I went most of my life, beginning in second grade, thinking I was going to be an engineer. I was obsessed with space and did as much research as my comprehension level would allow growing up. I even wrote a paper for a middle school language arts class on relativity because why would I write about anything else. I joined robotics in high school and learned the ins and outs of both software and hardware. I was in love with every aspect of science and technology, I never once questioned my dream. I was accepted to my top choice university for aerospace engineering on early decision so I never even entertained applying for other schools.

After my first semester of college I went through the biggest identity crisis when I realized this thing I had loved my whole life, in reality, made me unbearably miserable. I was calling my mom crying almost every week. I was failing my most important class and couldn't get my shit together no matter how much studying and tutoring I did (turns out I needed to adjust my ADHD meds but that's a whole other struggle to talk about).

I've always been creatively inclined and took a design class in high school so I decided graphic design was going to be my backup plan because I wasn't really interested in much else. It is certainly the best thing to have ever resulted from my failures. I lucked out big because the graphic design program that I stumbled into at my university just happened to be one of the top 10 in the country, and top 2 if you're only looking at public schools. I went from failing to having straight A's the very next semester.

I am now less than a year away from graduating and just had a professor tell me last week that because of the way I work and the level of my skill, I can go anywhere I want if I show an employer my interest. I am so crazy passionate about what I'm doing and I can't imagine my life without design being a part of it now. My program is intense and I've never worked this hard in my life but I also have never taken this kind of pride in my own accomplishments before. I am so grateful for what seemed like an impulsive decision to change my major but it's made all the difference in my life and I've never been happier.