• Question: what advise would you give to students in order to reach their goal of being and engineer?

    Asked by 869spcn34 to Andrew, Hina, Ian, Kathryn, Leah-Nani, Xu on 11 Jun 2018.
    • Photo: Leah-Nani Alconcel

      Leah-Nani Alconcel answered on 11 Jun 2018:

      Aside from the obvious “study maths and science”, I would add “figure out which bits of those subjects you enjoy most” and “try to find something outside school to get some practical experience”. Join a club or do a project where you build something or write some code.

    • Photo: Ian Jones

      Ian Jones answered on 11 Jun 2018:

      When I look at CVs of job applicants it’s always obvious which people are really interested in their subject because they have got involved in doing things. So my advice would be: don’t wait. start finding out and getting involved at whatever level you can. It all adds up to experience.

    • Photo: Kathryn Burrows

      Kathryn Burrows answered on 11 Jun 2018:

      Understand what your inherently skills are, how your brain thinks. Do you think with your hands? Do you have a visual memory? Einstein once said, ‘Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid.’ Find the ways in which you are a genius, and then nurture them. If you find something for which you are a good fit and you enjoy it, success will come naturally. (That said if you are not very good at something but it is important to you, determination will most likely get you to it. Another quote: The master has failed more times than the novice has even tried.)

    • Photo: Andrew Margetts-Kelly

      Andrew Margetts-Kelly answered on 11 Jun 2018:

      I have two bits of advice:
      1.
      Do what you enjoy. If you enjoy it you’ll be good at it; and there is nothing like being paid to do your hobby.
      Concentrate on the subjects you like the most and let that guide your path…. but obviously don’t forget to work hard at the usual suspects of mathematics and the sciences, even the ones that interest you less.
      2.
      It’s not important to know the answer, it’s important to know how to find it. Method is far more important than remembering the answer.
      Don’t panic if it seems complicated and remembering “what” all the answers are is difficult; nature is really quite ordered and it makes a lot of sense when you know “how” it works. Learn how something works and the answers will be at your fingertips for your whole life.

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