yet. You're being treated like a Master's student in that you're given a problem and told "go to it". That's tough. In a Masters, your supervisor is just as important as your subject. The right person can make anything seem great. Of course, this is easier if you already like the subject.
For me, my supervisor is great. I lucked out. But I realized that the subject isn't something that I want to pursue. Make no mistake -- I'll see this through to the best of my ability, but I'm reverting back to my physics roots when this is over.
Doing this masters has paid off already. I've learned much about the atmosphere, but what's more valuble is the fact that I learned something about myself...something incredibly important.
Neil
# posted by 
: 7:26 PM
: 7:26 PM
To echo Neil's comments, having completed 3 work terms, it helps you realize what you don't want to do, at the very least.
I realized, at this point, that I'm sick and tired of school (or Dal) and want to work and make me some money. Every task has its boring and/or annoying component, whether it be filling out forms or going to safety meetings.
The point is, that as long as there's one part that you enjoy, and that there's opportunity to build on that, then you've got a reason to be hopeful.
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I realized, at this point, that I'm sick and tired of school (or Dal) and want to work and make me some money. Every task has its boring and/or annoying component, whether it be filling out forms or going to safety meetings.
The point is, that as long as there's one part that you enjoy, and that there's opportunity to build on that, then you've got a reason to be hopeful.
# posted by : 7:16 PM
: 7:16 PM << Home
