• @[email protected]
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    2018 hours ago

    Two things. 1. If you hated it maybe it was the wrong choice, 2. You can walk in the spring commencement if you want to, that’s what I did for grad school.

    • @petersr
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      712 hours ago
      1. if you hated engineering in uni, will you love the work afterwards?
        • @[email protected]
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          2 hours ago

          Yup. If you enjoy the work but hate the school environment, you’ll probably like being an engineer.

          I’m a software engineer, so it’s quite a bit different than other types of engineering, and I hated formal education but I absolutely love my job, even after many years.

      • @[email protected]
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        32 hours ago

        Depends if who you work for. If you work for bad management prepare for some goon to tell you what you should be doing, be wrong about what they tell you, not know what they want, and to demand it sooner than you tell them it will take. They will then change their mind and still expect it to take less time. They will be constantly frustrated with you and you will hate it.

        Good management will find work with clear value to customers and you will feel valued and be given *mostly adequate time to do your work. You will put in your hours and be paid. You’ll still be jerked around by typical corporate politics, but it’s everywhere so buckle up. Better than ditch digging unless that’s what you want.

        • @[email protected]
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          32 hours ago

          Good management should insulate engineers from most of the corporate politics. My manager, for example, knows we get surprises, so they add in extra time to whatever estimate we give, and he tells stakeholders that this is a firm estimate, which they’ll inevitably push back on and they’ll concede down to something a little higher than our initial estimate (i.e. handle the corporate politics).

      • @dejected_warp_core
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        22 hours ago

        Depends on the person, depends on the University.

        From what I’ve seen (very old anecdote here, take with salt) some engineering colleges will do everything within the ethics/honor code to obstruct your path to 2nd year. Then they do it again for 3rd. The result are brutally hard classes that are designed to weed students out more than teaching the subject at hand. Even on its best day, school doesn’t mirror the real world, but neither does semester after semester of arbitrary hurdles for a degree. The workplace simply has entirely different, but far more palatable, bullshit on offer. IMO, it’s completely valid to hate school but love your job afterwards.

      • @DeadWorldWalking
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        33 hours ago
        1. Does it matter if you hate the work if it’s the only thing you can find that pays more than subsistence wages?

        2. Do any of our lives matter in this hell?

    • @[email protected]
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      1218 hours ago

      I love engineering, I hated University. The framework of school is not for everyone and reading 300 pages of complex stuff every week for 4 years is boring to death and it isn’t for me, and for a lot of people.

      School of all levels caters to one type of learning, and not everyone is good with that style.

      • @[email protected]
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        417 hours ago

        I experienced a wide array of learning types. Some profs rely on student-led learning from book readings and assignments, some relied on in-person lectures, some worked through examples in class and had similar examples on homework along with challenge problems that extend the examples in new ways, one had us use mathcad to build a model of increasing complexity with each lecture.

        Saying university caters to one type is an absurd reduction. Unless that one type is “learning”.

        Engineering is a skilled trade with a long list of topics that have to be covered. You don’t have to be an engineer, you could do a two year tech school or just DIY and roll your own, prove yourself through your work to get into engineering-like jobs.

        • @[email protected]
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          417 hours ago

          Good for you. My experience is that the program was geared towards people that would continue to masters and PhDs.

          I had an exam every two weeks, hundreds of pages every week to read and the professors weren’t really available for us, and teaching assistant didn’t really give a shit.

          The labs were mostly just math labs, with really specific applications.

          My only real project was the end of program project that lasted a bit short of 2 years. And the professors that were supposed to help us and support us told us that the project would fail for a good part of a year and a half. And when the project was a success and gave exposure to the school, the same professors that gave us shit for almost the entirety of the project took the credit for a successful project.

          If you wanted to do hands on engineering, you had to join extra curricular teams.

          My opinion on the matter is certainly tainted by my awful experience, but I did a program to become a technician in my field before going to engineering school and it was much more appropriate for my learning style.

  • @namarupa
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    311 day ago

    Validation need not come from anywhere outside yourself. Set your own goals. Do your best. Pat yourself on the back. People who ‘recognize’ you only do so superficially anyway. No one can truly know what you’ve done or where you’ve been.

