Are
you willing to lead the life of an engineering student?
Commitment
Your performance must reflect your determination on being
an engineer.
All activities must be focused toward your education.You must think ahead to see what consequences your activities have
on your studying (habits, energy, attention).
You and your school acquaintances should be involved in
activities conducive to academic excellence.
What it means
In 4-6 years, you will earn a bachelor’s degree in engineering.
You will be a well-respected person in your community.
You will have many personal, academic, and career options
with your degree.
Your time and energy invested in school will be well compensated
in the workplace.
How it effects your life
You need to be disciplined academically.Your engineering education will be the focus
in this stage of your life.
You don’t need to sacrifice anything if you do what is
required for you to be successful.Many
times, though, academics will require you more of your personal resources
(time, energy, attention) than ever before.
What it requires of you
Must maintain at least
a 3.0/5.0 grade point average to survive; a 4.0/5.0 to be competitive.
You must be making adequate academic progress towards
your engineering degree.
Your personal resources will be channeled into your engineering
education.This includes your
time, money, energy,and attention.
Do your homework!Assigned
work should be the absolute minimum
that you do.You must do about twice
as many problems as the homework in order to fully practice the material.
A sub-par effort & approach will result in a sub-par
understanding of the material (sub-par grades)
If you fail to prepare,
then prepare to fail.
How to go about doing it
Listen to your academic counselors!Do not take their advice lightly.They are your coaches for your academic career.
On campus, your academic work should come before all else.It sounds simple, yet, many students let “little things” such as
social activities and browsing the internet interfere with their academics.
Prioritize your academics in your life. Communicate with
your friends/family/work that your time & energy will focus on your
education.
Using resources
Use TAs & professors resourcefully.Never miss a class!Attendance and class participation is very
important!
Go to SI and other academic resources on a regular basis.Infrequent attendance to SI or “drop-in tutoring” programs may be
enough for some classes.
Use study guides/outline books for extra examples to study
from.
Learn from other undergraduates and professionals in your
field.
Get on the “successful track”. Use positive peer influences to work in productive study groups.
What’s the rush?
Most students graduate at the 22-25 year range.You will probably need to work another 40+
years to retirement age.There is
no rush to obtain a solid education in engineering.
Its best to establish yourself now than to “work your
way” into a secure career.
Focus on gaining academic integrity & corporate experience
through corporate co-ops and internships.
Prepared by Ivan Favila and Mary Fleming-Hughes,
Minority Engineering Recruitment and Retention Program, 1997