A-FREAKING-MEN. Tough enough for grown ups.
I'd set the O/U at 20% for people are doing a job they actually enjoy.
Engineering Degree
- Thread starter isucyfan
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I'd set the O/U at 20% for people are doing a job they actually enjoy.
Internships in a lot of engineering disciplines are required for graduation.
Say he wants to go into CivilE/ConE.
Tell him to try and be a laborer after his freshman/soph year for a company, then try and get into an internship sop/jun year for something like surveying.
And, out of curiosity, what do you do now? And, was it the 101 class that helped you decide or something else, like advisors/professors/classmates?
Unless he's set on engineering, with a strong background in math I'd tell him to consider Actuarial Science.
If he's motivated and can pass exams, there's a lot of opportunity there.
Obviously he would also need to be comfortable working in the insurance industry but there's a lot of cool opportunities outside of just "underwriting".
If he's motivated and can pass exams, there's a lot of opportunity there.
Obviously he would also need to be comfortable working in the insurance industry but there's a lot of cool opportunities outside of just "underwriting".
Or he can be like me: get an engineering degree, spend several years doing engineering/software, and then become an actuary.
One good thing about an engineering degree is that, as a STEM degree, it can easily open doors into other fields if he changes his mind about his career after graduation.
I have actually floated that idea to him. That seems like a pretty good industry. He's really good at math but doesn't love it, if that makes sense. So, maybe that's not for him, though.
Actuarial work is not necessarily as math-heavy as most people think. It may depend on the specific actuarial field you get into, though. It's a lot of critical thinking and problem solving, with a fair amount of excel work and programming.
Appreciate the discussion and advice here. Here's another thing...
He has to maintain a 3.5 to keep his scholarship, which he is confident he will do. Is he being over-confident since he doesn't yet know how rigorous an engineering program can be?
He has to maintain a 3.5 to keep his scholarship, which he is confident he will do. Is he being over-confident since he doesn't yet know how rigorous an engineering program can be?
And for some of us, it still is!
Declared ComSci as an incoming freshmen at ISU.
Switched to English with Secondary Ed after a semester.
Dropped the Sec. Ed part.
Ended up in a training department for a medium-sized insurance company.
Said company paid for additional schooling = free MA in Mass Comm from Drake
Worked close to 20 years as a developer, producer, project manager, and writer in interactive / training / marketing media (mostly pre-web - think CD-ROMs, CD-Interactive, museum installations....)
Went back to Drake for an MA in Secondary Ed
Taught HS English for 10 years
Now, chasing a Big Dream and building my own business while also an Adjunct Professor at Drake and the John Dee Bright College!
....whew!
My niece did this. She had to work her butt off and has since finished the her 10th exam a few years ago. I'm convinced she spends her free time swimming in her money like Scrooge McDuck.
That's really high. I went to ISU on a full-ride national merit scholarship (back when ISU had those) and I think you only needed to keep a 2.5. Maybe 3.0.
If your son is a generally studious person who is capable of putting in the work when needed, a 3.5 is probably fine? But that is definitely high.
What are his interests outside of school? The happiest people are those who are passionate about what they do.
Several friends are in engineering for rockets and make incredible salaries with HIGH security clearances all before they turn 30. Another is doing some insanely cool work on battery technology for his PhD at an ELITE school.
Several friends are in engineering for rockets and make incredible salaries with HIGH security clearances all before they turn 30. Another is doing some insanely cool work on battery technology for his PhD at an ELITE school.
That's what I thought, too. He chose TTU over a different school where the requirement was only 3.0, and it makes me nervous.
Honestly, he doesn't have many, outside of gaming and friends. That's been part of the problem in making this decision. I am hoping his college experience opens his eyes up to new interests and opportunities.
Anecdote, my daughter picked Materials Engineering (related to ChemE). Undergrad on scholarship, PhD on college fund. Doing extremely well, basically calls her own shots and travels the world, but she loves research and treasures her time in a laboratory, often for entities throughout many countries.
3.5 seems tough to me, but if its a full ride, maybe not.
Hit those electives hard then.
I was a Civil Engineer for my first semester at Iowa State. I partied and got a 2.0. Went to the business school, became VERY interested in real estate and now make REALLY good money investing for rich people.
Let him figure it out while also keeping him motivated and he'll figure it out. College is an amazing place.
The biggest reason I am where I am today is the women I met my sophomore year (now the mother of my children). She motivated me. Before her I was a bit of a dead-beat college kid with little ambition
I did the undeclared Engineering thing at ISU. It was a good way to figure out what you like and see what you excel at. I ended up understanding/liking chemistry better than my most of my peers, so I decided to go the Chemical Engineering route after a semester or two.
I have no idea how to handle the same conversation with my kids down the road. I was (one of the) class valedictorian at my high school. After my first semester at ISU I was, uh, not invited back to the honors program. Go to class, put in the work. Those first semesters are used as weed-outs for a reason. I graduated with a 3.3 after working my ass off the last 3 years of school.
I knew I wanted to be a Computer Engineer in middle school. My dad was an Industrial Engineer. Hopefully Tech has something similar to 101 that gives an overview of the different disciplines for students like your son. I program computers to solve problems. Having any engineering degree and the problem solving skills they all convey will open all kinds of doors, regardless of if they use their specific discipline knowledge.