    • @currycourier
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      121 day ago

      I mean, sure, but it is still nice to have some external validation now and again you know?

      • NoFuckingWaynado
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        -11 day ago

        …said the mouse in the maze.

        How about climbing over those walls, up the leg of the biggest scientist, enter through the eye socket, and hollow out that skull. That’s all the validation anyone needs. Yum!

  • @[email protected]
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    911 day ago

    It’s what being an adult is like. You don’t study for the fanfare, you study for a goal or for yourself.

    • @[email protected]
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      1 day ago

      That and if you have a significant other, you might also score a celebratory shagging.

      Edit: Never mind, just realized this is an anon on 4chan posting about engineering school.

  • @Taalen
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    211 day ago

    I just didn’t go to my graduation ceremony, despite there being free dinner. Was (and had been for ages) struggling with pretty bad depression and didn’t feel I deserved any of it.

    • @[email protected]
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      I skipped as much as my parents would let me get away with, because in my mind, walking for graduation is give the graduate’s family and friends a chance to formally congratulate them. I hated every minute of it, but I can deal with that for one day to make my family happy.

      When I finished school, I was already working full-time in my career (internship turned into a FT opportunity), so walking didn’t feel valuable at all.

    • @[email protected]
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      15 hours ago

      I finished university at the end of 2019. My graduation ceremony was supposed to have happened in 2020 but uh, other things happened. It took me until the latter half of 2022 to even get my hands on my diploma.

    • @[email protected]
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      221 day ago

      I’ve got 3 degrees and have a Gold Duke of Edinburgh award (if you do bronze, silver, and gold, you get to shake hands with a failed king)

      • Never went to any graduation ceremony
      • Never went to Buckingham Palace to shake hands with Prince Philip.

      I am right now, sitting at home in my jammies eating burritos. I regret nothing.

      • @[email protected]
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        51 day ago

        How do I become smart? All I do are online courses for tech and such. I have an established career. Good money, house family and shit…but I want the prestige of at least having a degree. But I’m functionally retarded with math.

        • @Skullgrid
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          161 day ago

          How do I become smart? All I do are online courses for tech and such. I have an established career. Good money, house family and shit

          Congrats, you are smart.

          The challenge you have now is to acknowledge and feel it.

          but I want the prestige of at least having a degree

          So here’s the problem. you want the prestige, not the intelligence. You can get a degree in various ways if you want, and have the time. You can attend a university course part time, or through their online facilities. Choose a topic you’ve done a lot of online courses for and try for a degree.

          But I’m functionally retarded with math.

          There’s resources online to help with this, maybe the new methods will help you understand math concepts better. Common core, khan academy, and the sponsor of this lemmy post, skillshare

          • @[email protected]
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            119 hours ago

            I do want to earn the degree. Not fast track my way through or anything. Im 33. I skipped higher education for CS, MS, Networking certs. The general ed courses are my only stopping block. And widdling that down more it really is math.

            I won’t commit until I put my money where my mouth is most of the time. I’ve learned that from burning myself out with certs.

            • @Skullgrid
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              119 hours ago

              The general ed courses are my only stopping block. And widdling that down more it really is math.

              It sounds like you’re from the US. Some of the international universities might have paths that don’t require strict maths… maybe a logic course? Not sure.

              Anyway, part time education doesn’t fast track, it’s usually the opposite. Check out some courses to see if they might offer you a path that’s more suitable.

              For example, this course from London Met doesn’t have any maths requirements :

              https://www.londonmet.ac.uk/courses/undergraduate/computer-networking-and-cloud-security---beng-hons/

              However, part time/remote options aren’t very clear on that website.

              You can do this course remotely with the Open university , but it has maths requirements

              https://www.open.ac.uk/courses/computing-it/degrees/bsc-computing-it-communications-networking-q62-cnet

              most important is that you enjoy it. Not having the degree didn’t stop you achieving before, so it should be for self fulfilment. I also don’t have a degree per se (more a diploma/dropout) but it’s fun to look into this stuff and play pretend with a stranger’s life from time to time.

              Best of luck with everything, dear stranger.

          • @[email protected]
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            1 day ago

            For some tracks there are even speedrun/lower-cost guides for online degrees through places like WGU. They except transfers from online courses as well. You can do it cheap, especially if you get tuition reimbursement.

