I Thought Engineering Was About Engineering. I Was Wrong

I thought I knew what I was signing up for.

Engineering. University. Practical sessions. Technical concepts. Maybe a few sleepless nights here and there.

Then 100 level happened.

I just finished my second-semester exams, and with that, I officially closed the first chapter of my journey at the University of Benin.

And honestly? 100 level was nothing like I imagined.

There were late-night study sessions, early-morning classes, mountains of assignments, demanding courses, and those moments when you stare at a difficult question for so long that you start wondering if the question is the problem—or you are. 😂

There were even days when food had to take a back seat because an assignment deadline was approaching faster than my appetite.

And then there were examinations.

The anxiety that somehow appears during exam periods is a different kind of experience entirely.

But somewhere between the stress, the deadlines, and the sleepless nights, something interesting happened.

I started changing.

Coming from secondary school, where I knew almost everyone and already had an idea of where I stood academically, entering the Engineering Faculty was a completely different world.

Suddenly, I was surrounded by hundreds of students with different abilities, ambitions, and goals.

And that environment pushed me.

I became more competitive. More disciplined. More intentional about my studies.

But perhaps the best part was meeting people who shared similar mindsets and aspirations. My friends have challenged me, encouraged me, and pushed me through some difficult moments. I'm genuinely grateful for them. 😊

Engineering also taught me things that weren't written in my course outline.

Communication.

Time management.

Critical thinking.

Building relationships.

Creating connections.

I remember attending events like the SPE UNIBEN Annual Career Fair and realizing that university wasn't just about sitting in a classroom and passing exams. There was a much bigger world outside those four walls.

Ironically, one of my biggest lessons came from something I initially underestimated.

Before entering Engineering, I imagined we'd immediately start doing "engineering things."

Instead, I met MTH, PHY, and CHM.

Basic sciences everywhere. 😭

My overconfidence almost made me pay for that mistake during my exams.

But eventually, I understood why.

They weren't simply trying to make 100 level unnecessarily difficult. They were building our foundation.

Because before you can build something complicated, you need to understand what it's built on.

And now, as I begin my Pre-UBITS programme, I'm starting to see another side of the picture.

I'm beginning to understand the difference between learning engineering in a classroom and experiencing engineering in the real world.

It's still early, but it feels like I'm slowly getting a glimpse of what engineering truly is.

So, after everything, would I still choose engineering?

Yes.

Not because it's easy.

It isn't.

But because somewhere along the way, I realized that engineering isn't only teaching me how to solve technical problems.

It's teaching me how to think.

How to communicate.

How to manage my time.

How to work with people.

How to keep going when things get difficult.

And perhaps most importantly, it's teaching me who I am becoming.

100 level is over.

The journey isn't.

200 level, let's see what you've got. 🚀