Should Shy Girls Pursue Electrical Engineering? Expert Advice & Tips

[Mika-Yugo]

should I, should not I study electrical engineering? Is it for me?
Being a shy girl and a good student in high school I have to decide what am I going to study at university. Your suggestions are more than welcome. Thank you.

 

[NeutronStar]

Be true to yourself! You should absolutely study whatever interests you. To do anything less would be cheating yourself.

Just think purely academically and then deal with whatever obstacles come along with that. You know, engineer your way around them!

 

[christinono]

You should also ask yourself the following questions:
1) Do I have the marks to get into an electrical engineering program?
2) Did I (or do I) like physics in high school (particularly the electicity/magnetism unit)?
3) Do I like math?

Also, talk to electrical engineering students or electrical engineers. Find out exactly what kind of stuff you would be doing and in what work environment you could work. I personally want to be an engineer, but am not sure what type yet. I am still doing my research...

 

[Mika-Yugo]

guys thank you very much, i don't like physics or i should say i am not good in work and energy units and forces, but electricity/magnetizam is A o.k.
I do like math. i was the top grade 11 student in electrical eng. course among 11 boys and 3 girls. In grade 12 my school did not offer electrical tech courses bcs "boys" got scared it's to hard.

I was attending University of Toronto courses for gifted high school students and got an exposure to the biomed and electrical eng design programs.

One elect. eng. from Mississauga, Ontario, told my father; o, that is not for girls, girls need nice nails ... That really did upset my father who gruw up in central Europe and met a lot of young ladies in technical classes.

 

[AKG]

I don't think you should let the facts that you're shy or that you're a girl influence your choice at all. Well, I suppose you shouldn't go into dramatic arts if you're shy, but most engineering or arts or science programs will be okay. If you don't like physics, or forces and work and energy, stay away from engineering. If you like maths, take maths. I'm in the mathematics specialist program at U of Toronto, it's a good one, you could take that. If you like biomed-type-stuff, consider life sciences.

 

[Stanley_Smith]

being an engineer meaning dealing with technical and "boring" stuff, you will be dealing with circuit breaker, calculating current/voltage..., writing software to make a machine work in my case; think like this, your everyday is going to be with machine!... follow YOUR INTEREST...

 

[NeutronStar]

..., writing software to make a machine work in my case; ...

Hey! That was always the fun part of the job for me!

 

[Mika-Yugo]

Today I wrote my last math exam-Geometry and Descrete Math, that is a grade 12 math. I did apply to University of Toronto mathematics and/or engineering program but I did not decide which one will I choose.
I really do appreciate everyones advice and comments. Please, keep helping me. Thank you all. Mika , (please read Meeka)

 

[Math Is Hard]

Hi Mika,
When it's all said and done, what kind of a job do you think you would like to have after you finish school? Do you have any particular dream you want to pursue? Or are you thinking about studying EE just because it's an area where you have interest and talent?
Just curious.

 

[FredGarvin]

If you are indeed shy, I will warn you that, although engineers deal with boring stuff a lot, a lot of an engineer's responsibilities include dealing with groups of people, presentations and meetings on top of meetings. It's the nature of the beast. The days of most engineers being able to just do one thing and not deal with other people are long gone. If you decide on engineering, you will have to confront your shyness to excel in a corporate setting. Honestly, I see it as a function of your age. By the time you get through college, I doubt you'll feel the same way.

 

[Mika-Yugo]

Math Is Hard, It is difficult to answer, sometimes I say I will be a hair
stylist:-) but then again EE runs in the family. I don't know did you hear for Nikola Tesla, my ancestors are from the same village-relatives-neighbours of his, and I am supposed to follow the tradition since I have no brothers or sisters.

Fred, I am investigating myself will that shyness disappear. May I reveal you something. Recently in my Economics class presentation I was so brave speaking before my classmates and I got 93%. My father told me the same what you told me, that I will outgrow it. I hope so.

Thank you all, Mika

 

[Shahil]

Hey Mika-Yugo!

Nice to see that some girls are considering doing EE - there's maybe 5 girls in my 3rd year EE class and maybe 115 guys!

Check out this thread as well - I wrote quite a lot about choosing eng there:
https://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=15898

Also, that shy girl thing - once you get to varsity, I'm sure that your friends will sort that out! (It has been done ... )

It is really a difficult and stressful field to study. You have to be prepared for 4 long years filled with hard work no matter how intelligent you are. It is really enjoyable if you like your maths and physics (Personally I liked Maths much better than Physics). Also, you like Computers? I know the course I'm doing here in South Africa is very much Computer-based (Don't know if it's similar elsewhere!) and if you don't like computers - you're going to have problems!

Oh and even though you're going to get paid VERY nicely, DON'T do it for the money...

 

[Mika-Yugo]

Shahil,
Thank you for suggestion and for the site.
It is very difficult for me to decide, since I am in Canada and i did not see to many women engineers. I am fluent in German, Serbo-Croatian and Russian. Those are the countries where many female students study engineering and we were thinking that I go to Leningrad (former) but since I am to young my father does not take that idea very easy. No, I am not thinking about money, I am more interested how to help some old grandma with artificial elbow and/or hip. (biomed). And, I really do not like physics (mechanical units).

Ya, I heard EE is a very difficult program and that's what attracts me there, I feel very important:-). Thanks again, Mika

 

[FluidSpace]

Hi,

Eventhough "money isn't everything", you should learn about handling your finances well. Being very good in your chosen field will not guarantee you decent income and cause many unforeseen hardships. In other words, learn to invest and save for rainy days when they do come. (Usually, unexpectedly!)

