Straugh Mann, a first-semester ME, says that when he tells other people he studies mechanical engineering, he gets what he calls “the glance.”
More specifically, Mann says that he gets “the sort of disinterested glance that kinda shows that you’ve heard what the other person said but you don’t really care.” Mann elaborated, “It just feels like when I mention my major nobody really cares. It’s really depressing to feel like you aren’t important. I feel like my work deserves more than just a glance.”
When other ME students were asked how they felt about this sort of situation, their responses were mixed. Some students’ responses were as short as “What are you talking about?” or “Excuse me, you’re in my way.” One particular student noted that “Dude, you woke me up. I was taking a power nap.” All of the responses seemed to indicate that ME students either did not care or were unaware of their own recognition problems.
Tech’s Mechanical Engineering program is ranked #2 nationally, behind MIT, and is known for its particularly rigorous academics. It has been a program at Tech since 1885, when the school was established, and is the largest department in the College of Engineering, as well as the largest program on Tech’s campus.
The size of the ME program makes it especially vital for ME students to recognize their own worth, as a substantial portion of the student body is located within the ME program. “There’s definitely a need to be aware of our own achievements,” said Mann, “There are just so many of us. If we ignore ourselves, that’s a pretty big part of the student body making us feel left out.”
The size of the ME program presents a major obstacle to recognition on campus, as many students in the ME program are unaware of their own need to recognize themselves and one another in meaningful ways. Mann suggested that ME majors should provide more substantial recognition to one another and always remember to inform others about their enrollment in the ME program in an effort to overcome this obstacle.
Perhaps it is time for ME majors to take a second look at their fellow ME students and make that extra effort to be excited when someone mentions for the 12th time this hour that they are, in fact, an ME major. Hopefully, this effort will improve the status of the ME program among its own students, thereby improving its recognition in the broader student body.
Disclaimer: This is part of our April Fool’s wraparound and is in no way factual.