Preparing for Engineering. . .

College Majors Engineering Majors
1

<p>Hey there guys: I unhappy with my high school education and I was accepted to an engineering program (electrical engineering). So here's the deal, I want compensate for not fully preparing myself by self studying some subjects.
My list:</p>

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<p>Could I be able to self study all this in 4 and half months?
*Note: I have taken Calculus 1 and 2 at community college during the fall so I need some review. I have no programming experience whatsoever. I have taken Physics in high school but we only covered Mechanics in the class and I have already self studied Calc-based mech.</p>

2

<p>It’s kind of overkill to be honest. There is nothing wrong with being prepared, but there is no reason why you should make yourself do all this unless you just want to. Colleges don’t admit you assuming you already know every level of calculus and physics and programming. They admit you assuming that they have to teach you these things, which is why they are on the list of required courses.</p>

<p>My suggestion would be to kick back and relax this last summer before you start college. It will likely be the last summer you will truly get off. Enjoy it. If self-study is your idea of enjoyment, then more power to you, but don’t feel like you will be behind without all that. You are already ahead.</p>

3

<p>That’s what college is for…to teach you this stuff plus more. I don’t think you need to be worrying. I only took algebra, geometry and basic trigonometry up to my Junior year of high school and I’m doing fine in my engineering coursework (I’m a junior in ME).</p>

4

<p>Ah, that’s good because my studying over the summer would just involve couch surfing with national geographics and maybe reenacting some of those mythbuster stunts that I’m not supposed to. And waitressing. And dollar movies, swimming, and sleeping as much as possible.</p>

<p>I was a little worried thinking I might need to study for college over the summer.</p>

5

<p>In high school I took Calc 1, Physics (Mechanics and E&M) from a bad teacher and no programming.</p>

<p>The summer before college I went on vacation to Europe, worked at a grocery store, vacationed in Florida, went to a bunch of MLB games, slept, hung out with friends… no studying.</p>

<p>I got through engineering just fine with probably a little less effort than most of my peers and then went on to work on my PhD in engineering (still am). I would say that not studying over that summer didn’t hurt me one bit.</p>

6

<p>okay, I think I’ll take it easy then. Maybe I’ll just review what can and have fun! yay!
I was really worried that people were going to be way ahead of me and I really want to pursue an engineering degree.
Thanks guys. :)</p>

7

<p>Ditch the textbooks and start with primers. Idiot’s Guide to Calculus and the like. Don’t jump into calc-based EM or physics, start with the simple stuff to learn the concepts first off. In calc-based physics, it’s hard enough keeping up with all of the mathematical concepts, let alone the actual physics concepts, so learn physics first with simpler books, or take an introductory course meant for non-engineering and non-science majors.</p>

<p>If you want to get a jump start on programming (and I don’t really think it’s all that necessary since software design is 99% thinking and planning and only %1 programming), get one of those learn at home books from Sams Publishing or something, learn C or C++.</p>

8

<p>It probably would help you a bit to atleast fiddle around with some programming. A lot of people have trouble figuring it out in the beginning, so if you’ve already got it figured by the time you take your programming class, you won’t be frustrated and confused like a lot of people the who are new to programming.</p>

9

<p>Your post reminds me of my younger son. Just before he started first grade, he came to me crying and said, “Mom, I can’t go to school! I don’t know how to read!” I agree that you should enjoy your summer and be ready to hit it hard in the fall. Good luck!</p>

10

<p>:) Thanks for the advice everyone, I really appreciate it. :)</p>

<p>@MaineLonghorn: lol :D</p>

11

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<p>Good idea. Let college teach you, that’s what it’s there for.</p>

12

<p>During my experience, I found college to be the wrong time to be learning the concepts of physics and calculus for the first time. My high school provided little exposure to calculus and physics and I had a hard time grasping the fundamentals. But my case situation was weird. I had a very difficult time understanding basic physics until I was introduced to a particular statics book after I transferred to a different school. That one book unlocked everything for me. In a very short period of time I was able to go from not having a clue how to properly construct a free body diagram to be doing 3-D structural problems without much trouble. Very weird. My brother went to the same high school and the same college but had a much easier time adjusting to college than I did, so it depends on the person’s ability to learn new concepts quickly.</p>