<p>i'm currently a physics and applied math double major, looking at mechanical/aerospace engineering after graduation (i'm in my 4th yr but will stay for 5th)</p>
<p>i'm taking my 1st engineering class ever this semester, which is Feedback and controls since i heard it would be a good class for me to take since it involves engineering and lots of math and theory. unfortunately, the class has been boring and uninteresting to me.</p>
<p>we got our midterm back and i stunk it up... i'm borderline between passing and failing. my homework scores are similar. we still have the final left, worth 55% of the grade and the prof said taht students usually do better on the final than the midterm</p>
<p>my overall gpa is 3.85 and my only reason for keeping the class is because it will make my resume look better as i'm looking for mech/aero internships this summer.</p>
<p>yes it would show up as a withdrawal. i dont think it matters much. i withdrew a math course last semester and my prof and advisor said that employers and grad schools dont care much about withdrawals</p>
<p>Hmmm... well, you want a job in engineering, and you fail the midterm of the first engineering class you take because you find it boring.</p>
<p>Perhaps engineering isn't for you? Perhaps... employers wouldn't be impressed by your failing a course?</p>
<p>If you can't pass the class, get out. If you think you can pass, and still get at least a B (or maybe, MAYBE, a C) stick it out. That's just my two cents. Note: no knowledge at all about what employers want. But I think you need a disinterested third party more than an expert.</p>
<p>I agree that while a "w" would not look that great, a "D" or "F" would look worse. I think it would be best to get a decent grade, but if you can't, at least preserve your good gpa. (Does a "W" affect gpa?)</p>
<p>Is it possible that you just didn't prepare well for the kind of test you had? Could you do better next time? Engineering ususally has weekly problem sets...how do you do with those? Also, did your engineering course have any prerequisites such as other engineering courses? You might be competing with upper level engineering students who have much more experience, and as we know, engineering courses are often based on a curve.</p>
<p>One or two W's on a transcript generally dont matter; however, when they become a every semester thing (i.e. a habbit) it will reflect badly on you.</p>
<p>Having said that, don't get a D or F in the class. It is irresponsible to let it come to that.</p>
<p>You should go and speak to the professor; ask him from his experience teaching the class, what would your chances be of making a C? You also need to identify the problem: is it ability or is it effort? If you put more effort into the class, would you be doing better (as you said)?</p>
<p>The most important thing though is that you need to learn a very dear LESSON from this all: put as much effort as possible into the classes you dont like so that you pass them, and pass them well. That will end up causing you the least pain. I had exactly the same thing with some of my classes.</p>
<p>Good luck. Overall, though, it would probably be better for you if you stuck with the class provided that you have a realistic chance of ending up with a C or better.</p>
<p>If your homework scores are similar, maybe you just don't get it all that well. If you tried really hard to do the homework and still got marginal grades, I think you should seriously consider taking the "W".</p>
<p>"If you think you can pass, and still get at least a B (or maybe, MAYBE, a C) stick it out. That's just my two cents. Note: no knowledge at all about what employers want. But I think you need a disinterested third party more than an expert."
at this point, i'd be happy to get a C</p>
<p>"Is it possible that you just didn't prepare well for the kind of test you had? Could you do better next time? Engineering ususally has weekly problem sets...how do you do with those? Also, did your engineering course have any prerequisites such as other engineering courses? You might be competing with upper level engineering students who have much more experience, and as we know, engineering courses are often based on a curve."
i could have done better. the midterm had 3 questions, one of which i made an algebraic error that cost me to get the other parts of the problem wrong. if i didnt make that error, my score would have been close to the mean. the mean was 55, and i scored 40</p>
<p>"You should go and speak to the professor; ask him from his experience teaching the class, what would your chances be of making a C? You also need to identify the problem: is it ability or is it effort? If you put more effort into the class, would you be doing better (as you said)?"
he said students usually do better on the final than midterm. i definitely did put in effort. but its hard to put in more, as teh TA discussion sectino of the class has a time conflict the lecture of 2 of my other classes</p>
<p>"If your homework scores are similar, maybe you just don't get it all that well. If you tried really hard to do the homework and still got marginal grades, I think you should seriously consider taking the "W". "
my HW scores were just as bad if not worse than my midterm scores. again, probably since students can just get the answers from the TA discussion but i cant because of time conflicts</p>
<p>my prof also said that i was behind everyone else for the midterm since i skipped the prereq which everyone else took. but the material from now on is new to them too</p>
<p>i also plan on getting started with undergrad research soon, related to applied math in fluid mechanics in biophysics, since no engineering professors contacted me back about research opportunities</p>
<p>this gives me even more reason to drop the engineering class</p>
<p>
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i'm taking my 1st engineering class ever this semester, which is Feedback and controls since i heard it would be a good class for me to take since it involves engineering and lots of math and theory. unfortunately, the class has been boring and uninteresting to me.
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<p>If you find classes like feedback and controls boring, you'll be less engaged, and less likely to do well than other students.</p>
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he said students usually do better on the final than midterm. i definitely did put in effort. but its hard to put in more, as teh TA discussion sectino of the class has a time conflict the lecture of 2 of my other classes
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<p>It's important that you attend the discussion sections, especially if you're having problems. If this causes conflicts, you need to figure out how to rearrange your schedule to remove the conflicts, or take fewer classes. Most people find an engineering curriculum sufficiently challenging that they require (at least) four years to complete it. You are doing three majors now, which is even more challenging.</p>
<p>In general, I think you need to figure out what you really want, and set some priorities.</p>
<p>i just spoke to a recruiter at Northrop grunman and they said that since i'm doing so poorly in my engineering class, i might as well drop it as my high gpa is not worth risking just so i can put 1 engineering class on my resume</p>
<p>"You are doing three majors now, which is even more challenging.</p>
<p>In general, I think you need to figure out what you really want, and set some priorities. "</p>
<p>well more like 2 majors and a ME minor. i'm fairly sure i know what i want. to pursue MechE/applied math after graduation and hopefully work for a defense contractor or do applied research in mechE/applied math</p>