November 6, 2004
A: FROM MENTOR JACQUELYN JURGA IN MA
Arielle-
Good question, with many answers. It does help if you know what type of
engineering you are interrested in. I can only speak to my background,
which is mechanical engineering. Of course any school curriculum will
give you the knowledge to use in an engineering career, however I would ask
yourself to look deeper than the courses you would need to take in school.
I would ask you if you are inquisitive. Do you like to know how things
work? Are you a problem solver? If someone came to you and said "This
doesn't work", would you be happy to study methods in determining what can
be done about the problem? Are you creative? A mechanical engineer (as
well as most engineers) is required to often start with a blank sheet of
paper and create something brand new. If those types of things challenge
you and would be something you will enjoy as a career, engineering may be
your niche. Your next step will be what kind of engineering would you like
to focus your efforts toward. Best of luck to you.
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November 1, 2004
A: FROM MENTOR JEANINE BROSCH IN INDIANA
Problem Solving, Problem Solving, Problem Solving! This is what drove me into engineering in the first place, I love solving a puzzle. Most of the stuff you will learn in college you will not use in the work place unless you become a hard core research scientist (most engineers do not) or become a professor (certainly an option). So why bother? It helps you figure out how to be a problem solver using a toolbox of tools (formulas,theories,people,papers, etc). It's the same at work, the toolbox contents just change. Figuring out which tools you need to solve the puzzle (new design, product failure, new invention, etc) is the main ingredient needed to be successful. Good luck!
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A: FROM MENTOR LESLIE WAITE IN CA
Hi Arielle!
The answer to your question depends on the type of engineering. For
most types of engineering, a good knowledge of physics will also be
required. For chemical and pharmaceutical engineering, chemistry is a
must. Bioengineering? You guessed it- biology. The good news is that
you don't have to know these things before you go to college. While
you should make sure you have a strong math background in High
School, and having some science would be nice (especially if you can
relate it to your desired field), Colleges expect to teach you the
details when you get there. So if you know what type of engineering
you want to do, go ahead and get started on that in High School. Take
physics, or chemistry or biology for example. But don't worry if you
take physics and then decide later that you want to do chemical
engineering- it's all good.
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A: FROM MENTOR MAYLING WONG IN IL
Hi Arielle, There is an excellent online resource that can answer your
question about engineering. Go to www.swe.org In the left hand
column, click on "K-12 Programs" Under it, click on "Programs" Scroll
down to the section "Discover Engineering" The answers to your question
can be found by clicking on "SWE FAQ" -Mayling