What was your most valuable/ useful subject at school?

Charles Sparey answered on 7 May 2020:

For electronics and then software engineering – at least in my case, I would say maths (lots), physics, english, computer science and maybe a foreign language as well.

Clare Roach answered on 7 May 2020:

I would say Physics. I loved finding out about how the world works. Helped by an excellent teacher though!

Sophie Louth answered on 7 May 2020:

For me it was probably maths to get me started on engineering. But now that I work in medical engineering biology which I took as my last subject choice is actually proving to be pretty helpful.

Ed Chester answered on 7 May 2020:

This is a good question, because I am normally asked what was my favourite, or what i did best at. Asking about value/utility is a better and more useful question – well done. I really had to think.
I am probably going to say Maths, because it is broadly about properly understanding and analysing a situation/challenge/puzzle, and making sensible attempts to solve it. That applies in many areas of life. I liked maths in school, but wasn’t especially good at it.
The subject I really didn’t understand the value of at the time was Latin. “Why study a dead language?” — when you understand how a language and its aspects work (something never taught in English, at least not in my time) — it unlocks other languages, which are vehicles for culture. I have lived and worked in many countries, speak 6 languages, and have opportunities created because alongside another engineer of comparable experience/skill/education — being able to work interculturally made a difference.

David Linsell answered on 7 May 2020:

As an engineer, Maths, Physics and Chemistry are important. However, a good knowledge of English Language is equally important for writing Reports that are clear and easy to understand and for writing Techical Specifications and Contracts that are precise.

Conor Tickner answered on 7 May 2020:

For me there were several which were critical, one of which you may not expect.
Maths and science (physics) set the foundation for my career, but as a not very naturally talented writer, the subjects requiring essays with explanations and justifications, particularly religious studies in my case (and later I took philosophy at A-level), became extremely important to enabling me to undertake the role I do today.

That isn’t to say that the subject matter in religious studies itself was critical to my role, but the process of studying that subject was hugely important to me to develop my writing and language skills. History, English, or other heavily writing-based subjects could perform a similar function.

A lot of my work involves engaging with the public, local government, or other people with an interest, such as investors, landowners, or those affected by projects. The skills I developed enabled me to write complex technical reports in a way that will be understood by a non-technical audience, to justify my methods and reasoning, and to explain things in a clear and concise manner, with good spelling and grammar.

Daniel O'Brien answered on 7 May 2020:

Computing was my favourite subject at school, but maths turned out to be the most valuable by far – if you go to university for any kind of STEM course you’ll find yourself using maths in all sorts of new ways, so it’s important to be confident in your school-level stuff!

Joy Furnival answered on 7 May 2020:

You do need lots of maths and physics for engineering, so they are really important. But to help persuade other people to support your engineering ideas, or fund your project or listen to you, you really need good persuasion, listening and relational skills. And we sometimes can forget about them in engineering. We need to listen to our customers really hard to understand their problems and how our ideas can help them. So I think that English and languages are also really important for Engineers too.

What do you think?

Kevin Burke answered on 7 May 2020:

It has to be maths – so fundamental to all aspects of engineering

Brian Buckman answered on 7 May 2020:

That is an interesting question, I think the most valuable thing I learnt at school wasn’t taught in any lesson. It was learning how to get on with other people, both other pupils and teachers. Learning to communicate is certainly the most important lesson I learnt. If you cannot get on and communicate well with those around you everything else is virtually pointless. If I must name a subject it would have to be Physics or Maths.

Rob Husband answered on 7 May 2020:

For Electronics it would be Physics and Maths and for Software it would be Maths and English but also Physics depending on the system that is being worked on

Frances Askill-Kirk answered on 7 May 2020: last edited 7 May 2020 2:40 pm

The valuable subjects might not be what you expect!!

English/languages – it is incredibly important to be able to communicate effectively and confidently. Whether it is through spoken word or over an email, your English skills will be incredibly valuable in an engineering career. The hardest part of engineering is definitely trying to explain what you are thinking and justifying why you have made certain decisions. If you know another language – that is incredible!! I work with a lot of German and Chinese engineers in automotive!

Physics/Maths – I have grouped these together as they serve the same purpose. Mathematical literacy is obviously very important in engineering. Physics at school gives you the building blocks to then learn about thermodynamics, aerodynamics and a lot of other very complex stuff!!

History – I have found in my engineering career, my love of history has helped a lot. I use knowledge I have learned from watching documentaries about the evolution of cars, the industrial revolution and looking back at how automobiles have changed over time to take inspiration!

Helen Skupski answered on 7 May 2020:

Maths and Physics are of course key for any further education/degrees and are the fundamentals of engineering.
However, I think Design Technology at A Level was the most useful subject for my job now. It introduced me to the product design concept, stakeholders, requirements, testing, report writing, communicating in different forms (e.g. talking, CAD, PowerPoints) and many other skills. I think every aspect of that subject I have come across in my career in some form or other.
I also enjoyed it, which is the most important thing to me.

