- #1
Brilliant!
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Electrical? Mechanical?
I've chosen engineering because I want to have tangible evidence of my accomplishments. I would love a hands-on career in which I am creating, testing, analyzing; a career in which I am advancing a technology, making more efficient, economical, and/or powerful.
But that's all of engineering. Whether it be developing a motor, building a bridge, working with green fuel sources, or working on the processor for the worlds best supercomputer, it all sounds so exciting, so fun, and so fulfilling.
I'm sure some of you have been my position: unable to decide on which type of engineering you'd like to do for the rest of your life. I've heard of degree plans that involve at least a couple of semesters of general engineering courses, after which you choose your focus. Unfortunately, my school doesn't work like this. From day 1 of semester 1, you are taking major-focused courses. The freshman year of the EE degree plan has you taking a total of 4 EE courses alongside the Calcs, Physics and core courses.
So, you see why I'm in a pinch.
Right now, I'm trying to choose between Electrical or Mechanical. I'm not thinking at all in terms of difficulty. I'm comfortable with math and physics, so neither of the majors scare me in that regard. I'm not afraid of having to work my butt off, either. I've always been a hard-worker, and consider that to be one of my greatest characteristics.
Am I long winded or what?
I guess the point of this post is that I'm looking for some guidance. What are the classes like for both degrees? And are they fun? I guess I imagine having a chance to actually work with my hands instead of pencil-pushing all of the time. How much hands-on experience is there for both of these degrees? Will either one of the degrees have me staring at a computer screen 10 hours a day 5 days a week? Or are there some great careers where I really get to get in there with my wrench or my soldering iron and go to town on a project?
Thanks in advance for any input.
I've chosen engineering because I want to have tangible evidence of my accomplishments. I would love a hands-on career in which I am creating, testing, analyzing; a career in which I am advancing a technology, making more efficient, economical, and/or powerful.
But that's all of engineering. Whether it be developing a motor, building a bridge, working with green fuel sources, or working on the processor for the worlds best supercomputer, it all sounds so exciting, so fun, and so fulfilling.
I'm sure some of you have been my position: unable to decide on which type of engineering you'd like to do for the rest of your life. I've heard of degree plans that involve at least a couple of semesters of general engineering courses, after which you choose your focus. Unfortunately, my school doesn't work like this. From day 1 of semester 1, you are taking major-focused courses. The freshman year of the EE degree plan has you taking a total of 4 EE courses alongside the Calcs, Physics and core courses.
So, you see why I'm in a pinch.
Right now, I'm trying to choose between Electrical or Mechanical. I'm not thinking at all in terms of difficulty. I'm comfortable with math and physics, so neither of the majors scare me in that regard. I'm not afraid of having to work my butt off, either. I've always been a hard-worker, and consider that to be one of my greatest characteristics.
Am I long winded or what?
I guess the point of this post is that I'm looking for some guidance. What are the classes like for both degrees? And are they fun? I guess I imagine having a chance to actually work with my hands instead of pencil-pushing all of the time. How much hands-on experience is there for both of these degrees? Will either one of the degrees have me staring at a computer screen 10 hours a day 5 days a week? Or are there some great careers where I really get to get in there with my wrench or my soldering iron and go to town on a project?
Thanks in advance for any input.