CESE Department

I came to Santa Clara loving art, history, math, physics, chemistry, debate, politics, theology, literature and… I was afraid that choosing one would mean missing out and possibly regretting that decision. Now that I am a senior looking back at this four-year journey, it is surreal that I happened to find the exactly perfect major for me.

My mom encouraged me to take Introduction to Engineering my first quarter, and I was hesitant. My understanding of engineering was a socially awkward boys’ club that did not appeal to me in the slightest. Before that first Intro to Engineering class was over, my opinion had entirely changed. There exists a field that combines science and math to solve real world needs? It sounded too good to be true, but that is exactly what engineers do.

Deciding what kind of engineering I would major in was very difficult, but looking back, I know I would not be this enthusiastic about any discipline other than civil engineering. A civil engineer designs, construct, inspect, and retrofit the built environment that society depends on so much that we hardly think about it. Buildings, bridges, dams, water treatment, roads, and so much more. The civil engineer is at the frontlines of humanity’s relationship with the natural world. We are charged with creating new sustainable systems that have never existed before to mitigate the impacts of climate change and improve living standards.

As a lady-person, I was very intimidated coming into civil engineering. I didn’t feel comfortable around power tools or construction work, and thus the imposter syndrome was daunting. The encouragement of professors, peers, and others did little to shake my sense of inadequacy. In sophomore year, I began to work in the lab with the manager Brent. He taught me how to use power tools and empowered me to look around the space to determine what needed improvement to foster safe learning opportunities. Not only did I gain a sense of belonging and ownership over the lab-space, but developed soft skills related to project planning and leadership by being empowered to try and fail in a low-stakes environment. I gained greater insight into the class lab activities that I had already taken and got a glimpse at higher-level lab exercises. I helped problem-solve for several senior design teams in their testing and witnessed their varying levels of time and team management.

I haven’t decided whether to go into structures or water or some other field, but my Santa Clara education has ensured that I can change my mind in the decades to come and still engineer meaningful solutions no matter what kind of infrastructure I work on.