Engineering Majors and low GPAs

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Well, grades are trickling in and it looks like my kid isn’t pulling it off. Not sure what happens next.

I am I’ll with worry, anger, and yes, embarrassment.

I was one of those kids with poor engineering grades. Turns out I hated engineering but liked math and computers. I switched majors to CS and my grades improved immensely. Engineering is a hard major for someone who doesn't love it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I just hired a recent graduate with 2.1 GPA from JMU with a degree in Engineering. I didn't care about his GPA. He has multiple AWS certifications that allow me to build my government clients higher rates. I can't say that about other high GPA graduates.

Yes, this.

Lol. It's all about billing higher rates. Doesn't matter if he can do the job correctly.

Just don’t let me find out who you are.

- fed contract official

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Well, grades are trickling in and it looks like my kid isn’t pulling it off. Not sure what happens next.

I am I’ll with worry, anger, and yes, embarrassment.

I humbly suggest that you bite your tongue a LOT and give your kid some space to assess the situation and figure out what he wants to do. I have a kid getting some bad grades in HS. It's maddening. BUT, it's SOOO important for them to find their way. Be there to listen, to ask questions, to help them come up with options (if they aren't sure what to do next). But, they have to find their path.

Ask what they think went wrong. Would a tutor be helpful for next semester? Ask if they need help coming up with a plan. BUT let them do it! They are capable. Even if the kid does the wrong thing right now, he will learn from that. It is so hard to give them enough leash to make bad choices... but that is the way to learn and take ownership of life.

Resist the urge to figure this out for your kid. RESIST.

[Anonymous]

Clemson grad school grad here- it isn’t like MIT. But the football party scene is serious- did he also pledge a fraternity? I suspect there are more social than academic issues at play. Most of the other students are from SC which currently is ranked 49th and losing ground to Mississippi, so I would take this seriously.

He needs to come up with a plan, get a tutor, whatever. He should also be figuring out his internship intentions now. If you don’t have expectations in place for what tuition you will reimburse (eg only passing grades) you need to think about that too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well, grades are trickling in and it looks like my kid isn’t pulling it off. Not sure what happens next.

I am I’ll with worry, anger, and yes, embarrassment.

I humbly suggest that you bite your tongue a LOT and give your kid some space to assess the situation and figure out what he wants to do. I have a kid getting some bad grades in HS. It's maddening. BUT, it's SOOO important for them to find their way. Be there to listen, to ask questions, to help them come up with options (if they aren't sure what to do next). But, they have to find their path.

Ask what they think went wrong. Would a tutor be helpful for next semester? Ask if they need help coming up with a plan. BUT let them do it! They are capable. Even if the kid does the wrong thing right now, he will learn from that. It is so hard to give them enough leash to make bad choices... but that is the way to learn and take ownership of life.

Resist the urge to figure this out for your kid. RESIST.

thanks. Yes, biting ones tongue is always best. We have some things to say -- for example: does he really want to do this? His few liberal arts grades are plenty good enough.

[Anonymous]

If any parents of future freshman are reading... take it slow!

I'm still disgusted with VT. VT was so rude and demeaning to my DD when she asked a simple question. DD was a HS senior considering engineering (720 math SAT, APCalc BC, APCHEM, APhysicsC obviously interested in STEM). She asked admissions, "how about if, from the beginning, I plan to take 5 years to complete the degree?" They said no, but saying no wasn't enough. They said if she needed to ask to "take it slow" she clearly wasn't cut out for engineering.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

If any parents of future freshman are reading... take it slow!

I'm still disgusted with VT. VT was so rude and demeaning to my DD when she asked a simple question. DD was a HS senior considering engineering (720 math SAT, APCalc BC, APCHEM, APhysicsC obviously interested in STEM). She asked admissions, "how about if, from the beginning, I plan to take 5 years to complete the degree?" They said no, but saying no wasn't enough. They said if she needed to ask to "take it slow" she clearly wasn't cut out for engineering.

That is very rude, since the big secret is that tons of kids slow it down, or end up there from repeating a class.

[Anonymous]

I know!

[Anonymous]

The boomers and old gen Xers in this thread talking about how things were in their day are clueless.

Anything near a 2.0 is dog**** and I'd be concerned the young man will even finish a BA let alone an engineering degree. OP will probably let the slacker switch to some cake dept and coast through a worthless bachelor's. Then wonder why he's still begging you for rent money in his late 20s.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The boomers and old gen Xers in this thread talking about how things were in their day are clueless.

Anything near a 2.0 is dog**** and I'd be concerned the young man will even finish a BA let alone an engineering degree. OP will probably let the slacker switch to some cake dept and coast through a worthless bachelor's. Then wonder why he's still begging you for rent money in his late 20s.

Not all young adults are great at school. Test taking is not for everyone.

C's get degrees. A 2.0 gpa from Harvard, Yale, Standford or any other school is worth exactly the same as a 4.0 after first job. Only other issue is getting into a good grad school would be hard. Even that is debatable.

Of course this young adult needs to really look at what's going on.

Look at your neighbors some never finished college or went for that matter. Still live in that million dollar home, LOL....

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The boomers and old gen Xers in this thread talking about how things were in their day are clueless.

Anything near a 2.0 is dog**** and I'd be concerned the young man will even finish a BA let alone an engineering degree. OP will probably let the slacker switch to some cake dept and coast through a worthless bachelor's. Then wonder why he's still begging you for rent money in his late 20s.

Not all young adults are great at school. Test taking is not for everyone.

C's get degrees. A 2.0 gpa from Harvard, Yale, Standford or any other school is worth exactly the same as a 4.0 after first job. Only other issue is getting into a good grad school would be hard. Even that is debatable.

Of course this young adult needs to really look at what's going on.

Look at your neighbors some never finished college or went for that matter. Still live in that million dollar home, LOL....

LOL at your empty head.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

If any parents of future freshman are reading... take it slow!

I'm still disgusted with VT. VT was so rude and demeaning to my DD when she asked a simple question. DD was a HS senior considering engineering (720 math SAT, APCalc BC, APCHEM, APhysicsC obviously interested in STEM). She asked admissions, "how about if, from the beginning, I plan to take 5 years to complete the degree?" They said no, but saying no wasn't enough. They said if she needed to ask to "take it slow" she clearly wasn't cut out for engineering.

That is very rude, since the big secret is that tons of kids slow it down, or end up there from repeating a class.

Engineering co-op program takes 5 years to get engineering undergraduate degree. In this program students spend alternate semesters going to school and working full-time for an employer. This alternate arrangement starts in the second year.

The admissions person was outright rude. Your DD should have complained with admissions-incharge.

[Anonymous]

Well, looks like my kid won't get into his first choice of major.

Needed to type it so I don't scream.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The boomers and old gen Xers in this thread talking about how things were in their day are clueless.

Anything near a 2.0 is dog**** and I'd be concerned the young man will even finish a BA let alone an engineering degree. OP will probably let the slacker switch to some cake dept and coast through a worthless bachelor's. Then wonder why he's still begging you for rent money in his late 20s.

Not all young adults are great at school. Test taking is not for everyone.

C's get degrees. A 2.0 gpa from Harvard, Yale, Standford or any other school is worth exactly the same as a 4.0 after first job. Only other issue is getting into a good grad school would be hard. Even that is debatable.

Of course this young adult needs to really look at what's going on.

Look at your neighbors some never finished college or went for that matter. Still live in that million dollar home, LOL....

My neighbors are lawyers, a university administrator, and a dermatologist.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Well, looks like my kid won't get into his first choice of major.

Needed to type it so I don't scream.

It’ll be fine. Probably for the best anyway.