Interacting With Others
In a previous post, I explained that you should expect to work with other coworkers on a regular basis. If you like working alone or don’t have good social skills, then mechanical engineering most likely isn’t for you. Don’t worry though, because there are other fields that may be more appealing. One alternative field is software engineering. Software engineers are infamous for working alone. You can expect to sit in front of a computer screen for hours and never verbally communicate with others. If that is a little to extreme for you, there is always computer engineering (yes, there is a difference). It involves less programming and more tinkering with hardware physically. This means you will spend some time communicating with others, but the time spent programming is still free of much social contact.
For more information on alternative engineering fields, take a look at this website: http://www.eweek.org/AboutEngineering/TypesEngineering.aspx
Long Hours
Depending on your position, you may be faced with not-so-pleasant hours. For example, some mechanical engineers who work closely with manufacturing and product testing tend to work very long hours. They’re usually just overseeing tests and supervising workers on the shop floor, but since their efforts are so closely linked to the project schedule, they have to put in long hours to complete the products on time. On the other hand, these workers make a lot in overtime. Other positions are self-paced, so the hours are flexible. You may be able to work 10 hours a day Mon-Thurs and then take every Friday off. It really depends on your position and time management.
You Suck at Math
I’ll come right out and say it. If you don’t like math or are failing miserably in your Calc class, mechanical engineering isn’t for you. I don’t mean this to scare people off; its just a fact. Understanding the fundamentals of high-level math is a requirement for most positions. More importantly, every engineering course past freshman years deals with some form of math. If you’re mathematics skills are rusty but you still wanna be a mechanical engineer, 1)Get a tutor, 2)Look up math videos on Youtube, and/or 3) PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE.
This Youtube channel has a ton of helpful videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/khanacademy