Our friend Troy graduated from NCSU with a Bachelors Degree in Civil Engineering on Saturday. We were privileged to attend about the best graduation I have ever attended. All the speakers appeared to be grateful and humble. Even more importantly, there speeches were brief and interesting. The crowd was respectful (with the exception of a few appropriate and well-justified digs at UNC). It is quite a thing to just get through the math required to earn a Civil Engineering degree. Then, when you add Statics, Dynamics, all the Physics and Chemistry, and the big project classes, it gets even uglier. These were the guys that were willing for, even relishing the hard work of really “getting” science and design. The huge payoff is that now they have it. The degree shows they have endured the pain and employers, having been through that same pain themselves, value it.
Lorena, Kelly, Christian, and I talked about it a lot on Saturday evening and Sunday. It DOES pay to do something hard. Troy put a link to this video on his blog a few days back. It is awesome–EXACTLY what I have been preaching to my kids for several years now. You can do ANYTHING you want, but doing something hard first opens a lot of doors that are hard to open when you get older. My theory (and that espoused in the video) is that if you want to be a Sociologist, study Applied Math, Statistics, or Engineering first.
Congratulations Troy!
Troy
Full Disclosure: Youngin actually found an posted the video!
Woo-hoo!!! Very cool Youngin. Thanks. My folks LOVED that video.
This is why I am so glad that Emma has decided to get her degree in Physical Therapy. She wanted to do Global Studies or Geography or something a little more in that realm, but I had always hoped that she would go for a biology degree or something in the sciences because you can always tack a Global Studies or geography degree on top of your “skilled” profession. With her PT degree, she can go global and travel and take help with her in the form of her head knowledge and skillful hands to heal. Being a little gutsy and intuitive and techy would help also in the way that you can think on your feet and do much with what you are given in terms of resources in able to do your ‘job’ in a country that may not have the same available resources. I hope, in the future to take our combined skills to a third world country and make a difference there, as well as in the lives of those we treat here in the United States. Please keep her in your prayers as she navigates her way.
I think Emma made a great choice. I never thought about the part about being able to travel. How much better could it be if you want to be able to travel and pursue a passion studying Global Studies or geography. You are thinking the same as us. Lorena and I want to go back to Mexico or somewhere down in South America to teach and be a help after the kids are out of school. I might even go get another Masters degree or something to be able to do it that much better. I wonder what Mattise is thinking now, too!
Well, right now she is IN LOVE with Broadway! Though, she is doing well in her technology class. Next week they take their tests. Exams A and B she did exceptional on….Exam C is for college credit. She takes that next week.
Good luck on the exams! Getting college credit on an exam is just an amazing thing for someone in high school–satisfaction and advancement for the student and money in the pocket of Dad and Mom! Kelly seems to be in a perpetual show-tunes from of mind so we relate to that Broadway thing.