jd8844

Hello friends,

I will be joining Rutgers Engineering School this fall. My major will be chemical engineering.

I want to know what are the tricks and methods you have used or are using, for acing engineering major?
And what are the things that i should be looking after or should be a part of in college? (like joining some engineering groups)

boneh3ad

Two things:

First, time management. That is, in my opinion, the single most important thing to learn to be successful. Most people who fail out are a result of somehow mismanaging their time and priorities (e.g. drinking too much or playing too many video games).

Second, make sure you leave some time for things that aren't school-related. You need down time to perform you best. In regards to balancing that with your studies, see my first suggestion.

donsun

Most important thing from my past 3 years would be to go to class and take notes. For me it was a lot more time efficient to go to class and pay attention rather than skip class and try to catch up on my own later.

noimagination

Make a consistent effort. Procrastination will really hurt you. If you put in a couple of hours each day, you should do okay.

fractalmstr

Go to class.
Take good notes.
DO the "optional" problem sets.

The rest is a blank canvas you'll be painting as you go along.

Remember not to get overly wrapped up in the "what I should be doing" aspects though... get out and meet people. Have fun!

buranka

be motivated. i survived 3 years in CC to transfer to UCSD; i did so well because i was determined to "get as many 4s" as possible (i graduated with a 3.2 gpa in high school). i had a mentality that i want, no hunger, for a SUCCESSFUL professional career. i distinguish myself so i want to achieve as much as i can. learn to connect with faculty; their attitude will empower you to act mature, so you can be ready for the real world. start friending the intelligent people. even if they act weird/nerdy, they are usually willing to help teach you things you might not understand (it helps their learning too).

ClassicRockerDad

Read the textbook before lecture so that during lecture, it's your second go-round and you internalize the material and grasp the subtleties. Most people hear the material for the first time during lecture, and miss the subtleties altogether.

Copy your lecture notes over neatly after lecture. You get another chance to carefully review the material that way and formulate questions for office hours.

Look at and try to figure out how to do every problem as soon as you get them, form questions and go to office hours. Most people wait until the last minute, and then office hours are not useful because you haven't formulated questions yet.

Prepare for exams by doing problem after problem after problem. Do problems that weren't assigned, use other textbooks, etc, but find more problems. Work in groups, but with people as dedicated as you. Avoid blind leading the blind situations. If your working with someone who is slacking and slowing you down, tell them to shape up or ship out. It's not personal, it's strictly business.

Get enough sleep.