Engineering degree for the uncoordinated?

[veryhappymom]

Hi Smart People,

My son wants to be an engineer, but is highly uncoordinated. Is there an engineering degree that does not involve a high level of coordination? He is very smart and good at Math. Thanks.

 

[russ_watters]

Welcome to PF!

I don't think any engineering disciplines require a high degree of coordination. Just math and science aptitude.

 

[AlephZero]

A few specific jobs might require passing tests to demonstrate a "normal" level of coordination (whatever that means), and/or normal color vision, hearing, physical mobility, etc.

But as russ_watters said none of those things would bar you from a career in engineering - only from those particular jobs. In the company I work for I know one engineer who has symptoms similar to Parkinson's disease (I don't know the medical name of the condition) and another who is a wheelchair user. There are many engineering jobs that don't involve any practical manual work.

 

[veryhappymom]

Thank you so much! I was concerned that computer or electrical engineering would require a high level of coordination. My son is getting tested for developmental coordination disorder. If he has the condition, it would be a mild case. He loves Math and Science.
With the high price of college tuition, I wanted to make sure he wasn't pursuing a degree that was unrealistic. What engineering degree involves the least amount of coordination?

 

[NascentOxygen]

Hi Smart People,

My son wants to be an engineer, but is highly uncoordinated. Is there an engineering degree that does not involve a high level of coordination? He is very smart and good at Math. Thanks.

I think he will have difficulty with some of the demands in practical classes in engineering and science subjects. Where teamwork is involved, I'd expect that other students would be happy to take on tasks that would allow him to deal with the more academic aspects. Some institutions may be more accommodating than others.

 

[Mosys]

I'm thinking maybe a degree with a specialist focus rather than heavily multidisciplinary fields would be more rewarding, as multidisciplinary fields require a greater coordination with different teams and input streams. Once he has passed his degree and is working, some engineering jobs which have a significant project management component, e.g. civil engineering, chemical engineering or manufacturing engineering, may be challenging. I feel he would enjoy engineering fields which are more research oriented. Hope that helps.

 

[boneh3ad]

I am not sure you guys are interpreting the word coordination properly. I am pretty sure the OP meant physical coordination, like hand-eye coordination.

 

[AlephZero]

First he's "highly uncoordinated." Then he's getting tested for a condition and if he has it, it would be a "mild" case. Just remember the health industry is what the name says - an industry. It doesn't make any money by NOT finding things "wrong" with people.

To cut through the medical gobbledygook, if he's so physically uncoordinated that he can't use a standard PC, that is obviously a issue that needs to be addressed for any academic study, not just engineering. On the other hand if he can only hit a baseball one time out of 20, then big deal, unless he's hoping to be funded be a sports scholarship.