Some common misconceptions about engineering
cleared
This post is just a collection of a wide range of reactions I
get from people when I tell them I am an engineer. While some may cause you to
bang your head against the wall, the rest may amuse you. I have arranged some of the questions in a descending order starting from the ones that are most commonly asked
to the least uncommon and special ones. After being tormented and tortured to the same
questions again and again, I finally decided to make a guide of what not to ask
an engineering student. Go ahead and have a read. If you are a fellow-engineer
you will probably co-relate yourself to most of these questions and commiserate
with me and if not, you will know what pisses us really off..!
5. The stupidest and the most common one:
Oh, wow! You are
studying engineering? You must be doing a pretty tough job. You must be very
studious and hardworking!
Our response: LOL hardworking and studious? The
truth is we never study for engineering. We open the books; in fact sometimes
buy the books a fortnight before exam and still ace the examinations. I know we
are awesome. Infact, pretty awesome. But calling us studious and sincere is
seriously insulting us. We believe in last minute studies and not in preparing
for it all year long. It takes brilliant expertise and careful planning to
complete the entire syllabus in a week. Only us engineers can do that..!
So next time before you call us awesome watch where your
words are going. You might end up offending a fellow engineer.
4. Another common
question. What field do you study in engineering? Is it Mechanical, Computer,
Electronics and Communications or Civil?
Our response: I study blah blah engineering. But
you should know these are not the only fields in engineering. If your knowledge
about engineering is limited please don’t show off by naming as if you know all
the fields. There is more to than what meets the eye. While these are the most
common engineering fields, there are few very pretty uncommon and specialised
ones. I don’t know how you guys tackle this question, but I find it a very
daunting task each time. It’s so frustrating explaining to everyone what
Mechatronics Engineering means. I am sure all the other students studying in
least common engineering branches face the same problem as me. There was this
one guy who once asked me what field I am studying. I told him I was studying
Mechatronics engineering he was a poker face. He told, he didn’t understand
what I meant to say, exasperated I explained him what we study and what we deal
with. When I finished, the guy asked me in a real tone of caution, Are you sure
it is a degree certified course? Are you sure you it is from a graded
university? I was like, are you freaking kidding me?
So next time before you ask one of us what field does he
belong to, be patient and try to understand what he wants to say. Or who knows
you may never hear from him again.
3. Another Common one:
Ohh! You are an engineer, you must know how to repair this.
Our Response: While we accept we do a pretty
tough job studying engineering, it does not mean that we can repair microwaves,
air conditioners, or any other damn electronic appliance that does not work in
your house. I agree some of us like me, have a habit of opening up things which
seldom close just to see how they operate. (I damaged my own speakers, my
mother’s juicer, electric mixture and god knows what just to see how it is
operating) But that does not mean that we can repair refrigerators and
microwaves. Go and call a technician. If needed, we will stand by their side to
understand what they are doing but will never touch your appliance unless you
really want to get a new one.
Cutting the long story short, never ask us this question. Who
knows infuriated by it, we may even open the wrong screws.
2. The one which hurts the most:
What is your aggregate
percentage score?
Our Response: Unless you really want to hit us hard, in the most
brutal way possible please don’t ask this question. Even hearing about it hurts
us a lot. Do we ever ask you, how much
money do you make or how much do you weigh? Such questions hurt, we understand.
Hope you will too. J
1. The most irritating of all and the
deadliest one too:
So what plans do you
have after B.Tech/B.E?
Our response: Well, I intend to go to North Pole
and shake a leg or two with the polar bears there. We don’t even have an idea
what we will be doing next semester, then how the hell can we think what we shall
be doing after engineering. Its like asking a dying man what will you do in
your next birth. It’s not that we don’t like planning for the future or we are
irresponsible. We do plan and work, but we are not obsessed about it. When you are an engineering student deadlines
for the next day’s assignment matter much more than thinking about what you
will do after a year.
Ask that question more than one time and trust me we shall
never want to see you again.opHophhh
This little post may
have confused many of you that we are nothing but sadistic, dumb ass lazy
creatures. However, we are just normal yet awesome humans who have learnt to
operate in a different way. Survival Instincts..! You have to learn them or
else Engineering screws you.
P.S This post is especially dedicated to all the uncles and
aunties that we have out there. You guys were the inspiration for this blog.
Thanks J