The end of high schools.

It's already the end of high school, and you have to make a choice between applying in Natural Science or Social Science.

Choice 1 : Go into Social Sciences program at cegep.

Choice 2 : Go in Natural Sciences program at cegep.

Go into Social Sciences program at cegep.

Yeah, this was a mistake. A few weeks in and the classes already feel like drudgery. The teacher reads off the slides, the math is way too easy, and you just sit there bored. You start feeling this weird alienation from everyone else who seems totally fine with it. You really don't want to end up stuck in a dead-end job collecting a wage with no fulfillment. Something has to change before this program hinders you for real.

Choice 1 : Go in Natural Sciences program at cegep.

Choice 2 : End as an accountant.

Go in Natural Sciences program at cegep.

Okay Natural Sciences is no joke. Calculus, physics, chemistry and bio all at once. You're overwhelmed the first week. Time management becomes the most invaluable skill because there's just not enough hours in the day. You can't get straight A's in everything, so you learn to set aside the easier stuff and focus on the hard parts. Your friends complain a lot about the workload, but you actually kinda love the challenge. There's a real drive of work in this program, and you start to see which classes excite you the most.

Choice 1 : Drawn to Engineering.

Choice 2 : Drawn to Medicine.

Ending as an accountant.

You stuck with Social Sciences and ended up in accounting. The compensation package is decent, the wage is okay, you get good benefits and a pension plan. Eventually you pay off your mortgage and put aside money for retirement. Some days the office politics are maddening and there's a lack of real excitement, but you tell yourself it's still worthwhile. You never became an engineer or a doctor, but you're comfortable. That's something. End of path.

Choice 1 : The end of high schools.

Drawn to Engineering.

Physics has you hooked. You love figuring out how stuff works. The problem is there's like 10 different types of engineering, and you have no idea which one fit you. Your friends tell you to stop reading brochures and just go test drive a few options. So, you decide to look for an internship, because it would give you a foot in the door and let you actually see the ins-and-outs of the field. You do a lot of leg work calling places and sending emails. Two of them finally answered.

Choice 1 : Manufacturing internship.

Choice 2 : Tech and Chemical Company Internship.

Drawn to Medicine.

Biology is your thing. The human body is honestly so cool. But med school is like 8 years and that scares you a bit. You want to see actually what it's like. Volunteering doesn't pay anything but the experience would be invaluable and would definitely come in handy during interviews later. You also know it could deter you completely and that fine too. Better to find out now than five years in.

Choice 1 : Hospital Volunteering.

Choice 2 : Long-term Care Volunteering.

Manufacturing internship.

First day the foreman gives you boots that don't fit and tells you not to touch anything red. The plant is loud and hots but its actually kind off cool. As an intern, you are basically a trainee, so you follow people around and slowly learn the ropes. The senior engineers are thoughtful, and they take the time to explain things in-depth instead of brushing you off. There is no misconduct going on, and no strange office politics, just real work being done. You end up doing some overtime during a busy week, and you don't even mind. You feel fulfillment for the first time in a while.

Choice 1 : First Year Mechanical Engineering.

Choice 2 : Tech and Chemical Company Internship.

Tech and Chemical Company Internship.

This internship is much more polished than a factory. Clean lab, coats and badges to get in. You split your time between two teams: one is working on circuits and sensors, and the other is working on chemical materials. The workplace has its own atmosphere, with a bit of flirtation between coworkers, some gossip, and the usual small office politics. However, the work itself is fascinating, and you start picking up the ins-and-outs of two completely different worlds. By the end of the summer, you have to choose one.

Choice 1 : First Year Electrical Engineering.

Choice 2 : First Year Chemical Engineering.

Hospital Volunteering.

The hospital throws you right into it. Emergencies, stressed families, and doctors running on no sleep.They work overtime constantly, and you wonder how they avoid getting stuck up in the chaos. More often than not, the staff are kind to you, but one day you witness a nurse get mad at a patient, and it almost feels like misconduct. Still, the good moments outnumber the bad ones by a lot. You leave each shift exhausted but somehow energized.

Choice 1 : Enters University In Medical Program.

Choice 2 : Drawn to Engineering.

Long-term Care Volunteering.

This place is very different from a hospital. It is quiet, slow, and a little sad at times. You become the recipient of countless stories from elderly residents who simply want someone to sit with them. The staff work hard without much compensation, and you respect them for it. The work is worthwhile, but it is emotionally heavy. You walk home at night thinking about whether you really want to take care of people directly for your whole career, or whether you would rather build the tools that help them.

Choice 1 : Enters University In Medical Program.

Choice 2 : First Year Electrical Engineering.

First Year Mechanical Engineering.

University is a different beast. Calculus, statics material science, and the schedule is full. The drive of work never stops. You watch classmates take leaves of absence or drop out completely. Time management is the only thing keeping you alive. The drawbacks are real: no social, constant stress, and the feeling that everyone else is smarter than you. However, somehow you are pulling it off. The professors warn that second year is even harder, and you start to question yourself.

Choice 1 : Mechanical Engineering On-the-Job Training.

Choice 2 : Burn out and choose a different path.

First Year Electrical Engineering.

