<p>i'm an electrical engineer...graduated two years ago from a pretty prestigious technical oriented school (Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute)...a school i always considered as the worst of the best (by that i mean MIT is best of the best...Carnegie Mellon and Cornell are a little, but not a lot, better than us, and then there's us and Georgia Tech)...</p>
<p>i got into engineering because i LOVED math and physics back in HS (mostly math, but that's what made me like physics also)...i did pretty decent in my years at RPI...graduated with like 3.2...some classes i excelled in (the more mathematically oriented electrical engineering classes)...i used to have fun deriving magnetic field equations using vector calculus</p>
<p>now i work in a nuclear energy consulting company...all we do is write lame reports...i hate this type of work...lately i've been writing specifications for technicians (basically telling them what to do in the field...pull out cables, place them somewhere, run new conduits)...and not only do i really dislike the task, but i'm just TERRIBLE at it...i mean just...pure...TERRIBLE...like it's to the point where i feel stupid...that type of work just doesn't click in my head and it makes me feel unintelligent...and there's this kid who went to Wentworth Institute of Technology (used to be a trade school)...but he has lots of experience as an electrician and worked construction...and he knows this stuff like the back of his hand...and then he throws out all these terms like "junction box" and "terminal box" and i have no idea what he's talking about...and then i feel stupid...and i feel like everybody who works with me on this project thinks i'm a moron...</p>
<p>what's wrong with me??...why am i so terrible at these things??...it just doesn't make sense...like to make myself feel better, i go on the artofproblemsolving website and solve AIME problems (i was able to get 7 of them correct off one of the AIME tests)...</p>
<p>What’s “wrong” with you, most likely, is that you do not enjoy your job. This is going to have an impact on your performance quite a bit. People who like what they do tend to do a better job from what I’ve seen (but not always). </p>
<p>You should probably ask for help and search for answers to questions you have. A lot of questions can probably easily be solved by spending a bit of time on Google.</p>
<p>Not that many jobs are very mathy and require work with a lot of equations. You have one such job that probably requires little mathematical wizardry and there are plenty more where it came from. You can look for a job that requires more math but you may very well need a graduate degree and/or need to be looking for R&D type jobs.</p>
<p>It sounds like you enjoy the theoretical aspects of engineering moreso than the practical aspects. You like deriving equations and math, but not so much the “real life” applications of engineering.</p>
<p>I don’t think there’s anything “wrong” with you; it’s just that you aren’t a good fit for this job.</p>
<p>I think you should clandestinely search for a new job. With time you will get better at this one, but it is unlikely that you will enjoy it more.</p>
<p>thanks for the input guys…i’ve been working here for two years and i have my moments to shine sometimes…i’ve had probably 3 or 4 instances where i had to do something more technical and mathematical…but other than that…yeah it’s pretty bad and not something i’m good with at all…</p>
<p>and i am definitely considering graduate school…not considering…more like “am definitely going to do it”…i’m applying to some schools for physics MS / PhD…others for MS EE…</p>
<p>is it okay to apply to some schools for some program, and then others for something else??..like do they check where else you apply and for what department??</p>
<p>Given the job climate, graduate school could work. I understand many college offer masters in EE via distance.</p>
<p>That said, your position sounds more like technical writing. Engineers are not always the best writers, and vice-versa. We are, however, procedural and algorithmic thinkers. Also, ask this guy to elaborate, so if he throws out ‘junction box’, just ask ‘can you clarify what that is?’ It cannot hurt, the worst he can say is ‘no’.</p>
<p>I had a similar experience as an engineer, I wanted to “save the world” and be at the vanguard of the “new” energy industry (which never happened), instead I was specifying motors, figuring out how to hook up conveyor systems, even where they should hook up switches for their plant vacuum cleaning systems, other stuff I didn’t care about and was not particularly good at. I liked math $ science, but was never a "hands-on, build this kind of guy. I wish I’d made that connection much sooner.</p>
<p>I realized another engineering job wouldn’t help me, so I applied to business school, got an MBA, and never looked back.</p>
<p>If you are in similar circumstance, I suggest get out as fast as you can, head for whatever school makes most sense for you.</p>
<p>Dear weary, I would say you are no different than MOST graduates. You HATE your first real job just like a majority of graduates entering the workforce. Keep a positive attitude. This won’t be your last job for the rest of your life, it’s only your first. What about Stanford and UC Berkeley for top schools as well? Is that an example of the East Coast Bias??? Good luck and hang in there. You’re perfectly “normal”!!!</p>
<p>yeah…i guess grad school is a must…just need to save up money for it now…</p>
<p>jshain…haha you got it…east coast bias it definitely was…i was just listing the top east coast engineering schools…i mean Caltech is in the west, and that’s by far the mother of all science and engineering schools (def puts MIT to shame i’d say)…but yeah i mean Stanford, Caltech, UC Berkeley, UIUC, oh and Princeton too…those would also be thrown in the list…top ranked AND top students go there…</p>
<p>^^^ Yeh, don’t get carried away here, weary. Not sure I’d mention Princeton in the same breath with Stanford, MIT, Cal Tech, UCB, UIUC, (Purdue, Michigan- my inclusions) , etc. etc. either! But thanks, anyways…</p>