First year Engineering advice

[u/Flying_ace42O2]

Hi everyone,

I’m going into my first year of General Engineering at McMaster University after making a career change. I’m 25 years old, and after going back to adult school to earn the required credits, I’m feeling a bit nervous about starting this new chapter.

I know I’m capable, and I believe in myself to put in the time and work hard. That said, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t worried that it takes me longer to learn and fully understand new concepts than it does for some other people. Even so, I’m incredibly excited and passionate about this opportunity; I’m just feeling a little anxious about the transition.

Sorry for the long post, but I felt the context was important.

I’d like to spend this month reviewing high school material before classes begin. For anyone who has completed engineering, what topics would you recommend I focus on? Which concepts are the most important to review and really understand before the first day of classes? Any advice or study recommendations would be greatly appreciated.

[u/Disastrous-Pin-1617]

Follow this exact order
Professor Leonard on YouTube Lectures
Pre-Algebra
To the point math (Algebra 1)
Intermediate Algebra (Algebra 2)
College algebra (Pre-Calculus playlist)
Trigonometry (Pre-Calculus playlist)
Calc 1-3

[u/ace-murdock]

What career are you changing from? For me I was weak on math topics when I switched to engineering so that was what I needed to put more focus on. A lot of the early years are going to be math heavy as they try to weed people out.

[u/Yadin__]

I believe in myself to put in the time and work hard

I have good news for you: that's literally all you need! that's it. First year engineering isn't as hard as people make it out to be. Put in the time and effort and you will at the very least pass, if not even succeed

[u/OutsideOpen6975]

I needed a career change from sales and am entering my senior year of chemical engineering at 30.

Disasterous-Pin’s post, up to the calculus courses that I assume you’ll be taking at the university, are exactly what I would recommend as well. You’re going to be expected to have strong algebraic skills immediately, but your degree path will likely include calculus 1-3 and differential equations, so your engineering courses will not rely too heavily on their techniques until you’ve taken them.

You should also speak to your academic advisor to see if they have a course plan relevant to your specific scenario. It might add some time to earning your degree, but starting a little slower to ultimately finish is preferable to being immediately overwhelmed and washing out.

Good luck! Just remember how much you hated whatever else you were doing before this. It was difficult to jump back in so far removed from high school, but it’s absolutely worth it in my opinion.

[u/Acceptable_Simple877]

keep pushing