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What can I be doing over the summer to further help my academic goals in engineering and college as a whole ?
Internships, College Prep
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3 answers
Fahad Elahi Khan
Mechanical Engineering Undergraduate
44
Answers
Chittagong, Chittagong Division, Bangladesh
Updated
Fahad Elahi’s Answer
Over the summer, you can take steps to strengthen your engineering goals and prep for college. Look into high school engineering programs like the ones at Rutgers or UC campuses, which offer hands on projects in areas like robotics or design for a week or more. For internships, apply to opportunities at places like NASA or AFRL Scholars, where you can work on real engineering tasks even as a high schooler. Many are paid and run in 2025, with applications opening early. If local, check tech companies or labs in your area for shadowing or volunteer roles. For college prep, take online courses on Coursera in intro engineering topics, or join prep workshops for SATs and essays. Build a resume by doing personal projects, like building a simple machine, and network through virtual career fairs. Aim to apply soon since spots fill up fast.
Teklemuz Ayenew Tesfay
Electrical Engineer, Software Developer, and Career Mentor
517
Answers
Ethiopia
Updated
Teklemuz Ayenew’s Answer
Start by choosing an engineering field that matches your interests, strengths, and career dreams. Once you have a path, begin learning on your own. Volunteer, take part-time jobs, or do internships to gain real-world experience. Try small home projects to improve your practical skills. Get to know important engineering tools and software, like CAD programs such as SolidWorks or Fusion 360, and circuit design tools like LTspice or MATLAB/Simulink. If you like programming, learning languages like Python, C/C++, or MATLAB can be very helpful. Apply for internships, volunteering, and part-time jobs in your area of interest. Join community or extracurricular activities, seek advice from alumni or professors, and network with professionals. Create a professional profile on platforms like LinkedIn, GitHub, or Stack Overflow to show your projects, connect with mentors, and keep up with industry news. Developing skills like communication, teamwork, problem-solving, adaptability, and time management will greatly support your future career.
Updated
William’s Answer
Hi Dominik,
Prior experiential learning in practical work, especially in an engineering field you intend to join, puts you in a great place when you start your course. You will be able to appreciate theory a lot better by being able to relate it with practice in real time.
Internships are ideal at this stage. Besides being exposed to professional standards and best practices, you will have an opportunity to pickup practical soft skills that will not only help you successfully negotiate your professional qualification in college and/or university but also get a foothold in the field once you qualify. Such soft skills, amongst others, include ability to plan, organize, lead, analyze, work with others, solve problems and effectively use knowledge. Projects, too, can help you venture into things that you have great interest in. It's an opportunity to discover what you are capable of. You also get to learn new things. Curiosity is a useful trait in this case.
Prior experiential learning in practical work, especially in an engineering field you intend to join, puts you in a great place when you start your course. You will be able to appreciate theory a lot better by being able to relate it with practice in real time.
Internships are ideal at this stage. Besides being exposed to professional standards and best practices, you will have an opportunity to pickup practical soft skills that will not only help you successfully negotiate your professional qualification in college and/or university but also get a foothold in the field once you qualify. Such soft skills, amongst others, include ability to plan, organize, lead, analyze, work with others, solve problems and effectively use knowledge. Projects, too, can help you venture into things that you have great interest in. It's an opportunity to discover what you are capable of. You also get to learn new things. Curiosity is a useful trait in this case.