• Question: what would you say to someone that wanted to become a engineer

    Asked by 794artk23 to Peppe, Greg, Rumman, Pooja, Petros, Fran on 5 Nov 2017. This question was also asked by EdenN.
    • Photo: Greg Chance

      Greg Chance answered on 5 Nov 2017:

      If you love science and engineering above the other subjects that you study then this could be the career for you! It is hard at times but fun and rewarding if you get with a company or organisation that you get along with.
      If you are naturally inquisitive (always wondering how things work?) and are excited by technology and its applications then you may find this type of work rewarding. The great thing about science and engineering is that it is always evolving. If you are a banker, pastry chef or accountant then you might find that your first day on the job is very similar to the last! In this career it’s unlikely to be that way. We are living in the age of technology and information and this career will enable you to be a part of that.

    • Photo: Giuseppe Cotugno

      Giuseppe Cotugno answered on 6 Nov 2017:

      If you want to became an engineer, be prepared to study a lot of math and many different subjects! As for any university course, be stubborn and remember your task is to learn not to show off. For example, my high school was not focusing on math at all, but studying hard made me able to understand math books which before were talking another language for me. This took a lot of efforts and failings at the beginning but eventually I learned and I had no problem at all.

      Engineering is all about transforming the theory into practice through approximations. For this to be possible you need to know all the three of them: mathematics (theory), technologies e.g. available hardware or mechanical components (practice) and all the “tricks” to marry the two together based on what you have to do – the approximations: e.g. avoiding using an hardware schematic because it generates too much heat to work in a freezer or it is too expensive for what it shall do.

    • Photo: Fran Zuch

      Fran Zuch answered on 14 Nov 2017:

      I think there are many ways to become an engineer, it is probably a good idea to check out programs for kids who are interested in Science and Engineering, they are usually done by students from Universities. It is worth just meeting them and have a peek what it is you would be doing or could be doing. I personally think it helps to get a better understanding of the different areas and options available. Work placements for pupils are also a great idea, just in general if you are interested, get involved, participate in activities. In Bath, there is also a local organisation called BRLSI that organises events for pupils and if not local, check online.

    • Photo: Petros Papapanagiotou

      Petros Papapanagiotou answered on 15 Nov 2017:

      I think the most important thing I would say is “don’t wait”. Don’t wait to finish school. Don’t wait to study engineering (in Uni or wherever). Don’t wait for people to ask you to engineer stuff for them.
      Do it now! Try to build something that is useful to you. Learn by trying and doing and failing and doing again. No school or university or job can teach you how to be a good engineer better than your own experience and your own passion to build things. “Get your hands dirty” so to speak.
      Especially if you think about software engineering, there is nothing stopping you from starting right now. All you need is a computer! Any person you can bother with questions as they come up (the Internet can be very helpful, even for experienced engineers like us) will also help you progress. Start with simple ideas that you think are going to be useful to yourself and try building them.
      Don’t wait! Start now! It’s fun!

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