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An Engineering Student Survival Guide
 Engineering is one of the harder courses you can pursue at the university level. Not only is the work you have to put in above and beyond most common courses, but the study time and "free" time you'll have to spend on grasping the material can easily spell disaster if not handled properly.
It's not at all unheard of for engineering students to fall victim to the snowball effect. They start by lapsing in their studies, followed by missing a lecture here and a class there and, the next thing you know, they're staring down the barrel of a failing grade and cannot escape the inevitable bullet.
One of the biggest problems in engineering courses is the actual professor/lecturer and his or her possibly confusing way of delivering the information. The human factor always manages to conflict with what you're studying. And confusion can easily begin to spiral until you find yourself snowballing.
There are a few simple steps you can employ to help you with your survival, however, and it all starts with you.
Understanding Course Material
Since every teacher teaches differently and every student interprets the material at his or her own rate, it's imperative that you find the balance immediately to help you understand the course material. With the different learning styles out there, you have to find something that’s right for you.
Do you need one of the following:
- Real-world, practical applications to be able to understand the various theories and course material giving to you
- Simplistic yet intriguing examples of the mathematical theories and formulas
- A clear understanding of how facts and formulas work
- Better demonstrations and flow charts to help you understand
Identify what it is that you need and then proceed to the next step.
Talk to Your Instructor
After you figure out exactly what you need to help you better learn the course material, you need to speak to your instructor. Look, instructors at the collegiate level are fully aware that students learn at different paces and through different styles. You'll rarely find a professor who isn't helpful and open – but only if you approach them first.
Speak to your instructor about possibly approaching the topic a different way. Maybe they will adjust their teaching methods so that you can pick up the material. Maybe they will suggest various studying methods that you can implement. They might simply suggest a tutor. Any way you go here, it's all about you taking the first step and speaking to them.
However, proceed with caution here. Take care that you're not coming across as insulting. Or worse: don't approach it like you’re trying to get the instructor to actually help out or to do your work. This will result in bad things.
Prepare for your conversation by bringing in the flow charts, diagrams and other materials to show your teacher exactly what you’re not getting and let them know how you can better understand.
Course Text and References
A lot of the texts you'll have in engineering tend to veer into the theoretical materials more than the factual. Because of this, some students skip over this and only look for the working examples they can implement, ignoring the rest. This is a bad move; you need to read every bit of the course material. If you don't understand it, it may become clear after you read everything that's offered.
If you can't find the realistic examples you need in your texts, and the instructor isn't delivering the information to you in a way you can understand it, then it's a good idea to look at outside influence to see if you can get a handle on the material. There are different methods employed for most things in engineering, and you'll be able to find alternate examples if you look.
Working in Groups
Study groups and teams are formed for a reason: they work. When a person works alone, not only can the material seem infinitely harder, but there's also much more likelihood of failure. Even in the professional world-or, more accurately, especially in the professional world—the team concept is a winning formula.
Even if you're not assigned to a group for a project, joining up with a study group can pay off big time for your engineering material. Two minds are better than one and having five or six is definitely a smart move here.
Collaborative learning works and you should always:
- Attempt to work toward solutions in groups of at least three or four, entertaining a variety of methods and reaching the best result
- Attempt to find solutions on your own in the group before you compare materials to find the best formula
- Ensure that everyone in the group understands the solution and didn’t just hitch a ride in the group for the end result
They're Called "Experts" for a Reason
If you’re having trouble that your instructor, tutor or even your study group can't help you with, then you can always try to speak to practicing engineers for advice. You'll always have experts in every field available to you. But like with the instructor, they have no idea you’re having difficulties, so you must go to them and explain.
You should be fortunate enough to find willing help, seeing as most engineering students have been through this at one time or another. The most important factor here is to never take their generosity for granted.
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