Most engineering students go through the gruelling process of engineering without any plan on how to deal about it. They just look forward to the day of their graduation and that’s it. Damn whatever happens in between, what’s important is that they finish the race.
And if they do have a plan, it is just to survive college subject after subject. That’s not how it is supposed to be. There’s more to studying engineering than just finishing courses.
While you’re in engineering college, it pays to know how to get around. It’s your future career we are talking about here. Everything that you do and every thought you believe in college already matter.
That is why you should take extra caution in committing these common engineering school mistakes:
You think that student organizations, especially not related to engineering, are a waste of time.
More than enhancing your technical proficiency as a future engineer is your ability to deal with other people.
Engineering students need to be exposed to a lot of personalities by engaging in student organizations no matter how they are related to your course. The social IQ is a factor for engineers as the job requires working with other people that you may or may not like.
What student organizations can do for you is also develop your ability to manage projects, in case you’re given an important role in the organization.
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You only aim for passing marks.
This is a toxic mindset that engineering students should never tolerate. The culture should always be eyeing for the highest mark, regardless of the scores you get each time.
When you only target what is the least needed from you, it will reflect later in your kind of work. In engineering, it’s almost always black and white, never gray – the bridge will stand or the bridge will fail. Your settling for mediocrity may yield disasters later on.
While some may argue that grades don’t measure intelligence, it does measure performance. It works for you to get the best grades while working on your intelligence.
You can self-study if you have the notes given to you.
Another recipe for engineering college disaster is self-studying.
The concepts in engineering always require an in-depth explanation for you to be able to understand what they are, and that can be done by attending your classes. Almost always you cannot get the desired explanation by yourself especially if it’s a technical topic.
You may have the notes, but you don’t have the background in understanding the entire topic. Plus your instructor may say something in class, like additional footnotes, that you may miss. Always go to your classes!
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You don’t have to make friends with the seniors.
Introverted engineering students are absolutely going to raise an eyebrow with me on this: go out there and make connections with your higher-ups!
Your engineering seniors will not only help you go through college with their valuable experiences, later they can help you with your employment. Someday you will realize that the small talk you had with your senior will grow to dictate your career path.
You need any calculator.
Engineering students are required to have a calculator starting freshmen year. Before you go out there and purchase one for yourself, it’s best that it is not just any calculator, but one that is recommended in your local industry.
Do you need a graphing calculator? Or just a scientific calculator? What is allowed for your professional exam?
Investing thought and money for your calculator is important because you, as a future engineer, will use the device. As they say, calculators are the engineer’s bestfriend.
You can’t do part-time work because it will affect your studies.
False! Part-time work especially when it’s related to your course is a big plus. You can put that in your resume later even if it’s just a summer internship. It only means that you’re getting ahead of the others in applying what you are learning.
Yes it will remove time for your studying but it’s not really wasting the time because you’ll make use of that part-time work in the future.
While you’re still in engineering school, it’s time to make the change if you’ve been committing these reversible mistakes. You don’t want to be like the engineers who are reading this with regret.
Source: UNSW
