Engineering after FIRST

[Jon Anderson]

I'm planning on going into Engineering... however the field I'm still not certain on. I'm thinking about Computer Engineering.

[Erin Rapacki]

FIRST 'inspired' me to go into engineering, but when I think back... moreso it helped me decide on a major that I could go into, know what to expect, and succeed in. I don't think I'll ever by the 'typical engineer' (if there's even a definition) but I do not regret my decision. Mechanical Engineering is a degree that you can spin off of in any way (could become a lawyer, doctor, teacher, entrepaneur, etc), and you learn how to problem solve. It's also fun and interesting.

Nobody should feel bad about not deciding to get into science or engineering. I think FIRST does a better job of training leaders, and in-turn... those leaders will know how to appreciate the job the scientists and engineerings are doing.

You don't have to be a 'geek' to love FIRST .

[Jessica Boucher]

Originally Posted by Erin Rapacki

Nobody should feel bad about not deciding to get into science or engineering. I think FIRST does a better job of training leaders, and in-turn... those leaders will know how to appreciate the job the scientists and engineerings are doing.

You don't have to be a 'geek' to love FIRST .

Absolutley. If you fall into that non-engineering major category, please visit this thread http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/sh...6&page=1&pp=15
to find people who feel the same way.

[akaria]

I know that I definitely plan to major in engineering in college, before FIRST I had planned to go in to physics, now it’s mechanical engineering, still a lot of the same things but now I will get to tinker!^_^

[Jessica Boucher]

What's interesting about these poll results is that its 3 out of every 4 people want to major in science when they graduate HS...and in the 03 annual report it was 1 out of every 2 people (with roughly the same question posed). So you can infer that either FIRST jumped a whole bunch in that statistic, or CD has a higher concentration of technical-focused students (which I honestly thought was the opposite, but hey).

[MOEmaniac]

the biggest reason i got involved with FIRST and MOE is because i love building things then thinking of ways to impove it and keep improving it. that is wat engineering is basically all about.....right?

[Pierson]

I have always loved to build. In college, I am looking for a cross between Business and Engineering with a small emphasis in IT.

[GregT]

Originally Posted by Peciv

I have always loved to build. In college, I am looking for a cross between Business and Engineering with a small emphasis in IT.

http://www.iienet.org/public/articles/index.cfm?cat=840

Greg

[Pierson]

Originally Posted by GregT

http://www.iienet.org/public/articles/index.cfm?cat=840

Greg

Cool... Thanks!

[cvhsrobotics]

I got 3 years to worry about this, but I hope to work at JPL/NASA

[Paul H]

When I was little I always wanted to be an engineer because my uncle was one. I didn't even know what an engineer was! As I moved through high school, I changed to wanting to be in business. Then came FIRST. I joined as a junior, and junior year went by and it was cool, but I thought nothing more. Then came this past year, senior year. Somehow I got inspried. A bunch of my teammates complained abour Dave Lavery's speach at VCU, but I listened to it and it actually made me start thinking about engineering. I look back on it, and the two best parts about FIRST were the engineering/building aspects and the competitiveness.

I see the Jim and Tim, the two main engineers on our team, and I see all of the "big name" FIRST engineers on these forums like Andy Baker, Paul Copioli, Joe Johnson, etc. and they all seem like such great people, I want to be like them.

So yes, I think I will be giong into engineering. I'm going to spend my first year at Michigan State as no preference with mainly engineering classes, just so I can leave it open, but it'll take somethig special (there's nothing like FIRST in the business world that I know of) to sway me.

So consider me "Inspired"

[Liz Smith]

Originally Posted by Nick Mac

I just find it very odd that i'm so involved with FIRST and I love being there building the robot and stuff...but i want to go in a complete seperate direction and do political science and english...Hehe...i guess that technically is a science !

I just became involved with FIRST last year, and now I am fully obsessed. I never really thought about going into engineering until FIRST, so... I have been looking at liberal arts schools where I can major in um... studio art, which is really a different direction. I love the building of the robot and everything else, so maybe I'll find a way to tie engineering in as well.

[BandChick]

I didn't think I was going to do anything engineering related. My mom always tried to push it because she's got a PhD in science, but I wasn't ever interested. In fact, before becoming a member of 1089, I was planning on being a liberal arts major (English) or a music major. Quite a shift, eh?

FIRST really put into perspective what being an engineer was all about, and I realized that I already had so many of the qualities that a good engineer possessed. Besides, all the stuff you learn, all the math and all the physics were things I was good at in high school.

I have NO interest in becoming a professional engineer, and yet that's still my Rutgers major. I know a lot of people look at me as though I have 3 heads when I say that, but I'm majoring in engineering because to me, it's fun. College is supposed to be the time you find out what you want to do and who you are. Well, I already know what I want to do, I decided to be a pediatrician when I was a lot younger. Now, I just want to have fun while I'm in school. Even if that means doing something completely related.

Do what makes you happy, do science, or don't. FIRST gives everyone something else, and just because maybe you didn't get the 'be an engineering major' bug, doesn't mean you haven't gained something else worthwhile. Besides, if we didn't have a few English majors the Chairman's essay would be a lot harder, wouldn't it?

[Wetzel]

Originally Posted by Pika1579

I just became involved with FIRST last year, and now I am fully obsessed. I never really thought about going into engineering until FIRST, so... I have been looking at liberal arts schools where I can major in um... studio art, which is really a different direction. I love the building of the robot and everything else, so maybe I'll find a way to tie engineering in as well.

Architect.

Wetzel

[aaronbr28040]

I'm an engineering major at NC State this year. I graduated from NC School of Science and Math last year (Team 900) and moved right down the road to Raleigh. FIRST had a big influence on my final choice of majors.
-Aaron