Advice on Aeronautical Engineering Course

[woods17]

I am now a 2nd year student studying Aeronautical Engineering. Heavy going!
Someone tell me it can only get better please.

Finding it a bit of a slog at minute. Hoping the working environment is better than this.
Surely the working environment is not as intense as getting this degree!?

Anyone completed an Aeronautical Engineering or similar recently. Any luck with employment. If so how,s it going? Is it everything you expected?

Is there plenty of work out there or is it really hard to get the start we all crave?

 

[Worldtraveller]

Some aspects of 'real world' engineering is better/easier than university studies.

For instance, when you are working, your focus is usually much smaller (structures, aero, thermo) with some overlap. We tend to become experts in a fairly small part of the overall field and that is what you get familiar with and get good at.

This makes sense, though, since you don't really know what you might be doing when you graduate. I'll be honest, if I had based my job preference on which classes I enjoyed the most, I would really want to be a propulsion/thermo guy. Frankly, my structures classes sucked eggs. As an actual engineer, though, I love doing structures work (most of the time).

However, the difficulties are still there, they are just different. Now, we have to deal with crazy unrealistic schedules (similar to homework deadlines, but they might cost a lot of $$$ if you don't get it done on time), customers with often very unrealistic expectations, and all the issues of dealing with regulating agencies.

The best part is, the pay is better.

 

[IRstuff]

Someone tell me it can only get better please.

> Only sometimes, other times, it could be worse. I remember all the all-nighters, etc., and the the furious couple of weeks trying to finish my senior project, but those all had a firm deadline; you either finished and got a good grade, or didn't graduate. Some jobs can partially resemble all-nighters, but might go on for serious portions of a year. But, you get PAID

Finding it a bit of a slog at minute. Hoping the working environment is better than this.
Surely the working environment is not as intense as getting this degree!?

> School is a bit insulated from certain things like politics and backstabbing, so sometimes work is worse. I've had an occasion to wonder whether our GM was leading us down the path to serious jail time, and other times wondering, "WTF," at the decisions made at higher levels. But you get PAID

Anyone completed an Aeronautical Engineering or similar recently. Any luck with employment. If so how,s it going? Is it everything you expected?

> see

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Adventures_of_Johnny_Bunko

and

http://www.johnnybunko.com/.

The moral of the story is that there is no plan that will take you to retirement; Helmuth von Moltke

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helmuth_von_Moltke_the_Elder

already figured that out over 100 years ago: "No plan of operations extends with certainty beyond the first encounter with the enemy's main strength" (or "no plan survives contact with the enemy,") Careers tend to be rather tortuous paths to some undefined endpoint. But, you get PAID, most of the time

Is there plenty of work out there or is it really hard to get the start we all crave?

> see previous. It can definitely be hard. Try VERY hard to get internships or summer jobs in the field you're interested in; they'll be much more valuable and credible than a stint at a McDonalds. But, eventually, you get PAID.

TTFN
faq731-376

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Of course I can. I can do anything. I can do absolutely anything. I'm an expert!

 

[tbuelna]

Aerospace engineering is better than most other fields when it comes to job satisfaction. But in reality even aerospace engineering jobs are not all peaches and cream. Any entry-level job you get after graduating will involve a fair amount of grunt work. The best you can hope for in any job is that 50% of the work you do is satisfying.

As for salary and job demand, aerospace engineering is a great choice. You'll probably have several job offers before you graduate.

 

[stressebookllc]

There is an ebook at

http://www.stressebook.com/ebook

that may give you some pointers.

http://www.stressebook.com

Stressing Stresslessly!

 

[Sparweb]

As with many other things, what you get out of it is usually equal to what you put into it. If you can get through university with your sanity intact, and hopefully put some relevant job experience in your pocket along the way (co-ops are one great way, but there can be other ways to get this), then you can get your foot in the door.
But the education doesn't stop there. I feel that every day at work is also like school, in that I should be trying to learn something, not just using what I've already learned. I like to read tech books in my free time, and browsing forums like this one keeps ideas in my head that may come in handy in the future. I find this very satisfying, though it may not be everyone's cup of tea.


STF