            I just found out my state (Massachusetts) offers associates programs at any state CC for anyone who doesn’t already have a degree. For adults over 25 the program is called MassReconnect. I’d have to look into transfers, but I imagine those could be transferred to WGU towards a 4yr or post-grad degree. Some of the CC programs can also be done all (or mostly) online.

        • @[email protected]
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          71 day ago

          You don’t need to be smart. Back in my uni, there were student initiatives to record the questions and answers of previous exams. The Math department itself gave out previous years exams to study from.

          The key to remember: exams aren’t written my professors, they’re written by the postdocs who have better things to do, and so they just rehash the same stuff from the year before.

          If you want to get a useless piece of paper that tells you that you are an expert in topic X, then don’t learn X, learn to pass the papers for the X exam, and learn X later in your free time if you’re still interested in it.

          • @[email protected]
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            219 hours ago

            Hmm…sounds like something I need to look into. I do want the useless piece of paper. But I want to earn it. For myself lol

        • @rockSlayer
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          31 day ago

          Something, something judging a fish by it’s ability to climb a tree

          I think you’re a smart person that’s terrible at math. It’s ok to be bad at math, I am too and I have a degree in computer science with a union job. Now that I’ve thrown away a bunch of money, I’ve learned that CS is awesome and I love it but I don’t feel like I can qualify myself as being smart with it. With age I learned that I’m really smart with labor militancy and history, and if I could go back I’d get a degree in labor studies. I think you just need to find your topic.

          • @[email protected]
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            219 hours ago

            I also think I can be a smart person that is terrible at math. I have so many niches of hobbies that I’ve gotten into, and my boss has already reiterated that a degree isn’t going to help my tech ical skills at this point. But it’s something I’d like to earn for myself. So the sky (and my wallet) are the limit on the degree I’d get.

    • @emergencybird
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      41 day ago

      I graduated in the winter in 2023, didn’t attend the ceremony or anything. I have really bad social anxiety so the ceremony seemed like more stress than a celebration for me, I just ordered food and relaxed. But I do remember, after walking out of my last final, thinking “damn do that’s it huh”, I know it’s just a bachelors degree but I didn’t believe in myself enough to even think I’d ever actually graduate. Things turned out okay though, even had a job lined up before graduation which was lucky given the current job market for software engineering. Believe in yourself, your hard work got you that degree, proud of you man!

      • @Taalen
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        21 day ago

        Thanks. I’ve done pretty well for myself, I’d like to say. I landed a nice job around six months later and have been able to show my talent pretty well. Due to fighting with depression I entered the workforce around ten years after most of my peers. As an engineer, I’ve caught up the median pay for my peers with 15 years more experience. Can’t complain.

    • @VinnyDaCat
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      31 day ago

      Didn’t go to any of mine outside of high school because I was a kid and my parents could force me on that one. By the time I finished grad school I really felt like I was just another person in an increasingly growing rat race. It’s not even that I haven’t accomplished anything so much as I haven’t accomplished anything particularly unique that sets me apart and grants me intellectual value.

    • @[email protected]
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      31 day ago

      I also skipped my graduation. But just because I don’t like that kind of stuff.

      Why do you feel like you didn’t deserve to graduate? I’m sure you did deserve it.

      • @Taalen
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        21 day ago

        Felt I didn’t deserve to celebrate. Depression messes up with your brain big time.

  • @jqubed
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    561 day ago

    I’m kind of surprised; most colleges and universities I’ve seen still have a ceremony for people graduating at the end of the fall semester. It’s not nearly as elaborate as the one ending the spring semester, but it’s still something.

    Still, most of life is going to be like that. Usually no real ceremonies for the last day on the job. Move out of your old house/apartment is a lot of work at the end and then you lock the door for the last time.

    Congratulations, you’re an adult now.

  • @[email protected]
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    672 days ago

    I think it’s practical. I haven’t known many engineer types to make a huge deal of graduation per se. It’s just the next step in a bigger procedure.

    • @[email protected]
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      11 hour ago

      Yeah, that’s totally me. I honestly don’t see any value in the certificate, but employers do, so whatever.

