A Personal Challenge

Broadly speaking, when high school students are each time closer to taking the decision
about what and where to study, usually they tend to avoid this significant topic until the day
they are forced to make their final choice. In particular, I was one of those students who, for
an unknown reason, did not take this issue with absolute seriousness and although it is true
that I had always wanted to study something regarding mathematics, physics, project
planning, etc., essentially, engineering, and that after all, I had been accepted in every
university I applied for, my decision was to relax and to take it easy. Nevertheless, the key
day arrived and despite the fact of already knowing that Universidad Nacional de Colombia
was the College I wanted to study at, the query about which undergraduate to choose had
not been solved yet. As the two options I was considering were Mechanical and Civil
Engineering, I initially did some research regarding subjects, future jobs and opportunities
abroad. Subsequently, I asked my parents about their thoughts in the matter and, last of all,
I sat down to think. Later on, when there was no time left, I turned on the computer and
made the decision of choosing Mechanical Engineering. What a bad choice!

My studies began and, since the first week, I knew that I would not like the undergraduate I
had chosen as I felt quite uncomfortable with Mechanical Engineering first semester
subjects. Due to this, and taking into account that I met all the requirements, I immediately
requested the transfer from Mechanical to Civil Engineering so that by the beginning of the
subsequent academic period I could have already been enrolled in the new undergraduate.
Nonetheless, since by the end of the semester some peers I knew had received a notification
in which the transfer was being accepted and I had not, I knew everything had gone to hell.

The situation was so frustrating for me because, as stated, I hated Mechanical Engineering.
I even considered leaving the university so as to begin again in any of other colleges I had
applied for and in which I had been accepted. I began, thus, to prepare all the stuff related
to changing college such as going to the new location with the aim of searching flats and
restaurants nearby.

A nice surprise came, however, one day when I opened my mail and noticed a message
from Universidad Nacional de Colombia apologizing for making a mistake by denying the
transfer. The reason they gave was that I had been confused with anyone else and that,
therefore, the request which had been denied was the other applicant´s one, not mine. Poor
guy! Owing to this, he could not transfer but I did and, final finally, here I am studying
Civil Engineering.