Electrical or Mechanical engineers(others welcome)...

[tuningfork]

I have had absolutely no programming experience whatsoever. This java course is the first experience I have had with programming and it wasnt good. I guess tutoring would be the best idea because I had no clue what I was doing. It was just all confusing to me. I could solve the problems we had to do and knew what I wanted the program to do I just didnt know how to write it.

Tutoring or retaking it with a different professor could be all you need. There are tons of schools here in MA and some of the state ones are CHEAP if you need to take on an extra summer session.

I've never used Java but I can tell you C is pretty straightforward and will be a good language to know, and it will get you thinking like a programmer. To really learn it You are probaby looking at 9 credits...INTRO (variable type, loops, simple I/O, etc.), applications/fileIO/code structure/multi-file compile, and data structures. Depending on the school you are probably required to take these anyway (I believe for example UMASS BSEE requires at least 6 credits of C, and maybe 3-6 more of C++ and others). You'll use it in DSP, image processing, HW verification, SW engineering, analog systems modeling, etc. etc. coursework so I would suggest to spend some extra time to get it down.

Java is popular so that is good to know, but will only be really used if you become a SW engineer. If you are thinking EE/CE/Hardware I would focus on C..you'll use it everywhere.

 

[CZAR357]

I believe for example UMASS BSEE requires at least 6 credits of C, and maybe 3-6 more of C++ and others.

I'm at UMASS Amherst for that degree and C and C++ aren't required. We don't have to take them although we can as an elective I believe. Java is the only requirement.

 

[CZAR357]

One thing I would highly recommend is to find a good study partner. I was pretty much a loner until my third year (of a 5 year program), and found it much easier after I started studying with a fellow student. The ideal situation is to find someone who is just about as smart as you are. The goal is not to cut your workload in half. You each do all the work, but help each other to get past the things you don’t quite get.

Good luck!

Thanks! I will take all of the luck I can get although I know it will come down to hard work. I have a good friend already. I can tell you it helps a ton. We did pretty much all of our work together and it was great. We had three classes together. The thing about working in pairs (or small groups) is someone is more likely to figure out the answer to a given question. There have been things where I had no clue about but my friend knew and vice versa. Plus we all know two heads are better than one!

As for EE vs. ME, would you rather figure out how to completely re-wire all the electronics on your bike to optimize performance or install NoS and twin turbos? I know both are out there, but you get the point. If you go for engineering, do the one that you're interested in and let the difficult classes be the obstacles you can say you overcame in the end. I'd have to say Java won't be the hardest class you'll see in either discipline.

GOOD LUCK!!:thumbup:

That is one reason I am thinking about switching. Failing the class is not the main factor to get me to switch but it did kind of push me more in that direction. I like working on things I can see for the most part. Dealing with things like radio signals(havent gotten here yet but I know it is coming) and logic gates isn't my favorite thing to do.

 

[scoobydrvr]

I don't have time to post a full reply, but felt compelled to say something. I started out in Mechanical engineering, ot just past halfway through the program and decided to switch to Electrical. I just woke up one day and realized that I hated Strengths of Materials and Fluid Mechanics. I'll share more of my experience later, but the take home message is that it's never too late to switch. I'm starting my 5th year in school with another year and a half to go. I'm blessed with understanding parents that keep reminding me "it's not a race, just get the degree."

 

[necrotimus]

The MOST important part is to get a degree even if it isn't in engineering. That being said it may or may not matter EE vs ME you pick. Really it depends on what job you get. My brother is an EE but he does mainly programming in a propreitary language he had to get training for. My dad was an ME and he wrote safety standards that any engineer could have done. I started as a CE then changed to pure IT and I spend my days translating nerd speak into normal english and normal english into nerd speak.

So do some job searching to get a handle on what types of jobs require just engineering vs EE vs ME. That should give you a better handle on if you are going to enjoy that type of work.

 

[The Toecutter]

why not finish your education and develop your own electric vehicles company?or you could make performance part's for the forth coming electric and hybrid vehicles.you could be the new Edelbrock!! :rockon:

 

[Cuba]

I say tough it out. EE's will definitely be in demand given the impending energy crisis, your skills will be needed. Have any of you heard of Convia?

Convia: Providers of Energy Management Controls

Check it out. What do you EE's think, any experience with advanced energy controls?

 

[scoobydrvr]

Okay, offa work, here I go:

You're considering switching to ME; here's my take from the MEs that I've talked to about their career. It basically turns into babysitting and supervising in most jobs. EEs tend to have more of a hands-on involvement in projects. That being said, let me talk about my schooling experience in both fields.

As a mechanical student, things were very competitive. Classes filled up quickly and the acceptance rate into professional school (the last two years of the degree program) was very low. The classes we called gen-eds were generally geared to wash people out by making them unnecessarily difficult. These would be the classes you took the first two years of a four year degree program.

In the Electrical school, things have been very different. The professors seem to care a lot more about your success, the class sizes are much smaller, and the work done in class is much more practical, as opposed to the theoretical studies done as a mechanical. If you asked two students, one mechanical and one electrical, in their junior year of school, the mechanical student couldn't do anything with the education he had received up to that point. Meanwhile, the electrical student could make an audio filter, a simple robot car using a microprocessor, a computer program to do just about anything he wanted it to (not anything interactive, but it could do work). The best the mechanical student could do is tell you where the weak point is in a bridge or tell you the name of different thermodynamic cycles. All that to say, you get to the "fun" part of your education much quicker in the EE department.

As far as the classes you're struggling with: I've failed at least two classes and have retaken quite a few too. I'm not sure how the school handles things where you are, but for the most part, there should be an academic forgiveness policy. Meaning you can retake classes you've failed and the grade is replaced on your retentive GPA. Unfortunately that F sticks around on your cumulative GPA.

Another thing to keep in mind is that regardless of the program, there are going to be classes that are just like pulling teeth. There is no reason the class is as hard as it is but for whatever reason, the professor has decided the class should be difficult. There are also going to be classes that are completely useless. One of those for me was Digital Logic Design. That was the class where we learned about logic gates and different ways to use them. While I really like the professor, everything I learned in that class could have been taken away in a couple of afternoon seminars.

Last thing, then I'll stop talking. EEs are going to be in HUGE demand very soon. The dean of my school gave me the impression that not only has the program been shrinking at our university, but across the nation enrollment has been dropping in the electrical program; while enrollment in ME schools has gone up. This translates into a high demand for us in about 2-3 years.

These are just a few things to think about and if you have anymore questions you should ask. College has been a pretty big struggle for me, and I probably wouldn't be as determined to finish as I am if it weren't for the help of others.

Best of luck!