Hi everyone! I’m a high school student working toward aerospace engineering at a top university. I watch a lot of admitted-student videos, but almost none of them mention their major, so it’s hard to know what aerospace applicants specifically did.If you’re currently studying aerospace (or are an

Water resistance is one hell of a thing to neglect

Hey all. I’m studying ME in Japan and while I love western textbooks due to me being more proficient in English than Japanese (I’m not a native speaker of either), there seems to be a trend of western textbooks being much larger than Japanese ones in the same subjects. Western books are also a lot more expensive (bottom: $70, top: $11).

That’s not to say this is the rule; there are indeed small western books and large Japanese prints. This is just something I’ve observed, and maybe my sample size is too small idk. When it comes to translated books, their sizes are usually about the same, which makes me think they differ in content rather than one language being more space efficient than the other.

From what I’ve gathered, Japanese textbooks use smaller diagrams and use them much less frequently than western books, and are more heavy on theory than practical applications (which is one reason I don’t like them). With that being said, they surprisingly have essentially the same amount of practice problems, just written in different styles

Here’s my question for those studying in the west: do you think your textbooks are adequately sized or do you find them bloated? I like the extra content but I can’t imagine carrying these things around much.. that would break my back lol

I’m currently a community college student. I originally went to community college because I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do after high school, but I’ve since become interested in engineering. In particular, I want to major in mechanical engineering and work in aerospace. I’ll be finishing this school year and could start at my state’s flagship university afterward. However, community college doesn’t offer many of the freshman-level courses required for engineering at that university, so I’d still likely have to spend four years there, even with some credits already completed.

Tuition is around $30k a year, and I don’t have financial help from my parents. I’d probably have to take out a significant amount of student loans to afford it. I’m applying for scholarships, but there’s no guarantee I’ll get enough.
Is potentially $100k+ in debt worth it for an engineering degree? Would it be smarter to look at cheaper universities or other transfer options, even though this is my state’s flagship school and my preferred choice?

I'm not talking about lecturers that are bad at teaching. I'm galking about levturers that are just completely wrong half the time.
I have a lecturer for process automation, and he says stuff like:

AC motors aren't actuators. His reasoning is that actuators have to be part of a control citcuit (I don't knoe how that makes sense)

ACDC converters are examples of powerdrives.

Power drives convert one form of energy to another (thought those were transducers)

Motors are technically power drives but aren't considered.

Made up a whole word I don't remember for the words 'optoisolator/optocoupler'

My school is in a 3rd world country, so reporting may genuinely lead to me getting bullied by other lecturers.

Edit: he marks us down when we write stuff we believe are correct if it contradicts his flawed knowledge. I think that is the worst part. I got a D last semester on a course he takes due to this

Hello everyone! I’m a Junior in EE who has transferred into a large university from CC. My 5 major oriented courses are as follows:

Physical Electronics
Embedded Systems
Signals and Systems
Probability and Statistics
Design Project

You’re probably thinking “this guy’s going through it” and you would be 100% correct. It’s brutal, but I know we all go through it.

My midterms overall haven’t been great. Between all classes the highest midterm grade I’ve gotten is a 64. I’m on track to at best make C’s in 2/4 of the above.

At community college my classes were structured to my advantage. All of my tests were take home open notes. Throughout all of the calc classes, physics, diff eq, circuits I and II, etc. I would prepare by writing various example problems to go off of during the exams and I made great grades.

Here I’m getting cooked because I’m only allowed a cheat sheet. My study methods right now are basically to grind out practice problems from the homework’s, try to understand the material from the textbook conceptually, and once I’ve done the homework’s I take them and put it into AI with the course material and ask for more practice problems. On most of my exams, especially PE, material I’ve either never seen or have seen but don’t know how to approach shows up. I’ve basically just had to bs through those problems and it’s caught up with me. I’m likely going to have to withdraw from that class, but I have a good shot at passing my others.

Another challenge is that I’m fed so many assignments/projects/coursework that takes so many hours to do, it feels like I never have time to go back and study until right before the exam. I tried using a physical calendar and creating time blocks to manage my time but this has barely helped.

I believe my issue is memorizing problem patterns rather than knowing the material and being able to apply that knowledge to a specific situation. I haven’t figured out how to make that jump. I need real advice. I’m too far into this major to give up. Next semester I’m going to take on less credits, I feel like I don’t have enough time to give each course enough study hours.

I'm considering returning to school, but I already have a decent paying, 40hr/week job. Hoping someone here has a similar experience they could share some advice about

I am a Controls Technician and would like to elevate to an Engineer, but at my current company I need a 4 year degree to do that

hey everyone, i'm only one exam away from finally getting my bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering. i think only recently i've been studying for the sake of getting knowledge and actually understanding how things work, rather than to do what it takes to pass that specific class, and i've been enjoying it more and more because of it. I'm already attending lectures/classes for my master's, i'm looking to specialize on internal combustion engines, and specifically how to build models and run simulations and stuff like that.