Just "keepin' it real!"

FluidSpace

P.S. Networking with good people (be selective!) will also help you in hard times.

 

[mike217]

Hi Mika,

What has been said about being shy in Engineering is true. In first year try to find a good group of students (i.e. students who actually do work). This shouldn't be too hard in U of T. There are some excellent students there. No matter how much you try to isolate your self in Engineering you have throw your shyness out the window, and focus on the end goal which is to get projects/assignments done on time. If you are in a group which puts most of the workload on your shoulders, then change groups and tell your TA that you had to change groups, or if its too late to change let the TA know that you did most of the work so he/she can grade the work fairly.

P.S. I have been told in the past that this strategy is unfair to students. Well does putting the workload on the shoulders of one person qualify as being fair??. Had I used this idea I wouldn't be out of the faculty now.

 

[vincebs]

I think engineering could be a great field for you. But it all depends on whether you like it or not. Before you decide what field of engineering to go into, make sure your choice is based on your personal interest, and not just because that field makes the most money or because that's where some of your friends are going.

Also, do not let people who say "women can't be engineers", "engineers are boring and not cool" or "only geniuses as smart as Einstein can be engineers" discourage you, they may not be saying that to intentionally hurt you, but they are just naive in what people are capable of doing :)

Keep in mind that engineering school is a lot of work, sometimes it may feel like you're so deep in the tunnel that you can't see the light at the end but once you graduate you will be well rewarded!

 

[Mika-Yugo]

vincebs,

What (if) keeps me from engineering is, would be physics. Although I am a top student among 1800 students still physics somehow doesn't attract me. If I decide to take engineering it would be EE and there is only one more student in my school from Balkan Peninsula that is interested studying engineering. If I take engineering it would be at University of Toronto or McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario.
Although, money is important in our lives but i really do not remember to think about money. My parents are south east Europeans and I am their only child they are willing to sacrifice everything for my education, so money is out of question.

One more thing, Is EE sooooo hard? I hear it from everybody saying; it is very, very hard field tu study. I met some students from Belgrade, Yugoslavia and they told me nobody there finishes EE within 4 years, they go up tu 7 yrs, they say it's impossible to graduate in 4 years. (will i ever get married:-)

 

[Shahil]

I met some students from Belgrade, Yugoslavia and they told me nobody there finishes EE within 4 years, they go up tu 7 yrs, they say it's impossible to graduate in 4 years. (will i ever get married:-)

On my campus, the average is 6.5 years - higher than any other eng school (chem, mech, civil) on my campus. Also, it IS really hard and a lot of people fail coz they don't understand this. The difficulty mostly lies in the workload (I'm doing 9 this semester compared to the average 4 for a BA/BCom student) and ALL 9 more difficult than the BA/BCom courses!

Anyway - I really think you got enough reasons from all of here at PF to make you want to do EE. And if you got any problems, we're here to help

 

[CronoSpark]

should I, should not I study electrical engineering? Is it for me?
Being a shy girl and a good student in high school I have to decide what am I going to study at university. Your suggestions are more than welcome. Thank you.

If you want to, then I recommend it. And whatever path you choose, just shrug it off and don't regret it.

It takes more than just intellect when you are in university... it is more hard work and focus, if you feel that you can not dedicate that amount of time for EE... but who's to say, you will never know until you try it. Let's just say if you have determination, your chances of graduating is high.

And as for the shyness factor, that will (should) eventually go away when you are in there. Most engineers are quite open. They have to be. I agree with FredGarvin on the fact that most engineers have to have a business side to them. (Edit: took out comment about the university that I am attending.)

... And as for the boring work... I would say that engineers can do repetitive work or help in R&D. It depends on what you do and like doing anyways.

And if you really are not attracted to physics, then I think that mech eng is going to be even harder than EE for you.

And as for the marriage factor, marrying when you are 27 or some age older is not uncommon. Just be patient.

 

[FredGarvin]

I got married at 35. It's a lot easier when you're "elder."

 

[jmc8197]

Electrical Engineering OK

I'm an electrical engineer, and although there were 10% of women engineers on my course and most of them did brilliantly, I've never come across a woman engineer.

In the UK, the EE society has gone out of it's way to promote the image of women in engineering, and some women have won awards. But my guess is that most end up elsewhere such as in teaching or accountancy or pressured into bringing up their children. There is a competitiveness in the engineering world, and most women lack the selfisness and drive and above all inerest to get to the top.

My advice to you would be to study Physics instead so that you have more options open to you. It is seen as the most difficult subject and so employers will have a high opinion of you. You can use it to get into law, banking teaching, engineerng. Some of my friends became engineers even though they did physics.

If you are certain that you would like to try to become an EE, then go for the EE course. If you haven't got what it takes to be a successful engineer, then the qualification will be highly regarded elsewhere.

 

[Theelectricchild]

Also, keep in mind that the introductory courses you take in EE are not necessarily representative of the types of things you will do as an EE... unless you become a professor and wish to teach I suppose. This is the case in any class... physicists don't work out mechanics problems or diffraction problems in their work... and EEs don't JUST solve circuits--- understand there is so much to learn outside the classroom, and just because you have difficulty with physics or intro EE doesn't mean youre not "cut out" to become one. Engineering disciplines in general are becoming incredibly interdisciplinary... there is plenty of subject material in material science and engineering that relates to EE, there is subject material in EE that relates to BioE, etc etc. The options are there for you--- you must decide what it is you want to do! I suggest attending colloquia that different departments at your university offers... and learn about various things going on in different fields!