Written by: Daphene Kabriel T. Dela Cruz
Scholar batch 2021-2022
School: Polytechnic University of the Philippines
“What do you want to be when you grow up?” A simple one-liner question that can put me into deep thought.
Growing up, I have been really invested in exploring the Mathematical world as it was undeniably interesting and mind-boggling. As someone who takes risks on challenges, Mathematics began to be my favorite subject since it consists of difficult problems, but I cannot deny the fact that it’s quite enjoyable. Moving forward to my high school years, I was already in my Senior year where the pressure for college programs occur, it seems like we were asked to choose our favorite to dine among a huge variety of dishes; without any hesitation I know I would pick Engineering. However, it didn’t stop there, it was like I’ve only seen the tip of an iceberg; I have figured out that there are a lot more programs under the Engineering course. Aside from my passionate interest in Mathematics, I have grown up with my father working as an Electrician, this led me to the decision to pick Electrical Engineering among all the programs. When the college interview came, I was asked why I chose Electrical Engineering since this course was usually taken by men. As they were concerned that I have to work with electricities that have high voltages, they recommended Electronics Engineering. They have mentioned that there is a vast opportunity within this program, wherein I can work in the field of Electronics, Communication, Networks, Mechatronics, Robotics, etc. After hearing those offerings under this program, I immediately changed my mind to choose this even with the fact that I do not have firsthand knowledge in this field.
As I enter my college years, I have come to realize that the program I took doesn’t only concerns Electronics and Telecommunications, but as well as innovation and technology. From then I became interested to wander and learn more deeply about the internet of things, artificial intelligence, cloud computing, and machine learning. Albeit the fact that I am not that good at programming, it is still different when you have the willingness to learn. I am also amazed by the idea of how technology is one of the keys to humanity’s progress since it has made life easier for us at every stage of our evolution and provided us with a plethora of previously inconceivable options. Despite the fact that technology can be a double-edged sword, it is impossible to deny that it has a variety of positive effects on various aspects of our lives.
As an ECE graduate, I realized that it’s okay to shift careers. If you want to do something, try to do it. Just explore until you see what you want to do. Don’t be afraid. Because you feel different when you love what you’re doing and also you are happy while doing it. You are motivated to come every day and not always stressed. Lastly, I want to thank Ulap.org for giving me this opportunity to be one of their scholars from then I see myself as a fresh graduate where my interest is in a good investment for my career in the near future.