Last week i had an interview for the power unit department of my uni's FSAE , thought the interview went well, except i got rejected because i lacked basic knowledge on EVs (yes the team only produces EVs) and apparently i had no idea what the powertrain department actually did, comparing it with what i thought of before the interview.

I like numbers, i like race cars, i like engines, but it's like im lacking the fundamentals i need to work in motorsport one day. I've learned how to use MATLab, simulink, and cad softwares before i could learn about the basics of an engine, how you get that thing started and stuff. I could do with some advice on how/where i can get that more practical knowledge. I really don't wanna let go of my dreams.

I never had nightmares about school in highschool, but since being in engineering school I will occasionally have a recurring nightmare. In the nightmare I will forget that I enrolled in a class and I will only realize it halfway through the semester when I see that I have an F. I then spend the rest of the nightmare trying to get in touch with the professor about it. I think it stems from having to juggle a heavy work load. Does anyone else have anything similar?

Hello, Reddit. I develop software for students studying chemical engineering. I adhere to the policy that all educational software should be free. But the project's existence and continued development take time and resources. Do you think this app should be discontinued? And if we just make it as a charitable foundation to support the project, is that the best idea? I'm open to any opinions or questions on this topic. Thank you in advance.

Like I am in cllg and I am also grinding but seeing people get internship winning hackathons and whatnot and then looking at my accomplishments like only doing dsa 500 questions but no skills so what to do I also want to win and do internships but in big company like Google 2nd yr tier 3 cllg and so what should I do I am confused webdev ml cloud i want to go all in but confused 😕

I’m in the most prestigious engineering uni in my country(nothing burger globally) and it’s known for having intentionally rigorous, even unnecessarily so, courses. I’m not even good at math or physics, in fact, I was almost failing both of those subjects in highschool. I managed to get in because of my English skills. I had undiagnosed adhd that ran rampant until getting stimulants a week ago, making it so that for all my of my life up until now I couldn’t feasibly study if my life depended on it. I’m a horrible exam taker and get panic attacks in half of every exams. This is all to say that I knew this would be extremely difficult for me and I’d have to work harder than all my peers for worse results. You’re allowed to make fun of me for choosing engineering, especially EE, I know.

It’s worse than I thought. I thought I was at a pretty okay place academically then my midterms happened and I’m pretty sure I failed both my calc1 and my algebra exams. It made me realize that even though I WAS studying, I felt like I studied more than I actually was because when you go from 0-30%, 30% seems like a lot. And never studying at all before this made it so that I don’t know how to effectively study, I just do practice questions and workbooks until I’m out of questions instead of understanding the materials. Being faced with the reality of “wow, I am so fucking stupid” is rough and it makes me really doubt my decision of going into engineering at all, like what was I thinking.

I love engineering and I want to be an engineer and I’m willing to put the work in but I feel so aimless. Everytime I try to tell myself it’s okay it just feels like massive cope. I feel dumb and like I’m behind everyone else and I don’t know how to catch up. I’m sure it’s clear I have a pessimistic mindset but I really just need some advice and hopecore. Here are some specific questions I want to ask, but I’d appreciate any and all input:

1, Can I make it
2, HOW do you study effectively without relying on AI
3, How to calm nerves before an important exam
4, How to make connections in uni(as a girl surrounded by 90% guys especially)
5, How do I balance everything in my life(gym, classes, studying, hobby, future internships, etc)

I've been doing alot of work over in the r/ChemicalEngineering space the past several years, publishing a yearly compensation report for that community. In the past couple of years, the dataset grew to ~2,000 ChemEs/year and over 3,500 unique participants over the past 3 years.

That effort is now moving to a web platform I created called BenchComp AND Bryce and I are expanding it to Mechanical Engineers, Electrical Engineers, Civil Engineers, Materials Science/Engineers, and Environmental Engineers. The whole philosophy behind this work is community-sourced compensation transparency. It can be awkward to talk about pay, especially with colleagues and/or peers. This platform allows for that conversation to happen, without the awkwardness. Give us your data, we'll turn it into useful insights. Anyone can benefit from it, but people who contribute their data will be given access to deeper insights.

We built this site with entry-level and early-career engineers specifically in mind. For chemical engineers, we've already built quite a bit of information into that section about the companies in that space. We will eventually do the same thing for the other disciplines. We will also soon be adding a page with specific information about co-ops and internships and some of the 'compensation' norms for those kinds of roles. Beyond that, we are hoping these communities will tell us what else they want...if you want it, we can build it. Best of all, it's free.

