I don&#x27;t think University shifts you into &quot;engineer&quot; mode at all, you learn that when you go and do it for real in &quot;industry&quot;. And not by doing indie projects or realistically at small start-ups. See patio11&#x27;s comments re what he learned in Japan.<p>University is about enquiry and learning to think critically. It doesn&#x27;t matter if you never use the specific constructs they cover but you do come out with a much more flexible mindset.<p>The other thing is that the OP might actually become a really talented academic and have the potential to do great things in the field.