From Fear to Fascination: How a Roller Coaster Inspired My Journey into Engineering by Kevin

From Fear to Fascination: How a Roller Coaster Inspired My Journey into Engineering by Kevin - February 2025 Scholarship Essay

I am terrified. The roller coaster looms ahead, its tracks disappearing into the sky. The roar of roller coasters echoes through the muggy air as I wander through the Cedar Point amusement park. My dad drags me into the line of the Millennium Force, the world’s fastest and tallest steel roller coaster at the time. The daunting blue and silver steel tracks towering endlessly into the sky stare at me. My legs shake as the empty car approaches, and I climb inside. My nine-year-old hands grip tightly onto the harness throughout the 310-foot climb to the top. The car plummets, and we are catapulting through the air at over 90 miles per hour. Now I’m screaming – not from fear, but from pure exhilaration. As we exit the ride, I tell my dad, “That’s the best ride ever!” I grab his hand and pull him back into the queue to ride again. Those once frightening blue and silver steel tracks now fill me with awe and curiosity. “Dad, how did they make this amazing ride?” That day, my mind wasn’t just on the thrill of the ride but on how it was even possible. I wondered: How do engineers make something like this, something so massive and powerful, work with such precision? My curiosity about engineering was born.

My passion for understanding the inner workings of my favorite roller coaster is my first memory of being interested in engineering. Over the following nine years, I noticed how easily I could lose track of time learning more about different engineering accomplishments. I am mesmerized, whether I am researching something as simple as how a golf ball’s dimples affect how it sails through the air or how fighter jets defy gravity. I soon realized how mathematics is integral in designing amusement park rides, golf equipment, and planes. I have always excelled in math and science, and I am taking a rigorous course load at my school geared toward engineering, hoping to create something similar someday.

That same drive to solve complex problems and work toward a common goal drew me to crew when I wanted to try a new sport as a high school freshman. Crew instantly stood out to me because I fell in love with the teamwork required for the sport. All eight men must row perfectly in time to propel the boat through the water efficiently. In my sophomore year, I returned from an injury that ended my freshman season and placed first at nationals for the junior varsity eight event. I have always been a natural leader; people quickly looked up to me. I became responsible for holding the team accountable. Everyone must trust the guy beside them for a boat to do well. It is a simple task but an important one. In crew, I discovered that the same precision and teamwork required to keep a boat in sync makes engineering projects succeed. Whether designing a roller coaster or developing a Mars rover, engineers must rely on each team member to make the system work.

My spirit of dedication, commitment, and teamwork carried over into my academic pursuits. As a junior last year, I had the opportunity to participate in a NASA capstone project aimed at designing wheels optimized for maneuvering Mars-like terrain. This year, I am working on a capstone project on acoustic dampening. These experiences have deepened my interest in a career in aerospace engineering. Working with NASA engineers showed me the level of collaboration and innovation required in the field. It wasn’t just about technical knowledge; it was about problem-solving together to push the boundaries of what’s possible.
Whether as one member of a championship rowing team or one student working on a Capstone project with NASA scientists, I recognize the importance of collaboration and working as a team. Just as those towering tracks inspired awe as a child, I hope to inspire that same sense of wonder and possibility in others by designing the next generation of airplanes—safer, faster, and more sustainable than ever before.