My Journey from Legos to Engineering

The world would have us believe that there is nothing inherently significant about Legos. The simple fact that millions of people grew up with Legos as a part of their childhood does not devalue or minimize my own experience. Rather, I think my young mind’s approach to my arguably conventional hobby made for a richer, more unique experience. I like to say that Legos enlightened me. I began my adventure with a manual for a popular castle set. The first time I tried this common approach towards ‘creativity,’ my thoughts were confined and my expressionism was stymied. How was society to define the perimeters of my imagination?

In rebellion, I made minute alterations. As my modifications progressively increased in complexity, my tangential creations required other ‘outside-of-set’ pieces. My mind sharpened as I imagined solutions to foreseeable problems, dodging schematic flaws while engineering a perfect blend between design and function. I like to say that Lego enlightened me because they taught me problem solving that carried over into the classroom. If I could problem solve with my Legos, then why not here? The sciences and maths became my playground. I began with the ‘manual approach’ to new concepts, strict textbook work without much creativity. The more I learned, the more I grasped larger problems for which the world needed solutions.

As I began to merge my two loves -- science and problem solving -- I realized that engineering is my calling. With past experience at recall, I know that piecing global problems together, block by block, will yield a solution eventually. Even an optimist like me knows that doing so will require an arsenal of reliable ‘outside-of-set’ pieces. With the resources available at Carnegie Mellon, I hope to contribute to the progressive, knowledge-seeking environment of the university. The opportunity to gain a unique view of the world makes Carnegie Mellon’s global education invaluable. Seeing the world beyond the science of engineering, will provide new perspectives while allowing me to pursue varied interests that connect with my major. As the curriculum allows for flexibility, I can expose myself to a world beyond the scope of what I know.

Only Carnegie Mellon offers the unique opportunity of minoring in Global Engineering, while majoring in Chemical Engineering. The Global Engineering program gives students the ability to affect the world on an international level, using their talents in engineering. By giving students the ability to directly influence the world before graduating, innovation is facilitated. Without much understanding of what the world really had to offer, I joined MUN and YAG as a freshman. Astounded by the level of depth and understanding exhibited by the other participants, I grew to love both programs. Eventually becoming president of both clubs, I found that my motivation shifted -- rather than developing my own world perspective, I began to envision helping others to experience what I had in the programs. I expanded on my own passion for global affairs through my school newspaper, eventually becoming the world and US news editor. Finally, in founding Leadership Experience Opportunities I hoped to help students impact their local communities through service, volunteering, and leadership. These activities have changed my outlook towards problem solving in perspective of the world. My passion for global affairs and politics have come together with my love for science to become more tools to utilize for innovation. I hope to bring these passions to Carnegie Mellon in support of the diversity and experience required of innovation and engineering.

To sum up the essay, as I look into the bucket of Lego that is my future, I see endless potential. Ingenuity and vision allow engineers to see solutions to problems that no one else can answer. At the heart of Carnegie Mellon lies a bona fide passion and pursuit of these traits. I want to go to Carnegie Mellon because unlike any other university, it tirelessly seeks answers for problems that no one else will challenge. Carnegie Mellon embodies the soul of engineering, a spirit unafraid to build from imagination.