How did I become a Chemical Engineer ?

I have never resisted life, as it happened to me. Like a fluid takes the path of least resistance, my life has almost always taken the path of least resistance. I studied
in 3 schools in 1st 10 years (from Class-1 to 10) of my academic life, and by default these schools were chosen based on their proximity to my house. Although there was an entrance examination for Class-VI in our school, it was a certainty that I would crack it. Getting admission to a government college for 10+2 in the town where I lived was also certain based on my 10th mark and other available options were not even considered. 

First serious time for decision making in academics came during the choice of subjects, whether to take Biology or Statistics along with Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics, when I was joining 10th+2. It was based on what I wanted to became. If I wanted to became a doctor then Biology is a must and if engineer then it is ideal if I take Statistics along with PCM. Like every middle class family I had only two choices, either doctor or engineer. Deep down I knew I wanted to be an Engineer. To be specific a Computer Engineer because that is what I used to hear / read in papers. It is a different fact that till that point of time I had touched a computer only once in our school when I got a chance to type my name. Some how computers looked cool to me and I wanted to have a good time with one. But my father wanted to see his son as a doctor. So Biology was my 4th Optional i.e the subject with least priority.

But the decision of not becoming an doctor was a gradual one, which developed over a period of time since childhood. In earlier times, there used to be vaccination program in school where every children were given vaccines. The vaccines used to be very painful and many of the children caught fever. During one such vaccination drive, I could not walk up to home after vaccination and vomited in between. From that day there was a fear for needles and syringes. This fear gradually became stronger over a period of time and every time I took and injections. On next vaccination drive, somehow went home but was brought back. Any time, I visited a hospital, the smell of the disinfectant would drive me nuts. Whenever visited a doctor I would pray that he prescribe a medicine instead of an injection. But final nail on the coffins of a being a doctor was an incident which happened in 1999.

In the summer of 1999, we visited to see an ailing grandmother of a friend While administering saline through veins, there was a small trickle of blood and I do not know why but I fainted at the spot looking at the trickle of blood. The doctor, instead of attending the grandmother, started to attend me. That day a small needle attached to a plastic tube declared that I wont be a medical doctor anymore (I still have a dream of earning a PhD, for Dr. title).

Fast forward to 3 years. In July 2002, I had to make another career choice. Which branch to choose during counselling? By this time, I came to knew that there are other branches of engineering apart from Computer one. My rank in the entrance examination was not that good to have a choice in selecting branches in NITs. One of my fathers senior colleague while visiting our home advised that I should study chemical engineering and joined ONGC. He gave his brothers example, who was working in Assam. [ Later I came to know his brother was working in Indian Oil, Guwahati Refinery, not ONGC]. One of my Professor had advised to joined NIT, irrespective of branch. So, one thing was sure that I wanted to study in a NIT and I expected that I would get a seat among Comp Sc, Electrical, Electronics and Instrumentation and Mechanical. 

During counselling, NIT Rourkela Mechanical seat filled up in by the the rank 110 or 120. Next choice was to go to an NIT out side state. There was no seat left for other top NITs like Trichy, Surtakal. NIT Bhopal had only one seat left in Mechnical and was secretly hoping to get it. But the guy with the rank 137 (mine was 143 in State JEE) also thought the same and picked up the seat. I was devastated. Now I had to go to NIT Surat where I was getting almost all branches. So when my turn came to go to the dais for giving my choice I had already decided to go with Surat. Just before I wanted to lock Surat, my father dropped a bomb. He said, "Your mother want you to study inside Odisha". For that condition to be satisfied, I had two options, either study Chemical Engineering in NIT Rourkela or Comp Science in UCE Burla (presently known as VSSUT) or CET, Bhubaneswar. Among Physics, Maths and Chemistry I hated Chemistry. I thought that Chemical engineering will be full of organic and inorganic chemistry and I can not read those shit again for 4 years. But then I had to lose NIT seat also. In this dillemma I spent almost 5-10 minutes on the dais and finally, very reluctantly, I choose Chemical Engineering. I was so frustrated that I remained gloomy for next 3-4 days. 

After I joined NIT, there was a ray of home. If I perform well in 1st semester, I could change the branch. One of my school senior, was also a senior in NIT had done that when he topped Chemical Engineering in his 1st Semester. So my next target was to earn Rank-1 or 2 in the department. When the results were declared, I was placed 5th or 6th in the Department. Top 2 students changed their branch and thus I became a Chemical Engineer.

3 years later in 2005, I again had a chance to switch field from Chemical Engineering to IT field. But things had changed by that time. I had a fair idea that, chemical engineering can be studied without a big knowledge of Chemistry. There are fields in Chemical Engineering which do not require deep understanding of Chemistry. More over the visit to Damanjodi and Guwahati in summer training, had somehow inspired me to join a core chemical engineering company.

Hence during the placements in July 2005, I decided not to appear for IT companies. That was big decision then. But on hindsight it was Nash Equilibrium in practice. I wanted non IT job and my friends wanted IT jobs. So by choosing to do what is best for our own interest, we were doing overall good for the group by avoiding competition with each other. After I got placed in Indian Oil, I permanently became a chemical engineer. The advise by my fathers senior colleague turned out to be prophetic.