Be a Good One

Editor's note: This is a rant. I'm sure in the light of day I'll re-read this and feel fairly embarrassed. But for right now, I'm going to have what I will call my "Jerry Maguire" moment and pretend that these words I've written are marginally insightful and...dare I say it? Revolutionary. Please leave me to my delusions.

My university has two drastically different subcultures. Ok, in reality, it probably has about a billion. But for the purposes of this post, we're going to focus on perhaps the greatest divide on my campus.

My school is most often recognized for its engineering and science colleges. However, a large percentage of our student body is comprised of what we've dubbed the CHASS (college of humanities and social sciences) majors.

Maybe it's because our society values scientists and engineers very highly right now, maybe it's because our engineering school is ranked higher than the social science colleges at the university [that is a factual statement, not a judgment call] - but for whatever reason, the CHASS students tend to get a lot of flack for studying humanities. Mostly from the engineers.

In reality, when someone in college suggests that one major is easier than another, odds are, they're not talking about the rigor of the major. They're making a statement about the students' intellects.

Obviously, depending on how sensitive you are [which I am], that is insulting. And also definitely judgmental.

A certain sect of engineers tend to assume they are God's gift to earth. And that same group is very vocal, at least at my university, about their own supposed intellectual dominance over our CHASS majors. I can understand why, then, a lot of the CHASS majors bristle around us engineers.

 However, I was telling a friend earlier that a major doesn't define someone's intelligence. You are some degree of intelligent or unintelligent, and what you study won't change that.

This friend laughed at me and said, "I'll remember that next time you talk about CHASS majors." What?


Her flippant statement was markedly unfounded  and highly offensive - I have no beef with students who choose to study something other than what I study. Truth moment: I legitimately struggle with pride, but it has nothing at all to do with what people choose to study, and more to do with the high success rate of my blog [...sure].

To extrapolate that I, as an engineer, must think CHASS majors are in some way inferior to me, is reverse-judgmentalism.

Which we all know isn't a real thing. It's straight-up judgmental.

Here's me, being real with you: I don't "talk" about humanities majors. You know why? I don't honestly care what your major is. I've met enough people to know that people thrive when they're doing what they're called to do. If you're doing whatever the good Lord has led you to do, then I am sincerely happy for you. Whether you're analyzing poetry or calculating stresses in cantilever beams. Go forth and conquer. Veni vidi vici. All that stuff.

To quote Lincoln, Whatever you are, be a good one. And do it with the confidence of someone pursuing something she loves.

You do you, let me do me.

Also, in two weeks when I graduate college, I doubt I'll care what you ever majored in.

How many CHASS majors are in this photo?
Oh wait, it doesn't matter.

-bRob