hello, i want to pursue mechanical engineering in college. since i plan on going to grad school, my main choice is a state university. i heard a lot of “horror” stories from engineering students about course loads and work. so, i wanted to know, how is the life of an engineering student? what is your day like? classes? how do you study? where? what ECs are you in? what do you do for fun? favorite class? hobbies? i’m really excited about going to school for mechanical engineering. so yeah, please share your experiences. although i want to do mechE, any type of engineering student is welcome to share their experiences! thanks
P.S. if you have any tips, feel free to share. i need them
Do you have a reason for deciding on graduate school this early? If you are worried about “horror” stories from undergraduate engineers, just wait until you hear the ones from graduate students!
The answers to these will pretty much run the gamut, as engineers come in all shapes and sizes. Suffice it to say that if you have (or develop) good time management skills, you will have time for more than a reasonable amount of free time for whatever your hobbies or vices may be. Just don’t get too caught up in campus party culture (going out and having fun is fine, just don’t do it 6 nights per week).
“Do you have a reason for deciding on graduate school this early? If you are worried about “horror” stories from undergraduate engineers, just wait until you hear the ones from graduate students!”
Boneh3ad, it has been a very busy past couple of days for me because of a stressful and imperative work assignment. So when I checked in to CC for a break, I found your reply above and it gave me some needed relief, LOL. By the way, did I ever tell you that Dr. Strangelove is one of my favorites? The Sterling Hayden and the Coke Machine scene…one of many hilarious moments. And who can forget Slim Pickens?
I’m finishing up my second semester as an intended ChemE major, having taken fairly standard things during this first year: introductory chem, physics (non E&M), calc 1 and 2, etc.
As boneh3ad said, many of the things you asked about will vary by school or by major or by person. But I will relate my experiences just in case they give you some ideas.
I have class from 8 am to noon MWF, and 10 am to noon / 1 pm to 2 pm TTh. This will probably be mostly up to you; I like getting my classes out of the way early in the day. I am currently taking chem 2, physics 1, calc 2 honors, a required honors English class, and Spanish.
Utilize review sessions and office hours. I go to at least one review session before every exam. For physics I also do LOTS of practice problems. For our last exam, there were 114 review problems. I finished 80% of them.
I study in my dorm, but the library is also a popular spot.
I have heard that a good rule of thumb is one major-related EC (for me, Society of Women Engineers), one for fun (Book Club), and one for service (local animal shelter). You just don’t want to overload yourself. I could probably join another and still have plenty of time.
My son is finishing his junior year in electrical engineering. He has been an officer of IEEE, participant in engineering competitions, is captain of the club volleyball team, plays intramurals, and does other campus activities. He still finds plenty of time for girlfriends, xbox, football/basketball/baseball games, and parties, all while maintaining his near 4.0 GPA. There are a lot more hours in the week than you realize. Just need to manage them.
But I’ll reiterate boneh3ad’s question. Why do you already plan on grad school? You can certainly get into the aerospace field with just an undergrad degree in mechanical. You could even undergrad in aero. Engineering is one of the few high paying careers where a grad degree is not a must.
An undergrad mechE degree (with or without aero minor) will put you in line for jobs with all the big “rocket” companies. Take a look at the job postings at Boeing, Lockheed, Northrop, etc. You’ll see that ME is acceptable for almost all aero-type jobs.
MechE is like AeroE in that AeroE is a subset of MechE. What year of high school are you in? Have you looked at other colleges that have a program in it? It’s not that AeroEs and MechEs wouldn’t have similar opportunities, but if you like aerospace, then you might want to study that if you can.
Lake Jr.'s situation is similar to Bodangles. He’s the first to say that ChE is the hardest major (in his opinion, LOL), but he makes time for a full experience of extra-curriculars, only one of which is academically-oriented, interestingly enough. He’s enthusiastic about ChE and has kept up his grades sufficiently to snag two internships since his sophomore year.
I;m just starting my second year so here’s what i can contribute with. Engineering school is as hard as you want it to be. You can be middle of the pack and do the bare minimum necessary. Stay above 3.0, graduate, do co-ops and summer interships and you’ll be fine.
If you believe you are more capable than the average person you won’t settle for less than a 4.0 You’ll want to know where the formulas you are using come from. What are their limitations? Could you change them to fit other situations? Most people will find a way to solve a HW problem. They’ll check the answer at the end of the book and if it matches they’ll be satisfied. But you’ll try to use different methods to solve them. You are not satisfied and you’ll spend a lot more time on your school work than your peers.
