Am I cut out for Engineering?

RMIBstudent
Sat, 19 Mar 2016 23:37:21 +0000

@Lambchoppi6

Getting into an succeeding in an engineering program has virtually nothing to do with your desire to build things, except maybe to motivate you to push through it. You will take a few labs and a few design class or two, but this will probably only count for 15-20% or so of your total coursework. Aside from general discipline, work ethic, etc., your academic success will primarily be a function of how good at applied math and physics you are.

I’m not the most qualified to talk about actual engineering work, except to say that most engineers rarely, if ever, build things with their hands. You could find a job doing that if you wanted to, and maybe you’ll develop such a passion at university, but it’s not necessary. Now if you don’t even like designing things more abstractly, then there could be a potential loss of interest - you will probably find out from internships (although you should be wary of judging too much from one bad experience). That doesn’t mean you won’t enjoy the coursework, and you can easily transition into other fields with an engineering degree - caveating that some of the more lucrative ones do expect either very strong software skills or a good GPA.