Hello all,
For starters, I would like to acknowledge that what I am planning is highly unconventional. I am presently a rising senior philosophy with prelaw emphasis major, but after some success/luck in entrepreneurial endeavors have found myself at a crossroads. I can either a)continue doing what I’m doing out of the university, possibly never going back, but I neither want nor expect to do that or b)go back to the university and, with a much more considerable level of income, change to a major that I feel strongly about- engineering - and endure the time/money expense I could not otherwise.
The particular hitch in that second option is that I have a very, very, VERY poor mathematics background- as in, I haven’t even begun College Algebra(the base course at my university) and would get creamed if I tried it now without intense preparation. I have always done poorly at math due to lack of effort, though I now recognize its beauty and practicality. Calculus is the base suggested course to take as an engineering freshman, so I would be setting myself way back by taking College Algebra as a freshman, but do not yet have the proficiency to do Calc.
It has also been about 3-4 years since I last took a core STEM class such as Chem or Bio. In any case, I would like to know what some of you more experienced folk think my best options are in preparation of this dramatic change. I am currently on leave of absence and am looking to return spring 2016 or fall 2016. What should I do, read, experience, etc in order to best prepare for a rigorous education in engineering(likely mechanical/ biomolecular/chemical)?
My particular interests in the subject are nanotechnology and renewable energy if that helps clarify what I am directing myself toward and why I would put myself through such a whirlwind of change/expense/difficulty.