Engineering?

[Scamahmrd]

I'm writing because I have a dilemma on which college major to choose. Right now I'm in the Navy's new STA-21 program (currently in NSI), and am getting ready to ship of to college here soon. I'm all set to work on an aeronautical engineering degree, but the time line that I have to work with is pretty intimidating. Basically, I have 3 years to complete my degree, whatever it may be. I'm trying to choose whether I should go for the engineering, or maybe go for something a little less strenuous, and maybe make better grades. The engineering degree is important to me because of future plans (Test Pilot School/NASA), but none of those will be possible if I don't even get into flight school. Any experiences, or suggestions will be greatly appriciated. Thanks in advance.

V/r,

OC Scameheorn

 

[Dave Shutter]

Since I've spent entirely too much time around recruiters and their offices, I'm going to try to answer this one. A lower GPA in a more demanding tech subject isn't always a black mark but a 4.0 in "sub-aquatic fibrous manipulation history" isn't really going to impress a board either. The more demanding your major the more lenient they tend to be on lower GPA's, a 2.5 in Nuclear Physics or molecular chem isn't necessarily bad, especially if your record shows you did a lot of other activites while in college. You attempted a major that scares most people and did OK. If you do decide to do something non-technical at least try to get in a lot of math and science classes, when a board get's a non-tech transcript in front of them it's the first thing they look for.

 

[jrklr]

Scam:
I just finished my 1st year at Cal Poly as a mechanical engineering major, and take my advice, do not even attempt to complete an engineering degree in 3 years. I work my ass off and get excellent grades and I'm predicting a 4 and a half year stay, which is outstanding for an engineering major here, considering most people take 5-6 years. If the schedule looks too intense, then it definitely will be even more intense than you think, engineering is just too demanding and you need time to concentrate. I would go for something like math or science which is possible to do in 3-4 years and get good grades in. The board accepts all majors, but a B.S. would definitely be a plus.

 

[Hartman]

Scam, there is so much more to be said about people who try to accomplish something and fail than there is to be said about people who don’t try and say “I could have done that if I really wanted to.” Yeah, whatever, dude…

Yes, I would agree that’s it’s damn near impossible to succeed in a respected engineering curriculum with only three years to work with. I have a B.S. in Chemical Engineering. It took me 4.5 years to get through it and I graduated first in my class. My success in obtaining my education did not come at a price though. I had to sacrifice friendships, relationships, and much of my social life to get through the degree. I did have a classmate who graduated Ch E in 3.5 years, but I think she had placed out of 40+ hours before even starting as a freshman in college. If you don’t have any college credit hours already, I would say that you’re facing up to quite a challenge. But this is only my opinion. What you really need to do is get in touch with the engineering department at the college you decide on and ask to speak with a counselor/professor about your situation. Typically, each engineering discipline at a college has one professor assigned to each class who is responsible for counseling students. You will be amazed at how friendly and helpful some professors are outside of the classroom (inside the classroom, they are all d****!!!) These guys will look at your SAT scores, grades from high school, etc. and give you their honest opinion on what’s best for you. All you have to do is be clear as to what your intentions and goals are, i.e., tell him/her what your limitations on time and career choices are.

Just remember that if you decide on the engineering route, some people (classmates, friends, girlfriends, and professors) are going to try to intimidate you and convince you to pick something easier. Understand that YOU are responsible for making a decision and a commitment to what YOUR goals are. If you don’t believe me, check out the stats. My freshman class had over 200 students and we graduated with 35. I once had an engineering professor stop class and tell me to my face that I should change my major because I missed a homework problem that was apparently very important. Had I let that comment go to my head, my life would not be what it is today.

You are in the driver’s seat. If you want it bad enough, I say go for it! If you fail, then at least you can live with the satisfaction that you tried.