So I’m taking my first physics course at my community college. My plan was to go into electrical engineering. Now I’m questioning everything because I’m doing physics, doing great on homework, on labs, and in class but when we get to exams I get F’s. I got a tutor and spend hours studying. I feel like I’m really getting it, and then a failing grade.
How can I become an engineer if I can’t pass the very first engineering course? Is this an end all? Is it time to reevaluate my major and career path?
I could really use some words of wisdom about now…
@needinguidance How often do you take practice exams (if they are released)? If you have access to practice exams or corresponding exams from past midterms, you should take them as part of your preparation.
It is not the end of the world for you, although if that plan doesn’t work, then I advise finding a different path - electrical engineering involves quite a bit of physics.
There aren’t practice exams? It’s four midterms worth 35 % of your grade and a final worth 20% of your grade. Homework and Labs fill the rest. The midterms are short and always only new topics.
Simply search the internet for “introductory physics practice exams.” You will see that the search gets many useful results. Among them today, using Google, for instance, is http://www3.nd.edu/~mhildret/phys10310/exams.html. Go down to where it says “Practice Exams: Old Exams from This Course.” It has the actual old exams and the solutions to them. Obviously, do exams before looking at the solutions. Do such exams A LOT. Don’t stop until you’re getting good scores on all parts of what is covered in your course.
Talk to your professor. Figure out what is going wrong and how you can fix it. Furthermore, when you get the exam back, go over the questions you got incorrect and figure out why this happened – if you could get them correct on the homework, why was the test so much harder? Answer that question to yourself, figure out how to do the incorrect problems, and meet with your teacher for any clarification on the test or the material in general. If you feel like you are getting it and then failing every exam, something’s wrong. Figure out what’s wrong and fix it. Keep persevering if this is something you really want to do.