[ttldomination]

So I would say that everything is a little popular for different reasons.

Programming - Students have this notion that programming will detail long nights filled with hacking and interesting schemes to take over the world and stuff. Many don't even get past the fact that they have to learn a programming language and they end up on mechanical.

Mechanical - Many students join mechanical because they want to build the beauty that stands before them. They want to walk into the shop empty handed and walk out of the shop having just built a 120 lb robot. Many don't realize the work required to design components, to think 2-5 steps ahead, and ultimately deal with failure. These students often end up quitting the team or taking a back seat role.

For the most part, mechanical is popular by the number of students involved, but a significant number of them are screw turners. We've recently had a growing number of students who take part in the actual design creation and critiquing process, which leads to better build quality and greater interest in mechanical.

- Sunny G.