Need advice for high school student considering engineering.

Colleges and Universities A-Z Massachusetts Institute of Technology
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<p>My son is finishing his junior year in high school and is thinking about pursuing engineering in college. Can you please share ideas on the type things he could do (courses, internships, books etc) outside of class, during senior year. Things that he could do to learn more about the field of engineering and to prepare himself academically (beyond high school courses), so he does not flunk out when he gets into engineering college? </p>

<p>To provide some background, he will be taking AP Physics and AP Calculus BC in senior year. These are the only Math and Science courses left that he has not taken at his school. In addition, he will be taking History, English, Spanish and Physical Ed. (required). So, he will basically have a light load, next year. </p>

<p>He has already taken AP Chemistry, AP Biology, AP Computer Science II, Honors Pre Calculus and Physics. He should make National Merit Semifinalist. </p>

<p>So, what are some other interesting things he could be doing? Thank you</p>

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<p>Will he be taking AP History, English and Spanish? Is the AP Physics he will be taking the level C?</p>

<p>What programming languages does he know and at what level?</p>

<p>What engineering projects or extra curriculars has he been involved in? What are his summer plans?</p>

<p>What type of engineering is he most interested in?</p>

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<p>crazymomster, thanks for the response. We are bascially interested in making sure son does not drop out of engineering college. So any advice you can share in this direction will be appreciated. I am posting here because I have found MIT students/ grads and others on this forum are very knowledgeable and bright and helpful. I am really not too interested in how to dress up resumes to impress adcoms at top universities. I think he will get in where he gets in. </p>

<p>As far as Physics B or C is concerned that is a good question. In case he is not allowed to take Physics C should he take a course in calculus based Physics at a local college in the summer after Physics B in high school? Is that something that is doable? </p>

<p>He has taken AP Computer Science I & II as well as web design in high school. So, I think that means fluency in Java and HTML to the degree it is covered in these courses. In addition, we know he is finishing Pre AP Physics this semester with a 95% average and he likes this subject a lot. He also seems to enjoy mathematics. He likes Biology more than Chemistry. BTW, he took AP English lang and AP US History this year too. He has decided he does not want to major in these areas. So he will not be taking AP anything in these areas in senior year. As far as Spanish is concerned, he was thinking of taking a summer course in Spanish, then taking AP Spanish in senior year. However, he is now thinking of spending the summer in Spain working as a volunteer during this recession and taking regular Spanish in senior year. Once again, it is not a language he wants to major in, so I think that is fine. He will also be working on a web site he has for teaching chess to beginners. </p>

<p>He has not done any engineering projects. However, I was hoping to get advice on how to sign up for such projects? Like I said, it seems he will have some free time to work on such things this year.</p>

<p>thanks for your help</p>

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<p>@perazziman,</p>

<p>My daughter studied both physics and engineering/computer science at MIT, and graduated in physics last year. None of us ever thought of the question you’re posing, but she did a number of activities that helped to confirm her interest in engineering and gave her a strong background coming in to MIT:</p>

<ol>
<li><p>She sent away for “build your own” robotic kits, taught herself to solder, and built a couple of little robots that scooted around on our kitchen floor. This was about ten years ago, before we’d even heard of FIRST Robotics, and I assume you can still find such things. These kits weren’t made for children, but the models were scaled according to difficulty, and she started with the simplest. I think she was around 11 years old at the time, but any teenager with a latent engineering talent would be interested.</p></li>
<li><p>She took an electronics course in high school, freshman year. This was a vocational class, but what she liked was that they sometimes took things apart, from toasters to old laser printers</p></li>
<li><p>Joined the school’s FIRST robotics team</p></li>
<li><p>Joined the school’s mathematics competition team </p></li>
<li><p>Took Stanford EPGY’s summer quantum mechanics class (not mathematically challenging, really) the summer after sophomore year</p></li>
<li><p>Began independent research on projects and entered the regional science fair multiple times </p></li>
</ol>

