School is over: I am finally graduating!

I am finally graduating.

The long wait is over!

I can finally say that I am graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering. The graduation is still over two weeks away, but I am excited to face this new journey.

My journey as a student has never been easy. Before taking this course, I always saw videos saying that engineering was hard and it would make you cry, and I was like, okay, I thought they were just exaggerating.

But during my time, I finally understood them, and they were not joking. It was really hard. There were times that I cried due to failed and difficult subjects, terror professors, and workloads.

Despite everything, I managed to pass through my dedication and the consideration of other professors.

I had two failed subjects before finishing this degree: Dynamics of Rigid Bodies and Principles of Steel Design.

For the first one, I had to take summer classes so I wouldn’t have to add another year to my college life. I was thankful that we had the opportunity to take summer classes at that time because if not, I wouldn’t be graduating now.

I had to go to school for the whole summer break. This means we had to spend more money for transportation and rent. It was an expensive stage during the second semester of my second year.

Thankfully, I managed to pass the subject on my second take. I studied more that time, and I think I was one of the ranking students during the summer class.

The story never ends there. Many people said that third year is the worst year – especially for engineering students.

I believed them as I experienced it. During the first semester of our third year, we had three subjects where the professors were known for being terror, and they were major subjects.

We had to pass them all; if not, there were other subjects we couldn’t take because they were prerequisites.

Worse, the professors coordinated with each other on when to give quizzes and exams so they could schedule them at the same time. They called it the departmental exam.

The subjects were Structural Theory, Hydraulics, and Geotechnical Engineering. Structural Theory was full of analysis where one mistake could cause a domino effect and make your entire solution wrong. The other two were full of formulas, with each topic having more than 20 formulas to memorize and understand.

There were days when I had no sleep while reviewing for those three subjects. I remember one time when it was already 5:00 AM, and other students in our dorm were just waking up, but I was still studying with no sleep.

Sometimes I would sleep at 5:00 AM and wake up at 7:00 AM because our first class (and quiz) was at 8:00 AM. I always chose sleep over eating, so I often went to school without breakfast.

Fortunately, I passed all three subjects – even though I still don’t know how. I was thankful that I passed them without needing any remedial exams.

Next, during the second semester of third year, we had another three design subjects: Reinforced Concrete Design, Principles of Steel Design, and Building Design. They were all major subjects.

The first two were analysis and design subjects; we had a project using AutoCAD to create two- to three-story residential and commercial buildings from architectural to structural plans, followed by calculations.

Meanwhile, Building Design required us to create plans (Architectural, Structural, MEP) in the traditional way, drawing everything on tracing paper using pencil and pen. It was very time-consuming compared to using software like AutoCAD.

Take note that we were also having quizzes and exams for these three subjects, while also managing other minor subjects (I think we had 6-8 subjects total that semester). Imagine how many minor subjects I had to sacrifice just to complete the three major ones.

Unfortunately, I failed Principles of Steel Design. I had a remedial exam but still failed it. I cried, thinking that I would need to add another year in engineering. I could take summer classes, but I couldn’t start my internship or graduate on stage if that happened.

Thankfully, our professor gave us a chance by assigning a 4.0 mark instead of a 5.0. This meant my grade was INC (Incomplete), so I only had to comply with the professor’s requirements.

A lot happened: we had to write 10 questions per topic, totaling over 100 questions and solutions.

Then, our professor asked questions from our submitted project. I didn’t answer the first two questions correctly.

I cried, then answered the third question. We finished the subject and still managed to move on to the next semester.

Until now, I am thankful to our professor for giving us a chance, because if not, I wouldn’t be graduating on time.

In the fourth year, we presented our thesis and finished our pre-board exam – thankfully, all of us passed.

We spent a lot for our thesis; I estimate we spent around Php 15,000.00 each for our group of 8 members, covering food, printing, and product testing.

It was a fun and exhausting journey. They say you shouldn’t group with your friends during your thesis because it can ruin friendships, but that didn’t happen in our case.

We had a lot of fun, never held grudges, and were open with each other. I think that helped us finish everything smoothly.

I am thankful for the group of friends I made during college. I can say that having friends in college is a must. Make friends, don’t compete, and stay humble.

I could not have completed this journey without them, and I will always be grateful. They helped me find the balance between studying and living.

College was full of fun memories, tears, exhaustion, breakdowns, friendships, and satisfaction. There were a lot of ups and downs, but always remember that everything has an end goal – and it’s your task to reach it.

Mark Laurence
Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering
2025