It’s back to school time. Now that most colleges and universities are back in session, we decided that it would be a great opportunity for our team to reflect back on their college years. Our engineering staff includes alumni from The Ohio State University, Columbia University, West Virginia University, University of Dayton, Purdue University, Ohio University, University of Kentucky, and Ohio Northern University. Although some team members have been out of school for a bit of time, others are relatively new to the “real world” of full-time employment.
No matter what stage they are in their career, all our team members had some guidance for future and current engineering students. Advice ranged from studying habits to networking and internships. We couldn’t narrow it down to one, so here are our "Top 10 Back to School Words of Wisdom:"
Market yourself early on and get your name out there so people will know who you are. Schedule your studying and social activities. Always follow through, it is your reputation on the line.
“Seek out opportunities to see how projects are constructed. Details may look great on paper, but are useless if they can’t be built.” Course work and actual work are two completely different things. Make sure that you have had the opportunity to see “real world” application of what you learn in text books.
Strike a balance between studying and socializing. It is sometimes more important for an engineer to feel comfortable in social settings and meetings than it is to know the technical details. Remember that it is sometimes who you know that can open doors to opportunities.
“The best piece of advice I received was from my hydraulics professor. He always said to focus on the knowledge, not the grades.” Engineers tend to focus on numbers and achieving the highest grade possible but what gets you further after graduation is what you know, not the grade received. Although grades and GPA are important, the ‘B+ student’ with practical knowledge is sometimes a better asset than the ‘A student’.
“You will likely use only 5% of what you learn in school in your future career, the other 95% will be learned on-the-job.” The most important thing to gain from your education is how to master new skills, how to problem-solve on your own, and how to work well in groups. These are skills that will make any engineer successful.
You cannot take time off and expect to do well or stay in an engineering major. Study every day, not all day just a little bit from each course every day. This study method has never failed in engineering.
With all the information available at your fingertips, make sure to research and get hands-on experience in all engineering fields or specialties you may be interested in pursuing. It is a very good idea to visit engineering firms to get a feel for the day-to-day work in the various disciplines so you can tailor your curriculum for the specialty that fits you best.
It is a lot easier to find a job once you have some experience listed on your resume. Paid, unpaid, internships, job shadowing…do them all and make sure to leave a good impression. If you make a good mark on a company, they may have a job waiting on you when you are ready for the real world.
Join university and/or community activities outside of engineering. Most campuses offer a myriad of opportunities (theatre, music, athletics, etc.). Getting involved with activities that are not engineering related will help you to develop skills that will make you a better engineer.
“Engineers don’t typically like to read, but reading can increase your communication skills which are vitally important if you want to progress into project/people management in your career.”
These "Words of Wisdom" allowed our staff to become the highly skilled and recognized firm that we are today. We wish all future and current students the best of luck on their studies this school year. If you choose to follow our advice and would like to get some hands-on experience, email us at kstudabaker@cmtran.com.
4 thoughts on “Top 10 Back to School Words of Wisdom”
Bradley Shaw
September 10, 2014 at 10:11 pmIt’s actually a nice and helpful piece of information. I’m glad that you shared this information and will be sure to pass it along to my son who is studying engineering. Thank you for sharing.
Dustin Holtzmann
October 14, 2014 at 12:29 pmFantastic job. I certainly dig it and personally suggested your tips to my friends. I’m confident they will benefit from this too.
Eileen Hardie
November 27, 2014 at 3:27 amExcellent blog here!
Holly Narvaez
December 23, 2014 at 9:05 amNice post. I was inspired by this blog! Extremely useful info specially the last section 🙂
Thanks and good luck.
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