Rosina Simmons answered on 7 May 2020:

I was a bit undecided with what I wanted to do after school, but I knew it would be some sciencey thing. Physics and maths were very useful for being an Engineer in the end.
I would differentiate between valuable and useful in this question as well; the most valuable subject I had was art & design, I really liked the opportunity to think in a different way and use my hands a lot to create something instantly.

Helen Taylor answered on 7 May 2020:

Physics was probably my most useful subject as it’s the backbone of Engineering

anon answered on 7 May 2020:

For me, I think it would have been Design & Technology – Woodwork. It got me interested in design and engineering and pursued an education and career from there afterwards.

Owen Jeffreys answered on 7 May 2020:

Hi Oliver,

Thank you for asking such an important question. I guess the most useful subjects for me going into an Engineering career were Maths, Physics and Design & Technology. These subjects helped teach me some of the very important skills required to start pursuing my career. They did not teach me everything I needed to know but it provided a basis for what I would study next (I then went to College and then Uni).

A few comments I would say:
1. If you are starting to choose subjects to study, then Maths and Science are definitely two key subjects for a career in Engineering.
2. If you are considering a career in Engineering, do not be afraid if these are not your favourite subjects. Maths was not my favourite subject to begin with either. Over time it grew on me, and now (several years later) I actually really enjoy it!
3. If you find some of these subjects hard (at GCSE or A-Level) then also don’t worry. I never “got it” the first time around, but the further I progressed the more sense it started to make as I began to use it more.

I studied Electronic and Software Engineering at University, so Maths was a vital stepping stone to get onto this course and an important basis for some of the engineering topics I learned there. There was lots of Maths in the degree and I use lots of Maths in my job today.

D&T was a very fun subject and helped feed my interest in Engineering. It was fun and interactive and allowed me to be creative (a common trait among engineers).

If you are like me and a bit forgetful, then don’t worry either. There is some Maths I studied back then which I cannot remember now. But the more I studied it, and the more I used it on a daily basis, the more I was able to understand. And the more I understood, the easier it seemed to be to remember.

Hope that helps 🙂

Juan Carlos Fallas-Chinchilla answered on 10 May 2020:

In my school we had lots of workshops where we could learn about car mechanics, electronics, welding, etc. Those sessions were very good to acquire experience and chat to professionals about work and training opportunities.

I had great maths, biology and chemistry teachers who inspired us to follow a STEM career.

Colin Donaldson answered on 11 May 2020:

For me, Maths and Physics were the most useful topics in school to get an interest in engineering and how things work!

Rebecca Hitch answered on 11 May 2020:

Maths is key – a fantastic book to help is “engineering mathematics by K.A.Stroud – useful from pre-GCSE right through to university. Physics and Design are also great subjects to lead to a career in engineering. Business studies would be great if you’re thinking of the management side of engineering either now in the future, it really makes you a well-rounded engineer.

Nicola Grahamslaw answered on 12 May 2020:

Different subjects give you different advantages! Maths and physics gave me the basics of the stuff I studied at uni, but actually things like geography, drama and economics were also useful to help me understand other parts of my job better. And of course English because there’s no point being the world’s cleverest engineer if you can’t write about your work in a way that others will be able to understand.

Tom Rooney answered on 12 May 2020:

I really enjoyed CDT Technology and CDT Design and Commucation, but I have to say the most useful subjects have been the key subjects of Maths, English and Physics. Maths is a large part of being an engineer; English is crucial as you have to communicate your work and that is usually in the form of a written report; and Physics taught me so much about the world and what makes everything work.

Katie Sparks answered on 13 May 2020:

I think physics and maths.
I struggle with maths, but it’s been worth it as it’s given me the opportunity to do lots of different things.
I also write a lot of reports and read reports looking for the information I need, so I guess English and History have been useful for those skills too!

Iulia Motoc answered on 14 May 2020:

I would say for me it was maths, and then it also included more subjects such as physics and programming.

Ken Mollison answered on 6 Jun 2020:

Oliver, that’s a great question, and to be honest I have to say Physics was the most valuable and useful subject at school. I taught me now how things work, but why they work. Physics can describe chemical reactions, atomic forces, biological systems, mechanical and electronic things around us, planetary motion, stars, galaxies and perhaps one day fully define the universe. After Physics Arithmetic and Mathematics, not so much in terms of fancy equations and formulas an proofs, but in getting to understand how numbers work and a feel for when the magnitude of an answer is right or questionable and knowing when to use Maths as a real tool. Engineers use a lot of interpersonal skills so in school learning how to get on with others (teachers as well as older and younger pupils) was super important, but I guess that was learned rather than taught.

Question: What was your most valuable/ useful subject at school?

Comments