I appreciate all your interest and help, folks. Our D is about half way through an engineering major, so although she’d lose some credits if she changed majors now it wouldn’t be the end of the world. She hasn’t done any internships, but she does have a good part time job and is a very hard, responsible worker.
As someone who has had a technical background I know the value of an engineering degree and TBH I’d love to see her complete it. But she hasn’t been doing well in her math and physics classes; her GPA has dropped to about a 2.8. In winter quarter she was academic probation and decided to drop STEM classes and take some electives in order to get her quarterly GPA back up. Obviously, she’s been under a lot of stress which frequently reveals itself (i.e., crying) in our video chats. She’s had to get a lot of help from her fellow engineering students in order to get through some of her classes, and is feeling pretty crummy about herself because of it. With her being 400 miles away it’s tugging at our hearts; just being able to reach out and give her a good hug would be so nice for all three of us.
Regarding grad school, that’s not even being discussed right now. When she first started UCD one of her profs advised that a masters degree wasn’t necessary for a good job in engineering, but that if she was intent on getting one she should get an engineering job first, get some practical experience in the field, and then find a way for her employer to pay for the cost of grad school. Sounds like a good plan to me. I suppose grad school is still a possibility, but it would have to be in a field she’s really passionate about…at the moment, that doesn’t appear to be engineering.
Anyway, after some investigation we’ve discovered that she’s an ISFP (Meyers-Briggs personality type) which although is a natural problem-solver, generally doesn’t do well with abstract theory or corporate environments and actually leans more towards the creative arts and working independently. We’ve also discovered that the demands of an engineering career can be very stressful and draining to her personality type. At the same time there are quite a few career paths that, while they might not be as potentially lucrative as engineering, are a much better fit to an ISFP. Those are the ones we’re helping her to consider if she decides to switch.
She essentially has two years of engineering courses to complete, and that can be a long time - and a lot of stress - to a student who’s simply not a good match to that type of academic program. It can be damaging to the soul. We’re continuing to consider her options but we realize that time and the number of her remaining credits are very important. I’ll keep you updated as best I can. I just hope this all works out and that in 10 years we’ll all look back and know we did the right thing for her.
Thanks again.