As engineering education strives to prepare graduates for an increasingly complex, human-centered, and innovation-driven world, understanding how learners transform theory into purposeful action becomes a central research priority. This study investigates how fourth-year Engineering Physics students conceptualize the Application of Theoretical Knowledge (ATK) after completing a curriculum grounded in challenge-based learning and a final semester dedicated explicitly to strengthening knowledge-in-use. Reflective essays from ten students were analyzed using corpus-based text-mining techniques complemented by a targeted qualitative review to identify salient lexical patterns, semantic structures, and expressions of ATK-related behaviors. The findings show that students frame engineering practice as judgment-oriented decision-making that integrates scientific principles with contextual constraints, emphasizing adaptability, principle-based reasoning, and the activation of competence through deliberate action. These insights illuminate how curricular design shapes emergent engineering identities and offer evidence-based guidance for institutions seeking to cultivate responsible, future-ready professionals. Ultimately, this research underscores that when learners understand theory as a resource for meaningful action, engineering education becomes a transformative pathway for shaping a more thoughtful and equitable world.