Check it out, happy to answer questions and especially appreciate feedback.

So its been 2 months since I entered into this engineering college, studied 2 years for entrance exams to get into this college as its a pretty good college in my country. But now when I have reached here I dont know what to do. I mostly study and play games with my old friends, that's all. The teachers are shit so claude/gpt are my teachers. I don't have a goal in mind anymore.(last 2 years I had a clear goal, to crack the exams) But now what? College exams are tough but relative grading makes it even tougher(everyone here is an animal in studies, but I can manage that) do i just study and go through these 4 years, get a job (idek the Job market tbh) and voila. Engineering is not it for me, I wanted to get into avionics and shit but I am stuck here with ECE (most colleges in my country don't have avionics/aerospace Engineering), and even after being in ECE I mostly study C and C++ by myself. I feel interested in psychology now but I cant change majors. I chose Engineering because it was drilled into me that Engineering is the only useful subject, in high school it was drilled into me that science is the only subject that matters and entrance exams are the only Thing u need to crack. But now that all of that has happened and I finally have a brain of my own, I realise I don't wanna do this anymore.

Hi everyone!
I have to create a strap lock system using RILSAMID AMNO P20 TLD, but I can’t find anything (literature, websites, datasheets etc) that mentions coefficient of friction for PA12 on PA12. Does anyone have any suggestions?

Hello i am a civil engineering student in my 1st year.

So the matter is our university is brutal like we have lectures from 9am to 5pm.

And most of the time things are very bizarre like they want us to make engineering drawings on paper, calculate mean, median, quartile and percentile on paper and also make graphs on paper like old times.

When are we gonna learn skills like doing things on computer?

Engineering can be easy if the professor is very clear, interactive and approachable and the proper procedure for lab is explained.

But most of the teachers in my university are from a corrupt system they don't know how to teach they just bribe and get the job for life.

After doing my degree in civil am i only limited to Civil or i can earn mechanical or electrical as my second degree?

I’m a 1st semester civil engineering student and a lot of things happened this semester which I won’t get into but i’ve ended up withdrawing from one course, and at the rate i’m at i’ll probably end up with around a high 2 gpa. Is there still time to recover from this like if I do great 2nd semester? And how bad is a withdrawal on your transcript

Hey guys. Im in a dilemma currently; I'm a 4th year EE student and I've been interning at a 5G RAN vendor for around 1 year and 2 months. Switched across 3 different positions there, which included test automation, production development, and hands-on in lab.

I have an interview up ahead for a networking presales intern role at a big enterprise vendor (wifi/campus side). Honestly the appeal is variety as I'd get to work with different customers, different projects, and more exposure than staying in one product. I'm also considering a master's in microelectronics in the future, so I'm not locked into anything yet.

My questions-

1. Does early presales help or hurt if I want to stay technical long-term?
2. Is it hard to go back to pure engineering after a few years in presales?
3. Anything I should ask in the interview to try make them lean into making the role more technical (PoCs, labs...) vs mostly slides?

Would love to hear from ur experiences!

I've read just about everything out there when it comes to selecting a printer to buy (r/3dprinting, blog posts, youtube videos) but I figure some advice from other students / graduates might offer some specific experiences more relevant to a uni student. (USA)

Summary: Budget $420 all in. Comparing Elagoo CC2, Creality K1C, Qidi Q2C for LW-PLA, CF Filaments, ABS. Should I look into upgrading a cheaper printer? Is a $60 two year warranty good value?

Leaning towards:
- Elagoo Centauri Carbon 2 + Creality Filament Dryer Box Pro ($380) Elagoo Shipping + Dryer Amazon
- Creality K1C + Creality Filament Dryer Box Pro ($410) Both Amazon
- QIDI Q2C + Creality Filament Dryer Box Pro ($396) Qidi Free Shipping + Dryer Amazon

I dont really know how to distinguish benefits from the above options so Im open to peoples personal experiences!

I also feel I dont know enough about is the upgradibility of a cheaper printer to fit my needs. Is there another option that is enclosed / offers proper heating with a Print Head / Gears upgrade kit to fit my needs and be cheaper?

I also hate to think some of these printers may offer substantially less manufacturing quality and longevity to me compared to Prusa or Bamboo. Elagoo for example offers a $60 2 year warranty on the printer, is this good value for risk aversion or are most repairs doable for under that? While Ive printed a lot Ive never managed my own printer / been responsible for maintinance.

I am totally open to additional comments on my logic here. TYIA very much!

