So far college is pretty fun. studying mechanical engineering at oregon tech here in oregon. trying to sell my truck for college money but i need more threads in order to post in classifieds so do mind this one Although mechanical engineering is pretty neat, I've found i dont really have a passion for it. I love working on things of a mechanical nature and engineering my own solutions at a hobby level, but as far as career status goes I dont think it's for me. The classes aren't hard. Its my first year and i'm already taking vector calculus.... I just think its not what i actually want to do. I'm transferring to university of Arizona into the Mining Engineering program. I love the problem solving and critical thinking aspect of engineering but desperately do not want to graduate college and settle somewhere, in a shop or behind a desk for the next 30+ years. With this degree there's Huge oppritunity to travel and work out in nature as well as a nice desk job in the very far future. Thats my career path goals for now

 

I understand what you're going through. I'm 38 and still have no clue what I want to do for the rest of my life. Till then I'm enjoying the hell out of searching.

Post your add on craigslist.

 

Glad to hear it's working out. One of my roommates back in grad school had a similar experience as you - started out as a MechE because he liked working on cars and working with his hands, but wanted more outdoor field work, so he switched to geotechnical engineering. He was pretty happy with the decision. Don't worry too much about narrowing down your path freshman year; often times the core classes you take as a freshman are pretty common across disciplines. It's not until sophomore year that you start to diverge.

I have both a BS and MS in EE - my advice to you while you're in school: 1) don't let anything get in the way, 2) hang on to all your notes and books, 3) do as many internships during the summers as you can, and 4) think very seriously about going to graduate school afterwards.

Best of luck and kudos to you!

 

Generally most engineering degrees are great stepping stones to a lot of other professions. Remember a lot of the big money race teams have at least one qualified engineer on board; heck maybe even the tire changers too?

I've always heard a materials engineer degree can be quite useful too. Not necessarily instead of the MechE or Mining degree but another path to consider.

FWIW when we're younger we think we know what path we want to pursue but its also a known fact we're likely to change careers at least once during our life. Enjoy your time now, keep the memories but get your education out of the way first THEN go see/conquer the world---one piece at a time ya know!