Circuits, signals, electromagnetism, and programming. The match is brutal, and you spend most nights buried in problem sets. It is easy to start getting sucked up in the work because it is genuinely interesting, but you are also running on fumes. You realize that withholding sleep from yourself is not a real strategy. Slowly, however, the invisible world of electronics' starts to make sense, and you feel a real sense of purpose clicking into place. You are not at the top of the class, but you are not quitting either.

Choice 1 : Electrical Engineering On-the-Job Training.

Choice 2 : Burn out and choose a different path.

First Year Chemical Engineering.

Reactors, thermodynamics, transport phenomena, and lab reports that never ends. Your clothes seem to smell like chemicals permanently. The professors are thorough and expect the same from you. More often than not, you are in the lab past midnight finishing something. It is exhausting, but it does not feel like drudgery. It feels like drudgery. It feels like you are actually learning something that matters. One Friday, your team's experiment works perfectly, and you realize that this might be your thing.

Choice 1 : Chemical Engineering On-the-Job Training.

Choice 2 : Burn out and choose a different path.

Enters University In Medical Program.

You got in. Straight from cegep into university in the medical program. The lecture is huge, the competition is real, and the workload would overwhelm anyone who is not ready for it. You see classmates burn out and take leaves of absence. Your time management has to be perfect, because you can't waste your time. However, every time you walk into a clinic for training and a real patient (thanks) you for being there, you remember why you chose this. The fulfillment feels different when it is real.

Choice 1 : Continue In Medicine.

Choice 2 : Burn out and choose a different path.

Mechanical Engineering On-the-Job Training.

Your internship has turned into something real (actual OJT). On-the-job training with experienced engineers teaches you more in three months than a whole year of school did. You learn the ropes of design reviews, client meeting, and project deadlines. There is overtime during crunch periods, but the premium wage and the compensation package make it worth it. You are starting to feel like you actually belong here, like you are no longer a student pretending.

Choice 1 : Mechanical Engineering Ending.

Electrical Engineering On-the-Job Training.

Your internship turns into a real on-the-job training, and suddenly you are no longer the intern. You are part of the team. You start as a junior trainee, but you quickly take on real responsibilities such as debugging circuits, running tests, and presenting to clients. Human Resources are clear, and the company has clear rules against sexual harassment and misconduct, which honestly makes it a much better environment to grow. The drive of work is intense, but you feel like you are building something that matters.

Choice 1 : Electrical Engineering Ending.

Chemical Engineering On-the-Job Training.

Your placement at the chemical plant becomes a real position. The OJT is serious, because every process matters, and a single mistake can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. Your senior mentor is thoughtful and patient, walking you trough everything step by step. You start to understand truly the purpose behind every safety rule and every checklist. The wage is good, the work is meaningful, and for the first time, the lab no longer feels like school. It feels like home.

Choice 1 : Chemical Engineering Ending.

Continue In Medicine.

The hours are extreme, overtime is essentially your default schedule, and the decisions you make affect real lives. You watch a senior resident deal with a patient who has completely shut down, in full alienation, and she handles it with patience and skill. You take notes. Some doctors around you have completely set aside their personal lives, and you promise yourself that you will not do the same. It is not easy. Still, every shift teaches you something new about what being a doctor really means.

Choice 1 : Doctor Ending.

Burn out and choose a different path.

You are sitting alone in your apartment, exhausted, staring at your book that you never opened. The drudgery of exams, the lack of sleep, and the feeling that everyone else has it figured out are all hitting at once. You seriously ask yourself if you picked the wrong path. You call a friend who always gives you good advice, and you try to decide what you want to do now.

Choice 1 : Try Engineering.

Choice 2 : Change my entire career path and go in Natural Sciences program at cegep.

Mechanical Engineering Ending.

You did it. You are licensed mechanical engineer. The compensation package is solid, with a great wage a full pension, and paid vacation. The office politics exists, but they are manageable, and more often than not, you actually enjoy working with coworkers. You design real machines and real systems that exist in the physical world. The drawbacks of crunch-time overtime are nothing compared to the fulfillment of seeing your work actually get built. That summer at the factory was the clue you needed.

Choice 1 : The end of high schools.

Electrical Engineering Ending.

You are an electrical engineer now. The wage is very good, your compensation package includes a solid pension, and you have already started paying your mortgage. Your work powers everyday life, from circuits and sensor to robots, even if most people have no idea you exist. The job has it drawbacks, and some days the paperwork feel like pure drudgery, but the sense of never purpose really fades. That exploding capacitor in first years was only the beginning.

Choice 1 : The end of high schools.

Chemical Engineering Ending.

You are a chemical engineer working in pharmaceuticals or clean energy. Your OJT paid off. You now mentor your own trainees and help them learn the ropes the same way someone did for you. The work is demanding, and there is zero tolerance for misconduct at work. However, the fulfillment is real, the wage is generous, and the lab works that almost broke you in first years has become the thing you do best.

Choice 1 : The end of high schools.

Doctor Ending.

You are a doctor. The volunteering you did back in Cegep feels like a lifetime ago, but it was the moment everything started for you. You deal with paperwork, hospital bureaucracy, and the occasional maddening day when nothing goes right. However, every patient you help and every life you touch reminds you why you chose this job. The road was long and hard at times, but you very happy with your job.

Choice 1 : The end of high schools.