      I went to school for one reason: to get a job. I enjoyed my field of study, but I hated the college process because it took all the fun out of what I enjoyed about my area of study. In fact, I was better at learning relevant things (i.e. things I actually use now) on my own vs in school. But hey, got the job, so task accomplished.

      I was a lot more excited about finishing my first project at work than finishing school. Go figure.

  • @Etterra
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    121 day ago

    The school to hospice informal incarceration pipeline is omnipresent for the working class, and college/trades level is right there in the middle. Right after kid jail and before wage slavery.

    • @[email protected]
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      31 day ago

      I dunno, I prefer this to having to take care of cows and growing my own crops.

      Life and the endless crushing need for resources is the prison.

      • @[email protected]
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        1 day ago

        False dichotomy. This has nothing to do with cows and crops on some imaginary “farm”. In reality there’s no actual need for people to slave away their whole lives serving capital just so we can destroy the planet.

        • @[email protected]
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          110 hours ago

          So let’s say that system collapsed tonight. Tomorrow, 8000000000 people need to eat. If my argument is a false dichotomy tell me how they eat.

  • @transMexicanCRTcowfart
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    If one is not inclined to social gatherings but still feel a need for something to signal this passage (or any other), a good option is to perform a personal ritual of choice.

    Human brains seem to be inclined to appreciate symbolism.

    • @[email protected]
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      21 day ago

      While I agree with the sentiment, I don’t think that the lack of ritual is the underlying problem here.

    • @bulwark
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      351 day ago

      Agreed, Exxon is a horrible company but I hear the pay is good. It would be tough for an ex-con to get a job as well.

  • @[email protected]
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    342 days ago

    I’ve never attended a singe scholarly celebration since my middle schools where I went and realized that it was completely pointless

    plus the whole preparation and fanfare is draining for me, id like to actually celebrate by relaxing not stressing over an event

    • @[email protected]
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      151 day ago

      I feel that. Too many people, and most are just sitting there, looking at other people and clapping.

  • @feedum_sneedson
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    51 day ago

    I have an MSc and have spent the day cleaning gutters, I have no idea what to do and am unsure whether I’d be better off dead.

      • @feedum_sneedson
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        135 minutes ago

        I don’t really know how to do that, but yes, I definitely should.

    • @candybrie
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      318 hours ago

      First you listen to a bunch of speeches. Then they call everyone’s name individually, and you walk across a stage, shake hands with some people, get handed a degree. Then maybe everyone throws their hat in the air.

      • @[email protected]
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        11 hour ago

        The worst part for me was that during my high school graduation, I was expected to shake the governor’s hand. I had been quite involved in politics that election, but not old enough to vote, and I really disliked out governor (they were in the majority party and barely won w/ <200 votes after multiple recounts, when most major party governors won by >10%). The governor apparently attended my high school, hence the invitation.

        Add to that the complete worthlessness of my high school diploma, because I was able to get a 2-year degree before getting my diploma due to concurrent enrollment at a local community college. So not only was it a worthless degree at a school I barely attended the last two years, I had to shake the hand of a politician I hated.

        Screw graduation ceremonies, they’re complete wastes of time.

    • @CluckN
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      161 day ago

      It’s a pretty big accomplishment so the schools like to throw a little party. It also allows students to invite family to see the campus and get an idea of how fast they can chug a beer.

  • @frigidaphelion
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    222 days ago

    Getting out of the military is a lot like that as well

    • @itsAsin
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      316 hours ago

      … and then i walked out of the Outprocessing building and took off my beret while still in uniform and walked to my car.

      • @frigidaphelion
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        216 hours ago

        I had my CO sign a paper and then I grabbed my two bags and walked off base. Got an uber to the airport and that was that. Most anticipated but anticlimactic day of my life. I did smoke weed for the first time that day though so that was fun

  • @pretzelz
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    We are, we are, we are, we are

    We are the engineers!

    We can, we can, we can, we can

    Demolish forty beers

    Drink rum, drink rum, drink rum, drink rum

    And come along with us!

    'Cos we don’t give a fuck about anyone else

    Who don’t give a fuck about us.

    That’s what the first engineer I ever met said, but to be fair he was a combat engineer. Those guys are scary. Stick to electronics and bridges…

  • Lung
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    92 days ago

    Yeah I just had em mail me the thing