Could I handle an engineering major?

College Majors Engineering Majors
1

My dad is an electrical engineer. I’ve always looked up to him and thought his job seemed interesting and exciting. However, until recently I’ve dismissed the possibility of going into engineering for several reasons.

The first is that I’ve never really felt smart enough. My grades have been decent, but never spectacular. A solid mix of A’s, B’s, and C’s. I love to learn, but can’t focus on one thing for long periods of time. I’ve always been pretty good in my science classes, but math was never my strongest subject. My dad, who’s the only engineer I’ve ever met is so smart. He graduated college in three years, was on the deans list, and worked a full time job at the same time. I don’t think I would be capable of handling something like that. I have always felt a pressure to be like him, and becoming an engineer would only increase that pressure.

The second thing is the engineering class I took sophomore year. My dad encouraged me to take it. I got good grades in that class, but did not enjoy it at all. All we learned was CAD, which was really boring. After that I had the fear that that was what engineering really was. It was a PLTW course, but I’m pretty sure we didn’t follow the curriculum. Honestly, since we have an actual CAD class at our school, why did we have the engineering class in the first place? I was recommended to take another PLTW course this year, but declined.

The third thing is other people’s opinions. I know this shouldn’t bother me, but it’s been ingrained into my head since middle school that I should teach elementary school. I’m really awkward around people I don’t know and my only “talents” are my singing voice (which isn’t going to take me anywhere), and how well I work with children. I do love kids. I’ve been a counselor at summer camps and babysat ever since I was 13, so it had always seemed like a good fit for me. No one ever thought I could do better than that, so I accepted it.

What has made me change my mind is my honors physics class. I almost didn’t take it because everyone said I wouldn’t like it. Now that I’m in it, I wish I had signed up for AP! I have fallen in love with physics, which surprised literally everyone except my dad. It is the first class in high school that completely makes sense to me. My teacher has already asked if I wanted to take AP Physics II next year. The class has given me so much more confidence and has made me feel “smart” for the first time.

Now I’m in a debate with myself over two completely different paths in life. Would a shy, not academically confident girl be able to handle herself in an engineering major? Would I even be able to get into a decent engineering program with my grades? (I was thinking UMass Lowell since it’s pretty close and isn’t SUPER selective) Or should I settle for what I’m good at and end up with a crappy paying job as an elementary school teacher?

2

If you like physics better than engineering, then study physics. There is no problem getting a job with a physics degree since you can compete for engineering and software jobs as well. Furthermore, if you later decide that you want to teach, there is a huge need for high school physics teachers. The most important thing is that you should enjoy and be enthusiastic about whatever you study as a major.

As a long time physics professor at a primarily engineering university, I would encourage you to keep exploring your options for engineering or physics. Don’t settle and remember that a lot of your success in college depends on how hard you work, not how intrinsically “smart” you are.

3

Y-e-s, YES. Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard.

Not all engineering has to do with CAD and even the fields that do (ex. mechanical) are applicable to a lot of things, not just CAD. Keep investigating your options, as xraymancs says.

Rooting for you.

4

It’s hard to know much from one high school physics class … but so far to me it sounds like you could like engineering. It does require a lot of math, which often comes easily to engineering students. Are you liking math part of problem solving in physics?

5

@xraymancs I was thinking of majoring in physics, but I hear it’s hard to get a job without a graduate degree, which I’m not really interested in.

@colorado_mom I always got a bit confused in my math classes, but I do all of the math in my physics class very easily. I think it’s because the problems we do in physics relate to something real instead of just arbitrary numbers and letters. That’s why I think engineering might work for me because engineers solve real world problems. I’m also pretty good with computers, so that’s a plus.

6

@Wrennn that is the misconception I was pointing out. In fact employment for those with a BS in physics is very good. However, this does not mean a job DOING physics necessarily. Physics majors can work as engineers and software developers as well as in the financial industry. Salaries are also in line with engineering BS holders.

The point I was trying to make is that if you like engineering, then go for it but if you like physics but engineering is not as interesting, you have the option of studying physics and still being able to find a good job after graduation.

7

Honestly, intelligence is kind of overrated when it comes to undergrad engineering. The real problem with the material IMO is not that it’s so incredibly difficult, but that a lot of it is non-intuitive and takes some time and effort to understand. If you put in the work to break through those “what is going on” moments and stay on top of assignments, you’ll be fine. The people who try and coast through usually have a bad time, regardless of how smart they are - I saw several National Merit scholars and high school valedictorians get smoked on exams during freshman year. Work ethic is the bottleneck IMO.

The vast majority of engineering courses are going to look about like your physics class. You have weekly homework, quizzes, and 2-3 exams, and most of the work is chugging through algebraic equations. Some classes have a lab component that may look more like that CAD class, but they are usually an addition to the course and not the bulk of it.

I would see if you can take calculus-based physics (Physics B, or whatever they call it now, is pretty much useless) and AP calculus. If you can get an A or B in each of those, I think you would do fine in engineering. The workload becomes heavier in college, but the material really does not become much more difficult than that.

And I wouldn’t dismiss teaching either. The pay varies greatly based on where you’re at, but back East, I would guess you can start close to 60K for nine months of work. It’s also going to be more stable than private-sector jobs and the benefits are outstanding. I come from a whole family of teachers and nearly went into the field myself, it’s really not a bad gig.