Am I suited for engineering?

College Majors Engineering Majors
1

<p>I'm really interested in studying chemical engineering. I'm not sure if this statement holds any weight, coming from a high school senior, but I enjoyed my calculus / chemistry AP / physics AP classes and the engineering applications my physics AP teacher talked about.</p>

<p>However, my dad doesn't think I'm suited for engineering. He thinks my math is average, but not good enough to succeed in engineering. He also thinks I lack hands-on aptitude. He studied engineering in Hong Kong and did well as a software engineer in the US.</p>

<p>I'm not sure where my math ability stacks up, but I took calc BC as a junior and did well. I also scored 770 on SAT Math I, though I did study. I know that this math is easy compared to college math, but these are the only measures I have. My hands-on aptitude and mechanical intuition is probably not good. However, I'm willing to work hard to develop it (if that's possible..?)</p>

<p>What do you guys think?</p>

2

<p>Calculus BC in junior year is two years ahead of the normal math sequence in the US. Of course, it may not be as impressive by the standards of some other places (like probably Hong Kong). However, plenty of students who are not quite that good in math do go into engineering successfully.</p>

<p>That you like your math and science courses is a good sign – you are more likely to do well in something you like doing (did you do well in the courses and AP tests?).</p>

<p>What is your father suggesting instead?</p>

3

<p>Your father sounds like a real piece of work.</p>

<p>I would never discourage my son from going down a path like engineering, especially before he even started that path.</p>

4

<p>I only took up to algebra in high school and I’m doing fine in engineering. How is doing well in Calc BC and a 770 on the math sat not good? I think that’s better than 99.9% of the population.</p>

5

<p>■■■■■■■
10char</p>

6

<p>

</p>

<p>

</p>

<p>Move along everyone it’s a ■■■■■. A rare sight on these forums.</p>

7

<p>No, I’m actually not a ■■■■■. Check my post history, and I think you’ll see that quickly enough. I now realize that my perception might be slightly warped though.</p>

<p>I don’t think my dad perceives math/science ability the way most US parents would. I scored 5 on the calc BC AP test, though I felt that a good deal of the math was memorization.</p>

<p>Anyway, the replies have been helpful, even with the ■■■■■ responses. I think I’ve gained some perspective on my situation.</p>

<p>ucbalumnus: My father is suggesting medicine instead. I’m good at English, and was recently admitted to Yale (albeit because of creative writing extracurriculars), so he thinks it’s a better path than engineering.</p>

8

<p>

</p>

<p>A program of study leading to a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering includes most of the pre-med courses anyway. So you can do the chemical engineering that you are interested in while still being able to tell your father that you are doing pre-med. If, like most pre-meds, you do not get into any medical school, you will have a degree with much better job and career prospects than the biology degree that most pre-meds do (compare [majors</a>’ job and career prospects](<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/internships-careers-employment/1121619-university-graduate-career-surveys.html]majors”>University Graduate Career Surveys - Career Opportunities & Internships - College Confidential Forums); also, here are [some</a> statistics on medical school applicants and matriculants](<a href=“https://www.aamc.org/data/facts/applicantmatriculant/]some”>https://www.aamc.org/data/facts/applicantmatriculant/), but note that many pre-meds do not even bother to apply because they know that their grades are too low – see tables 17 through 25).</p>

9

<p>I agree with the above–you can be a biomed engineer or chem engineer or any number of other things & decide at some point that you choose to apply to med school as well. There is nothing wrong with keeping your options open & seeing how well (or poorly) you enjoy engineering. If you shadow or intern for engineering and/or medicine, that may help you get a better idea of where your true interests & talents lie.</p>

<p>Good luck–sounds like you have MANY exciting options! Parents don’t always have the best perspective about their own kids & abilities.</p>

10

<p>Shouldn’t both you and your father be smart enough to know that you’re capable of studying engineering?</p>

<p>You know those kids who were taking algebra 2 and even geometry, when you were taking calc BC? Most of them could do engineering, if they put an effort into it.</p>

11

<p>Some families perceive the medical path as simply better, regardless of whether or not it’s a good fit. In the end, you have to own your path, and if you think you like engineering, then you should go down that path. From my perspective, your math is outstanding. If you have the curiosity and the grit to learn new things that are not always easy, even to math/science people, then I would highly encourage an engineering path.</p>

12

<p>I’m extremely jealous of your math ability. You can do whatever you want and you will be successful (as long as it’s something you enjoy doing). In our society, in a general sense, those with math skills dominate those without them.</p>

13

<p>Great, thanks for the responses.</p>

<p>I’ll keep my options open during freshman year, and stay on track for an English or engineering major.</p>

14

<p>You are obviously smart, and the opportunities at Yale are top-notch. You can pursue and major you want and flourish if you are passionate about your work. I do not think hands-on knowledge is not necessarily needed for engineering as engineers design, not build.</p>