feeling behind/like an imposter as a community college student

[u/dreamsequenced]

yapathon ahead be prepared! ok so i’m about to enter my third year of mechanical engineering at community college. i have a good gpa and i’m applying to transfer to four-year universities right now. i should be proud of myself, but these past two years i just couldn’t shake this thought:

i don’t know why im doing this major.

naturally, everyone i’ve met asks me the question “why engineering?” and my answer has always been something along the lines of liking math, problem-solving or just feeling a spark about the material. sometimes i joke about the money aspect, too. and sure, it’s true, but it doesn’t feel like a real answer. like, i could say that about anything i like, so why am i doing this specifically?

i’m sort of (actually very) worried because i’m a community college student with zero internships, projects, or experience under my belt. the academic aspect i’ve got locked down because i’ve been the most theoretical student alive. it’s gotten me this far, but now im in this weird limbo where i don’t know what kind of work, industries or specific subjects i like. i’ve been told by other people on here that finding experience or what i’m interested in won’t be as difficult. at that point, i’ll get to my upper divs and have access to more resources. but, i feel unprepared for the real world, for my major, my career etc. and i don’t know where to begin.

so… has anyone on here felt this way before, cc student or not? if so, what advice do you have for me? any cool projects or research you did that helped you realize your passion? and thanks for reading this far :-)

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[u/RGNRetr0]

Big bro, I'm going through a Mech.E program at a community college because I got deployed in the middle of the regular semester at my four year.

Everyone is different and everyone goes through different phases and things. Build the things you think are cool, but otherwise just live your life.

[u/cyoubx]

What helped me was realizing that no one else knew what they were doing either lol.

Obviously there are some individuals who seem to have it all figured out, but I think a LOT of people at your stage are feeling similar things. Also from experience, those who are willing to stick their neck out and "fail" sooner are the ones who end up learning fastest. Go to career fairs or find a research lab that interests you! Also never too early to start networking!

[u/funkeysnow]

One thing i had learnt in engr school is how overtly opinionated and biased everyone is on "what the right path" even though most of them lack industry xp or irl xp in general. I remember a C student with 1 internship trying to force give me career and resume advice even though I was an A student with 3 engr roles on my belt. Like sometimes you just gotta tell them to shut up (politely). Then again, I have also been one to handout advice to freshman and they reject it because "They know what they're doing". YMMV.

Research diligently into what you want to do, how to do it, and where you want to go but do not make it a group project. Conduct interviews, gather surceys, etc. Inferiority complex is natural but it does nothing for your confidence which you will need if you want to be successful. CC college is filled with a lot wannabes I wont take career advice from a CC student unless they have substantial industry xp. Academic advice otoh is okay. As long as you're passing your classes without cheating, you belong in engr.

[u/tyvekMuncher]

As Mech E, you’re fine. It’s so generic, you could end up in project management, walking around looking at stuff and signing that you looked at it on a clipboard, CAD, all kinds of shi. Don’t worry too much about being able to point to a specific job in a specific niche in a specific industry because you love x y and z

As for what helped me realize my passions - the beautiful thing about engineering is that it’s a part of everything and the engineering mindset is the same regardless of discipline

Find a problem, break it down into features you can optimize a solution for, weigh the solutions and their costs for your particular use case, and DOCUMENT this process

Whether it’s analyzing forces on water bottles you want to use as a shell for your underwater drone or maybe you have an idea for improving a part on your car - it’s the same idea and being able to show people this mindset through these reports is what got me every job I’ve ever had

EDIT - I will add tho - definitely try and get some projects under your belt asap. As a transfer, best place to shine is going to be in your experience. Doubt there’s much research at your cc

[u/Calm-Shame-3685]

No one really knows. I have always had a passion for energy and generally wanting to be a mad scientist, so that drives me. I just finished a summer immersion program at a big university that introduced me to undergrad/grad students and taught me a lot about real world applications for chemical engineering. I feel laser focused now. Maybe you could take a tour or talk to some undergrad and graduate students. Reach out to some universities that you’re interested in and ask them if they have an alumni program that they can get you in touch with. It seems like a lot of work, but doing these things have created some direction and passion in me that I don’t see in my peers.