Anonymous wrote:Kids can change do much in 1 year. I def think some kids need hand holding done in 11th grade if they show interest in a field and a parent knows her kid best. Of course they have to do the work when they get into a program like this , but they would have matured by then. I agree the average kid who is good or would be good in engineering/math is probably not the type of kid who is comfortable asking for help - from an adult with them being 15yo.

I work with lots of smart, capable 30-ish engineers and when I tell them about my son, they pretty much agree that they were shy and reserved when they were that age. I'm sure they needed done hand holding and guidance in the beginning to get them to this point.

If you are "shy and reserved" you don't necessarily need hand holding to figure out your direction. I think the word you're looking for is "unambitious". Plenty of shy kids can figure it out and get things done.

Kids can change do much in 1 year. I def think some kids need hand holding done in 11th grade if they show interest in a field and a parent knows her kid best. Of course they have to do the work when they get into a program like this , but they would have matured by then. I agree the average kid who is good or would be good in engineering/math is probably not the type of kid who is comfortable asking for help - from an adult with them being 15yo.

I work with lots of smart, capable 30-ish engineers and when I tell them about my son, they pretty much agree that they were shy and reserved when they were that age. I'm sure they needed done hand holding and guidance in the beginning to get them to this point.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So are all of you saying that (schools like Olin aside), you can still get into a reasonable engineering program with B+ in math (will take through Calc BC)?

Absolutely.

Including Va Tech engineering?

I'm the one who answered absolutely.
Va Tech? I don't know - it's a hugely competitive school, obviously, so we'd need a whole ton more info and then it would be up to the whim of the admissions gods. But fortunately, VaTech isn't the only engineering program in the country, and there are lots of places that will be happy to have him.

I wish I could do it this way. I certainly did all those things growing up. The problem is that because I did all those things, alone, I did them quite poorly. The stereotypical engineer has no social skills, for me that meant asking questions was just about impossible. I floundered my way through undergrad in 6 years. There were no jobs when I graduated and my interviewing skills stunk.

I applied to 6 grad schools and got into the worst one after being wait listed. The first week of grad school, I met my future advisor when I started a rotation in his lab. He started telling me what to do, mostly to help free up my time so I could work in his lab. I followed his instructions to the letter and got my phd four years later.

I ended up with school wide recognition including an award for best dissertation presentation that year. You would not believe how much help and encouragement I needed to get my presentation to that level. Of course, I also used it as a job talk. I applied six places, I got all six jobs including an assistant professorship right out of grad school. (that still happened back then)

The point is you have to be able to read your kids. Some need to toughen up, some need their hand held, some just need to follow a step by step list of what to do and some will only do the opposite of what you suggest.

"I highly recommend that you let your son take the initiative on this. Engineering is something that HE must want to do, and he must want to research and apply to schools for his field. Once he's there he must decide which classes to take for which field he is going into. As a parent of an engineer, I can't imagine making an of those decisions for my child, or even suggesting that my child go into that field. It was totally child driven, as it should be. Any engineering degree is going to take a lot of work from your kid. It should be something they want to do and take action to achieve. You really shouldn't do anything but be supportive of their choices. They can go talk to an advisor about what the need to do to apply."

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So are all of you saying that (schools like Olin aside), you can still get into a reasonable engineering program with B+ in math (will take through Calc BC)?

Absolutely.

Including Va Tech engineering?

Ha! I'm the one that posed the question. My bet is yes, but not from NOVA, but what do I know.

And to the one who answered "absolutely." You made my night.

I highly recommend that you let your son take the initiative on this. Engineering is something that HE must want to do, and he must want to research and apply to schools for his field. Once he's there he must decide which classes to take for which field he is going into. As a parent of an engineer, I can't imagine making an of those decisions for my child, or even suggesting that my child go into that field. It was totally child driven, as it should be. Any engineering degree is going to take a lot of work from your kid. It should be something they want to do and take action to achieve. You really shouldn't do anything but be supportive of their choices. They can go talk to an advisor about what the need to do to apply.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So are all of you saying that (schools like Olin aside), you can still get into a reasonable engineering program with B+ in math (will take through Calc BC)?

Absolutely.

Including Va Tech engineering?

Anonymous wrote:So are all of you saying that (schools like Olin aside), you can still get into a reasonable engineering program with B+ in math (will take through Calc BC)?

Absolutely.

So are all of you saying that (schools like Olin aside), you can still get into a reasonable engineering program with B+ in math (will take through Calc BC)?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Any engineers have suggestions for collaborative engineering programs that are not as difficult to get into as Olin? TIA

Purdue and University of Delaware

Does Purdue have a good engineering school?

Hahaha. Good one, Hoosier.


-Boilermaker

Anonymous wrote:I highly recommend getting your son into some sort of summer engineering program to give him a real taste. An internship later on would be great, also.
- former engineering major

Please, do you have any suggestions for summer programs near Wasington, DC?

18:50 again - By the way, I loved math, but hated engineering.

I highly recommend getting your son into some sort of summer engineering program to give him a real taste. An internship later on would be great, also.
- former engineering major

I remember trying to teach algebra to my little brother and wondering how he was going to get anywhere in life. He just graduated from UM's Clark engineering program and is starting his first job next week! If you had asked me then, I would have said it was impossible.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Any engineers have suggestions for collaborative engineering programs that are not as difficult to get into as Olin? TIA

Purdue and University of Delaware

Does Purdue have a good engineering school?