Starting an engineering degree at 20 years old?

College Majors Engineering Majors
1

Out of high school, I went to college for environmental science for a year. I decided I needed some perspective after some things transpired in my personal life, so I took a year off and helped out on my uncle’s cattle ranch in Wyoming. We built a new airplane hanger, a steel framed mechanic shop, and a wider road on the ranch while I was there. It was a busy year.

Anyways, I realized that I wanted to go into civil/environmental engineering because of that experience, and I was accepted to a great engineering school in the area.

My hang up is my age unfortunately, because I feel I almost wasted two years of my life. To be fair, I did learn alot and went from being a sheltered (even a little stuck up) girl from the city who hated getting dirty, to learning how to weld, do high steel work, birth cows, etc (a really random skill set, I know).

I do have some credits that transfer, but as most engineering students probably know, an engineering degree requires very specific credits. Because of this, I’m basically at square one, and a freshman again. I should have graduated in 2018, but I am now looking at 2020 instead.

My question is if this is an odd thing to do, and if I’m just making things harder for myself. I feel a bit ashamed about being behind, so I guess I came here for support.

*In addition, what is it like for girls at an engineering school. My school is 76% male, and it is a little intimidating because people typically doubt my abilities (like on the ranch at first) because I guess I come off as a “girly girl”, so I try really hard to prove otherwise.

2

It sounds like you learned a lot of really practical things in the last year, one of which is hard work. I think exposure to how things work and don’t work in the real world are very helpful when it comes time to study engineering. Knowing you can succeed in those tasks on the ranch should give you confidence in any challenging environment. The ranchers I have known tend to be much more intimidating than 18 and 19 year old college students. Your experience and age are an advantage. Bring that work ethic to school it will serve you well.

3

I have worked many engineers that either took a break or started their college education later, some much later than you. You will be minority in most colleges, but it won’t make any difference; you are all there to learn.

Interesting to note that the ones who I do know that started later in life usually were more focused in what they wanted out of college. They weren’t the wide eyed freshman that was still trying figure out what area they wanted to study and what not living with there parents was about. They got more out of their college classes because of that focus.

I will guess that you will do very well in college.

4

It really won’t matter at all. And the experiences that you have had that have helped you better define your goals will always be an asset.

5

I work with a guy who started engineering studies when he was about 40. He’s quite good.
Your practical experience should be enormously helpful.

6

You’ll be fine. The extra maturity and motivation will be an asset.

My husband did various college majors / work before eventually graduating at age 29.

7

Some of my classmates are much, much older than you. One of my instructors went back to school to get his degree when he was like 37.

As for your concern that you “wasted” those two years, I think you’re incredibly overstating it. Not only did those experiences give you useful skills and perspectives that others don’t but really, lots of incredibly successful people have screwed up in drastically worse ways than not spending two teenage years as efficiently as they could’ve. Heck, many people intentionally take a gap year after high school and probably still don’t do anything as useful as what you did.

Seriously, those practical skills you learned are probably going to be incredibly useful in the future, and I sort of envy you for having gained them. And it’s not like a two year gap has destroyed your academic ability or anything.

As for being a girl in engineering, you will be a minority, but I think you’ll find that a lot of guys will be really, really eager to be your study buddy, and you’ll form a tighter bond with the other girls in there (24% of a whole engineering class is still a lot of people). You can also make friends outside of your particular major.

8

My son is 20 and just changing his major to ENG. Yes he is the oldest kid in many of his classes but he is determined to change his course after experiencing other things. As far as being a girl, you will find your social niche regardless. Within your classes, it will be a meritocracy. If you are a good student and contribute, no problem. If you are not academically fit for ENG, people will eventually charge ahead without you (study and project groups), but not because you are a girl, strictly based on capability and effort.