December 2, 2013

One Small Step For Woman-Kind

Another week left of the semester! Whoa Hoo!! I'm super excited to be one step closer to a relaxing winter break and even one step closer to graduation. This semester has been a bit of a break for me in comparison to my previous semesters. I guess that is the luxury of your last year in college, huh? Well, I needed it.

College for everyone, I would assume, is a challenge. At least for me it has been. Having to pass Calculus I, II, III, and Differential Equations in addition to Physics I & II, as well as Chemistry I & II before even getting into my actual program seemed like complete BS. That should have been a degree in itself if you ask me! Then came the second serving of my actually engineering courses. My fingers are crossed; hopefully these classes will benefit me in the real world.

So, how did I start down this path? I began college pursuing a degree in Architecture. My sophomore year, I decided to switch into Civil Engineering. All of my friends thought I was nuts; who actually chooses to SWITCH to engineering?! *slowly raises hand* It's typically a major people switch out of, not in to. Here, I am the exception. The curriculum has been extremely difficult and challenging, but also immensely rewarding and worthwhile.

Back in the 1960s, less than 1% of recorded engineers were women. According to the National Society of Professional Engineers, this number has grown to about 13%. To shock you even more, of that 13%, only 5% represents African American women. Much work needs to be done and more strides need to be made to grow these numbers in the future. I simply hope that my one small step influences and encourages even but one other girl to seek a career in engineering.

If I can't be the encouragement, let the average starting salary of $60K do the job.

❤❤❤

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