<p>I have concerns about majoring in Mechanical Engineering. Honestly, the only things that bring me to the major are that I have interest in learning how things work, and how stuff is created. Although I have never taken anything apart/fixed/messed with a lot.</p>
<p>But I am worried that I might not be cut out for mechanical the reasons being:</p>
<p>-I am not mechanically inclined. Frankly, I suck at anything with welding, power tools, etc.
-I haven't worked on cars, trucks, or anything else.
-I am not very good with a computer, never used CAD/AutoCAD, or modeled.
-I cannot draw at all. Bering, gears, engines, etc, I have seen drawings for these and cannot possibly draw them. I also am not precise. I tend not to use a straight edge.
- Might not be able to maintain at 3.6+ gpa. Reason is two fold; I am not decided on medical school and a good gpa is needed, and I am scared i cannot handle the course work.</p>
<p>Are these concerns well founded or just nonsense? Can I still do well in my courses without the prior knowledge or skills?</p>
<p>Is mechanical engineering more difficult because of the amount of work or the actual course material? Is it more of a time management thing or just plain difficult?</p>
<p>Will the upper division courses(time wise) be comparable to my following schedule:
-Organic Chemistry I
-Statics
-Physics I
-Calculus III</p>
<p>I think its more about time management rather than being just plain difficult.</p>
<p>Mechanical engineering is a pretty big field and not just limited to fixing cars and welding and other stuffs you mentioned. However you need to have interest in math and physics to do well in the classes.</p>
<p>I think chemical engineering or biomedical engineering would have much overlap with the courses you would need for medical school.</p>
<p>Taking statics without first taking undergradute Physics class (classical mechanics) will be difficult but I am sure you can manage if spend enough time.</p>
<p>Time management certainly is important. You have to be able to know when you can and can’t put off work. Some days you might be able to get away with going to sleep when getting nothing done, others you most certainly cannot.
Statics and physics together are not difficult if you know calculus and algebra-based physics. I had to learn Statics for a project I was working on the summer before my Physics I class.
But the real question here is why are you interested in MechE? It’s really not a problem to never have been into building stuff, but you don’t sound like you actually have any reason. Really, I think you’re afraid you won’t get into med school and want a contingency plan.</p>
<p>That is a pretty good reason to do engineering in general, including mechanical engineering.</p>
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<p>With the exception of LEGOs, I was in the same boat.</p>
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<p>Good news: that is what technicians are for. They go to trade school to be a good welder and get paid to be a good welder. You get paid as an ME to design what they weld together and know what a weld means for the quality of the final product.</p>
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<p>I’d hazard and educated guess that most incoming ME majors haven’t either. I never had (and really still haven’t). There is so much more to ME than automotive.</p>
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<p>I hadn’t either. They teach you that when you get there.</p>
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<p>That is why they teach you CAD. No need for exquisite drafting skills when drafting is essentially obsolete.</p>
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<p>The only way to be sure you fail is not to try. If you are truly interested in ME, then I see no reason why you would not do it just because it is new and scary to you. 15 years from now, you will look back and wonder why you never did it.</p>
<p>Of course, medical school is a different animal that is incredibly (and unnecessarily, IMO) GPA-centric. I can’t really help you there. I don’t personally understand the appeal of medical school for so many people. I guess the salary seems nice, but that many years of what is essentially solid rote memorization, to me, is not interesting.</p>
<p>Are these concerns well founded or just nonsense? Can I still do well in my courses without the prior knowledge or skills?</p>
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<p>It really depends on the person. For most people I know and who I graduated with, time management was the biggest challenge. The concepts usually are understandable given enough time and effort (usually), but sometimes you just want to go to that basketball game or you just want to have a few beers one night or you just want to watch a movie with your girlfriend. You just need to strike a good balance.</p>
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<p>Honestly, that would amount to one of the harder semesters for the average mechanical engineering student, though no average mechanical engineering student will ever touch organic chemistry with a ten-foot pole, and with good reason. I remember they briefly went over basic organic stuff in my Chemistry II class and it did nothing but make me slightly less confused while reading the shampoo bottle in the shower and help foster a hatred of chemistry.</p>
<p>The first semesters are usually the hardest because most people just don’t understand (a) how to study and (b) how to effectively manage their time yet. As you get older, you learn those things, so even though the classes get more technical, usually you can keep up with them better.</p>