I vividly remember the first time I told someone I was studying engineering in college. From that moment on, I was either told, “Wow, that’s so cool!”, or “Good luck with that. Engineering is hard!” I will admit, it’s no secret that engineering is a hard discipline to study, and it’s even harder knowing that only 13% of engineers in the workforce are women. However, despite the statistics, my love for math and science drew me to engineering, and nothing will ever drive me away.
Entering the University of Washington, I was certain that I wanted to major in bioengineering. The intersection between engineering and the medical field is a fascinating topic and a rapidly growing field. I knew that majoring in bioengineering could lead to a career in this field, but I had no idea about the variety of majors that could lead to a career in the medical field. I’m now interested in pursuing a degree in materials science and engineering with a focus on nano-engineering; I hope to work with nanotechnology and biomedical devices in my future career.
Materials science and engineering is heavily based on chemistry; knowing this, I elected to take the honors chemistry series at the University of Washington. The honors chemistry series focuses on the “why” behind all the equations and theory in chemistry; instead of being handed the equations, we derive the equations ourselves. To be completely honest, I was very intimidated by this idea the first week of class, but now it’s the fourth week, and I’m really liking the derivations of all the equations. I’m given an opportunity to see the bigger picture and how chemistry connects to the real world as well as my intended major.
My first class of the morning is Calculus; while this class does meet at 8:30am, I’ve come to enjoy the lectures and the material that we’re learning. In chemistry, we often use calculus techniques to derive the equation and I’m starting to see how both subjects come together in a real-world context. Making connections between the different subjects and the real world has been my favorite part of my classes so far.
Though the University of Washington is a big school, my classes have allowed me to develop a community and make this big university a little smaller. I’m really enjoying my time as an engineering student so far, and although this is only the beginning of my journey, I know it’s going to be a good one.