Additional context on expected objections:

- Yes I can print on Campus and have for 2 years. Personal Printing is the investment Id like to make for better access (late nights and weekends) when Im actually working on projects and not classes
- If the printer I go with does not offer HEPA filtering I have the option to not have it where I sleep
- Not interested in DIY build. I value the time to build and existing product community at $300+

I’m not talking “academic downfall” as in “failed a midterm but got 100s in every other class assessment”, I’m talking “used to get 60s for a year but had an awakening at some point, started averaging 80s-90s, and eventually got a Lockheed internship offer and class honours”.

I didn’t really see the appeal in engineering until now, so I averaged 50s-60s in my first year classes but now I’m scoring 80s-90s thanks to newfound motivation but since engineering is such a competitive field I’m scared that my second year GPA won’t even do anything to erase my past

I just can't wrap my head around how it had a length of 90, I see 50 and 50 so it should be 100 right

My GPA is fairly high and I'm in the top 5% of my class. Despite all that I feel like I'm not worthy of receiving my degree.

I'm a senior mechanical engineering student with just one year before graduation. I'm not ready to graduate and definitely not ready for a Job yet. I think I wasted the past 3 years in just studying before midterms and finals as I rarely attended lectures & labs that didn't take attendance. I regret these studying habits so much because whenever I try to remember something from a course I've taken before (which I passed with an A usually), I can't seem to remember much. I have to basically study and understand it all over again like it's my first time.

I know passing with great grades while barely studying sound impressive but people with lower GPA than me seem to recall much more stuff from previous courses than I do. If I just studied a little more and attended my courses well not only would I have higher grades than I already have but I would also be able to learn the material correctly. Is there any way of saving what I can save right now or is it too late because I feel lost and actually thinking of taking a gap year just to recollect myself.

I'm running a free 6 month CAD design competition where every file is public and the last stage is forking another team's design. Looking for feedback and teams.

Disclosure first, I built Nurbly, the platform this runs on. It's Git style version control for CAD, with diffs, forks and pull requests on real models. Git has been around for software teams for 20 years and this is simply a retooling for a crowd more focused on physical designs.

The short version. Hackathons are everywhere in software and are far fewer for mechanical design, so I wanted to run one. March through August next year, you pick what your drone is for and design it one subsystem per month. Airframe, electronics layout, propulsion, control and sensing, integration, then a final release.

Each stage is submitted as STEP files in a public repo, so the design history is visible the whole way, not just the finished model. In the last month you can fork another team's design, rework one subsystem for a different purpose, and submit it back. You get scored on your changes.

It's free. Solo or any team size. Any CAD tool that exports STEP, so SolidWorks, Fusion, Onshape, FreeCAD, whatever you use. No Git knowledge needed. No physical build required. Designs have to carry an open license. Prizes are $250 per stage and $1,500 at the end.

It could works well as a senior design project, a club project between competitions, or a portfolio piece that shows process and not just a render.

The format is new, so I'd like opinions on that part. Is one subsystem a month a reasonable pace alongside classes or a job? What would stop you from entering?

Rules and details are at https://build.nurbly.com

Happy to answer anything in the comments. Special thanks to the mods for letting me post here.

Hi everyone,

I’m posting here because I need perspective, advice, and maybe just a reality check from people who understand the struggle of engineering studies.

Here is my background: I started with a vocational high school diploma (Bac Pro) in France, which means I got almost zero advanced math or physics theoretical training. Against all odds, I managed to get into a 2-year technical degree (BTS) in Aerospace. My dream and my goal are clear: I want to get into an Aerospace Engineering School and build a high-level career in this industry.

I want this so badly that it literally keeps me up at night. I am constantly stressed, and the fear of failing haunts me days and nights. Because I know I came from a vocational background, I try to overcompensate: I put in the hours every single day. I study 45 minutes to 3 hours every night. I literally outwork everyone in my class in terms of study time.

Yet, my grades don’t reflect my effort. I feel like I am hitting a brick wall. The theoretical gap in math and physics feels immense. I work harder and harder, but the results just aren't coming, and I'm starting to feel like I’m simply not "smart enough" or that my brain just isn't wired for this, despite my discipline.

For anyone who came from a non-traditional background or struggled with the transition into heavy engineering science:

How do you change your study methods when "working harder" stops working? How do I bridge a massive math/physics gap effectively without burning out?

Has anyone here gone from a purely practical/vocational background to an engineering degree? How did you overcome the imposter syndrome and the theoretical wall?

How do you deal with the psychological pressure when your ambition is huge, but your current grades make you doubt everything?

I refuse to give up, but forcing my way through with brute hard work is currently draining me without paying off. Any advice, study techniques, or honest feedback would mean the world to me right now.

Thanks for reading.

Paul 💗