“Engineers are problem solvers.” I will never forget this first line I learned as a freshman who had just enrolled in the Bachelor of Science in Computer Engineering program many moons ago.

Engineering is far more than learning the technical knowledge; it’s about building the analytical skills of the solution-thinking process: identifying the problem, its root-cause, and the impact it’s causing. It's about collecting the facts, studying the variables and creating a risk mitigation plan. It includes examining the approach that would work best and building the blueprint that solves the problem to reach a desired outcome. All too often, it is requires working within strict time and resource constraints, teaching you to accept a certain margin of calculated error.

Engineers often emerge as the victorious in the most complex situations. It’s no coincidence then that a vast number of the successful executives and CxOs I’ve met have engineering backgrounds, many in computer science and computer engineering. I’m currently employed as a technology solution architect, and my main job is to solve problems by understanding a client’s business requirement and translating it into a technical solution to achieve a desired objective. My degree from AUS continues to play an invaluable role in my life every day.