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What hobbies and habits should I pick up before I start studying engineering in college to make my journey easier ?
I plan on studying aeronautical engineering next year and I understand it is a very difficult journey. I would like to learn a new skill or habit early on that could make my experiences in engineering easier.
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Noah’s Answer
Hi Leon,
Thanks for your question! I studied Physics, not Engineering but I think they require similar skills.
I will start off by saying there is no one killer skill or habit to develop early-on that will guarantee success. You should expect to do the large majority of your learning in college because that's what it's for! I think the # 1 thing to have going in is a passion or interest in what you're studying which will keep you excited about classes and learning :)
Outside of that, there are a couple skills that will be fundamental to any degree in engineering. By no means do you have to "read ahead" / pre-emptively start learning the college level topics below, but if you're excited by any of these then it wouldn't hurt to spend more time.
- Coding: Most engineering degrees will require coding at some point. If you haven't coded, it could be worth taking a free online coding course of some sort. It would be even more helpful to do this in the coding language you will be learning -- most engineers learn in MATLAB, but you will also see many introductory courses in Python. Check sources like Udemy and Coursera to see if there are any free courses
- Math: You will do a ton of math, specifically calculus. If you have not taken calculus or need to brush-up, it could be helpful to review some topics on resources like Khan academy
- Physics: Similar point to Math - You will be using a ton of physics. I would also check out Khan academy if you need to brush up / want to learn more on topics here.
To emphasize my earlier point -- none of this is required, I would look into the above if you are interested in it or want to improve your foundation going into school. Hope this helps!
Thanks for your question! I studied Physics, not Engineering but I think they require similar skills.
I will start off by saying there is no one killer skill or habit to develop early-on that will guarantee success. You should expect to do the large majority of your learning in college because that's what it's for! I think the # 1 thing to have going in is a passion or interest in what you're studying which will keep you excited about classes and learning :)
Outside of that, there are a couple skills that will be fundamental to any degree in engineering. By no means do you have to "read ahead" / pre-emptively start learning the college level topics below, but if you're excited by any of these then it wouldn't hurt to spend more time.
- Coding: Most engineering degrees will require coding at some point. If you haven't coded, it could be worth taking a free online coding course of some sort. It would be even more helpful to do this in the coding language you will be learning -- most engineers learn in MATLAB, but you will also see many introductory courses in Python. Check sources like Udemy and Coursera to see if there are any free courses
- Math: You will do a ton of math, specifically calculus. If you have not taken calculus or need to brush-up, it could be helpful to review some topics on resources like Khan academy
- Physics: Similar point to Math - You will be using a ton of physics. I would also check out Khan academy if you need to brush up / want to learn more on topics here.
To emphasize my earlier point -- none of this is required, I would look into the above if you are interested in it or want to improve your foundation going into school. Hope this helps!
Thank you so much for the advice.
Leon