The minimum amount of work necessary for an engineer to graduate is a lot more than 99% of the majors out there but it’s really up to you.
I started as an Aero major, switch to MechE because of all the aerospace companies closing up in the NE in the early 80s. I got a commission in the USAF after graduating and ended up working on various missile systems and became a missile project officer managing my own rocket launch program. So I pretty much ended up a rocket scientist by coming through the backdoor as a Mech E.
I have worked in the aerospace world my whole career; from the Space Shuttle to the Space Station to unmanned spacecraft. I graduated as a Civil Engineer. Don’t confuse major with career. At my company, we employed just about every kind of engineer there was; structural, materials, chemical, electrical, etc. You need all these specialties to design and analyze the items we built.
i wanted to know, how is the life of an engineering student? what is your day like? classes? how do you study? where? what ECs are you in? what do you do for fun? favorite class? hobbies?
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It’s fine. Last semester I was super busy (took a job as an undergraduate research assistant on top of 17 credit hours), but most people don’t do such a thing. I usually wake up at 7:30, get to class ~8:15, grab lunch around noon ish, have classes until ~3:30, and then either go to work or go to meetings or go do homework with friends.
I study by spending a lot of time doing the homework. Typically I just down in a quiet place and listen to rainymood.com. I’ve been involved in a lot of engineering ambassador positions, archery club, a couple of honors societies, a couple of design projects, and ASCE. For fun I hang out with friends, surf reddit, or play my 3DS.
Favorite class = Any of my structural classes.Hobbies= Eating, sleeping, playing 3DS, reading books.
Remember, being a student is your primary job in college. Spend at least 40 hours on classes/ homework/ studying. Go to class. And respect the professors (they’re usually really nice). Engineering isn’t impossible (I’m going into my senior year with a 3.93 GPA). It just takes a bit more time and effort than some folks are used to. Good luck.
Life of an engineering student? Hmm, compared to my peers I can’t really complain. Pay attention in class. Ask questions. Learn the material. Learn the test. Do these things and you should be able to do okay.
My days vary from semester to semester, but in the end it’s all the same – wake up, go to class, relax, handle business, and go to sleep. Some days have less relax time. Others I don’t do any bit of work. No matter what, I make sure when deadlines arrive, things that need to be done are finished. Best piece of advice: plan in advance and be well aware of your capabilities. If you’re someone who needs amble time to learn a new concept. Don’t wait to do a homework set the night before its due. If you’re someone who can do it within four hours, do it the night before, but remind yourself you could’ve done it two days prior and felt a lot better.
One thing I see quite a bit is students getting wrapped up into the intensity that engineering demands while ignoring what is best for them. It happened with me and, after dropping many things I didn’t care for, my quality of life has sky-rocketed. GPA isn’t everything if you’re not going into grad school. Don’t fight tooth and nail for that 4.0. What value are you placing in it? Is worth missing out on a family weekend? Is it worth not being there for your friend when they need you on an inconvenient weeknight? Is it worth being your third sleepless night in a row? You decide.
Personally, I am not devoting 100% of my time and energy into my engineering degree. It does not require it and I’m doing quite fine It’s different for certain people. Some can go, go, go, while others enjoy a more relaxed pace. Listen to your gut and plan according to what you can do.
Oh, pro-tip – Beware of groupthink when it comes to learning material and study groups. I’ve seen study groups take a complete 180 in terms of understanding a concept or how to apply a method in problems. While it doesn’t hurt to have people to lean on when learning new material, it’s okay to learn and study by yourself as long as you have guidance, whether it be a textbook, professor, TA, or knowledgable peer.
My daughter is in Engineering but CS part which I think is the most time consuming, project due every week. She has not joined any club but is a head tutor so it’s sort of like a club. She gets free food like pizza when there is a grading party. She has joined a few outdoor sports to relieve stress. She seems to have better grades when she has something to relieve stress. Other than that she does occasionally shopping, goes to the beach with friends and is learning how to cook on her own. GPA is good, could be higher than 3.7(but I don’t know the exact number). But she is coming up for junior year which means tough road ahead. She knows she needs to buckle down and no more easy GE classes to buffer from the demanding of CS classes. Next year, she may not want to work part time either. I’m fine with that because she will earn a lot of money this summer and don’t need to work during school year, but she will miss the camaraderie(sp?). Plus interviews for the following year internship will eat into her time and she also needs to budget for that. All professors have been excellent , some won teaching awards for 3 year in a row(can’t win anymore after that). The new CS students might not be so lucky because some of these professors are slowly retiring. She is always slightly on the lucky side with most things in life.
