You know that girl that loved Lego and puzzles when she was little? That's me. I even had a plastic kitchen to play with and apparently I barely ever used it. There is no need to note that my love for a kitchen remains the same.
My first memory related with numbers is writing times table with a yellow pen when I was around six. It is a simple image that to this day still makes sense. I was never about the reading and the understanding, I needed the simplicity and exactness that math provided. There were times that I considered other careers paths as any child did. Believe me, I wanted to be the teacher and the hairdresser and some other ones until around seventh grade.
On seventh grade I was introduced what is known among people as physics and chemistry. Math was no longer just math, it was a way to understand what happens around us. Three years went by and I chose as my secondary school area science and technologies. That was the biggest ratio slap I had taken until then. There were six girls and nineteen boys loving science to later major in engineering, medicine, sports, etc. Truth be told, there was never once an issue with it. Every person in that classroom respected each other no matter gender, grades or status. I knew I was a minority, and even if I didn't notice it with the other girls, being the only one out of thirteen in my physics class during twelveth grade could tell. Yet, it just got worse.
Going to a college with three girls each ten students speaks volumes, but nothing new there. It is not ideal to be one out of three girls in a room with over thirty students, but I wouldn't have it any other way. I do love techie schools. I love the nerdy environment with the various research projects, numbers and untimely the fact that there are so many college boys just inside one campus. It is true that the entire school is not about partying hard and going wild, but I do believe we get the best of both worlds most of the time.
Of course when certain topics come up there is that tiny percentage of human beings that really makes you question how did they get there. Have I ever heard I shouldn't make as much money as my male colleague doing the same job if that affected him? Yes, I did. The comment about being a girl would make it easier to get help? Yes, I did. The "Really?" when I say what my major is? Yes, I did. Nonetheless, I have found so many more that consider myself just another engineer.
For the last two years, I have found a group of people who I can study Rigid Body Dynamics and watch "The Duff" and yes, they are all male. That thirty percent is an absolute lie when you narrow it down to aeronautical or mechanical engineering. They see me in my glorious and bad days, there is no holding back with those boys. They go through thick and thin with me and never once questioning my integrity as a future engineer. There is a bad experience from time to time, but the amount of mutual support and strong bonds made both academically and non academically is what I take from these four years. I have found people that empower me to become my very best and it has worked so far.
People tend to say that girls tend to fight with each other more, I could not disagree more. Every girl I have met has a different story from a different place. Even though sometimes they say I live a unique experience, that is also thanks to them. From all majors they inspire me with their choices both professional and personal. Every single lady I meet has such a unique perspective and so much potential ahead. There is no way I can ever imagine myself as a competitor or an envious person when looking at their success. I want to be in the first row to watch my friends get the job. Engineering is all about team work and I take that in and outside the classroom no matter if that person is female or male.
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