The decision of
working at the academy
Working at the academy was one of the most important decisions
in my professional and personal life. Fourteen years ago, I was finishing my
18-moths bachelor’s thesis while I was looking for a job in Chemical
Engineering. By these days, there were
not enough job offers because the Colombian economy was very bad. However, I succeeded
in a job application at a car brakes company in Bogotá until I had the
interview. That was my first and last job application in my life for a company.
What was the reason? That morning, I
woke up very early in the morning and travelled from Chapinero Alto to Fontibón
by bus (a 80 minutes journey), wearing uncomfortable clothing (a suit). I reached the company doors about 20 minutes
earlier of the interview appointment so I had to wait outside, as if I were selling
something. The interviewer was a very kind woman at her 50’s (I guess). She
picked me up and walked me through the company production area. It was a large area
with a lot of equipment. The production process was noisy and dusty, and very
dangerous, not only because of the machines risks but also for the raw
materials used in the process. One of these materials is Asbesto, a well-known cancerous
material. I was not excited with the idea of working in that place. In fact,
most of chemical, and related industries are similar. Then I realized that I did
not want to work at industry. It was a
very stressful moment as I thought “I have spent 6 years of my life, just for
that?”. I got depressed until I returned to Medellin, when I was hired by a new
professor, Dr. Farid Chejne, as research assistant student in a research
project related to alternative energy. After 6 months, I noticed that I loved
what I was doing and professor Chejne suggested me to study a master in
chemical engineering. In that moment, I got excited with the idea of having a
professional life doing research and teaching. In summary, a little experience
can change a whole life. I agree with the wise expression “nothing is free”.
Juan, this is a wonderful story! The paragraph is well-written and there are only a few grammatical errors. I like how you used simple and complex sentences in a balanced way.
ReplyDeleteOne thing I would like to comment on is that it may be better to take out some details about your frustrating job interview experience and add more about how excited you were about being in academia. This way, your paragraph is more coherent.
Overall, well-done!