<p>7.Took physics C junior year</p>

<ol>
<li><p>Took C and C++ programming courses after finishing up AP Computer science</p></li>
<li><p>Read every physics book she could get her hands on</p></li>
</ol>

<p>She was lucky to be in a large public school that had a FIRST team and a math club. Not every student has access to the resources she used. But that doesn’t really matter, because of the things on this list, I think the training in mathematics and the hands-on experiences in research and programming were the most important. Based on anecdotal evidence from friends whose sons and daughters have struggled in engineering, I’d say it’s really important to have a solid foundation in mathematics and problem solving. The good news is that your son could self-study, and there are some wonderful free online resources through the American Mathematics Competitions website.</p>

<p>For any parents reading this and thinking, “Oh, okay, I’ll just tell my son or daughter to do these things,” it doesn’t work this way. Neither my husband nor I are scientists or engineers. My daughter is a talented artist (she ended up designing MIT’s admissions poster 4 years in a row), and frankly, when she was young, I thought she would follow that path. Everything on the above list is something she initiated. As in, “Hey, can I get this kit? I want to build this cool robot!”; and “Hey, I’ve joined the robotics team!” and “I’m going to be home late – I’m on the math team and we have a practice session!” etc. etc. If you have a son or daughter who is like this (and believe me, you will know if you do), then you can encourage and support. But I don’t think it works to try to force anyone in this direction.</p>

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<p>Thank you CalAlum that was a very helpful post. You are right, going to the right schools can make a difference. Some of the things you have touched on make a lot of sense. For example, I have not seen him show an interest in constructing robots/ fixing machines/ cars etc. which worries me about his choice of engineering too. The closest he gets to creating something technical are websites. For example, he has a chess website that is linked to Youtube, on which he uploads videos of himself playing chess on a split screen with a chess board on which you can see the pieces moving. These videos can be quite interesting and entertaining. I have actually seen some copycat videos of people trying to do the same thing. He has also been talking about making some phone apps. I think he imagines himself working in a field where he turns less screws and bolts, and perhaps more time on some theoretical aspects of engineering, as a college professor or something. If that is not feasible, then he may have to change his focus towards Physics rather than engineering. </p>

<p>I also found your comment on AMC/ AIME very relevant. Two of his best friends compete in Math competitions and have asked him to join them next year. These are kids who also play chess with him. They have been testing him on Math problems and think he might do well.</p>

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<p>My S just finished up his freshman year at Cal and is a MechE major. The one course that challenged him the most was Multivariable Calculus, even though he was recognized and awarded as the top Math student at a competitive private HS. This might be an area that may need some reinforcing over the summer, but it might make more sense to do this after finishing Calc BC.</p>

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<p>If his high school offers CAD classes, I think that would be a very helpful skill to introduce.</p>

<p>Regarding jshain’s comment: multivariable is hard for almost everyone, especially those used to AP-level math courses. Reviewing calculus will never hurt, but I think developing some mathematical intuition through AMC/AIME problems is probably more useful.</p>

<p>In terms of making sure he “does not flunk out” the best advice I can give is to focus on time management, study skills, and stress release. Learning specific material will not really do much good in the long-term. So long as he does not have a ‘senior slide’ and does not burn out, he should be fine. He should be sure to keep up with the activities he enjoys, such as chess, as well as eating healthy foods and getting plenty of fresh air and exercise.</p>

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<p>

Bingo! This would be great, imo.</p>

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<p>@jshain: Thanks for the tip. Did your son get advance credit or is multivariable, normally, a freshman course in most engineering colleges? </p>

<p>@noimagination: It seems there is a consensus that S is doing the right thing by pursuing AMC/ AIME with his friends. I will look into CAD. Thanks for the advice. </p>

<p>@CalAlum: Once again thanks for helping us sort out these issues.</p>