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It's made worse by the fact that her university awards no grade points for "plus" and "minus" grades (i.e., a final grade of "B" in a course is factored into the overall gpa as a 3.0, no matter whether the numerical grade in the course was 80 or 89) -- so anything less than an "A" in any course will hurt.
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It's not necessarily that bad. There have been a few studies done by schools that have shown there is not a statistically significant difference in GPAs between schools that use a +/- system and those with a more traditional system. A +/- systems tends to hurt those at the extremes of the GPA scale. It will be harder to get GPAs approaching a 4.0 because an A- is a 3.7 (and in rigorous engineering courses, it's pretty darn hard to get a grade that would warrant a straight A). It also hurts those at the bottom, since a C- is now a 1.7, and puts the student in a lot of danger of getting kicked out. Anywhere in the middle, the GPA differences wash out.. As long as the student isn't consistently at one of the extremes, the use of a +/- system vs. a regular system isn't something to worry about.
A +/- system might add some subtle differences though. It might force professors into using a more rigid grading scheme, since now they have to differentiate between someone that got a 88 and another that got an 84. If you thought there was a lot of *****ing about grades before hand, it's gonna be a lot worse. While grade inflation isn't nearly as bad in engineering programs, professors generally will be lenient and boost a person to the next grade level if they are borderline and have shown a good work ethic.
But back to the topic at hand, maintaining high GPAs for honors programs or scholarships should not be terribly difficult. As others have said, it just takes good time management and a bit of dedication and sacrificing a few nights a week. It's important to have a good first year, since it usually sets the tone for the next few years. However, I think your concern is certainly valid. The average GPA in rigorous engineering programs range anywhere from a 2.7 to a 3.3 depending on the school. This means that most scholarships and honors programs require the student to be at least in the top half, if not higher, in their respective classes.