I'm a mechanical engineering student going into 3rd year and in my university I am able to take one class per semester from anywhere in the college. Just as long as it isn't a first year class and it fits in my schedule.
Unfortunately, one of the electives I really wanted to take doesn't fit my schedule, but with so much choice I'm finding it hard to come up with an alternative.
Right now just so I was able to finish registration I signed up for third year Signals and Systems under the school of Electronic Engineering. By the description though, it sounds like it could be complex circuit analysis which I really don't want to get into.
I was also looking at 2nd year Critical Theory with the school of English. However, although it looks really interesting, I don't know how much value it would add to my degree.
Another one I found were 3rd year Stellar Astrophysics, however having only taken one class which rolled quantum mechanics/electromagnetism/optics into one, I don't know whether I'm well versed enough in the field to really do well in it.
So, anyone who went through university, what were some of your favorite/most useful classes? With so much range there has to be some non-engineering classes that will still translate useful skills over.
I would highly recommend taking classes in disciplines that you are unlikely to learn about in your desired field of study of mechanical engineering. Classes that I recall now that I'm 16 years removed: Intro to Anthropology Intro to photojournalism Micro/Macro Economics Poetry Race and Minorities Introduction to Drama Fundamentals of Speech These are all courses that have stuck with me over the years. Good luck! Enjoy the journey.
I came here to plug liberal studies classes like these. One of my favorite classes from my undergrad was an American History Gen. Ed. called "Social Forces That Shaped America". We delved into all kinds of issues and having the backdrop of American history to work off of helped structure the class in a way that got me thinking very hard about everything I had previously learned.
One of the reasons why I think it is important to get a taste of completely other fields of study is that you are introduced to completely different ways to think. What I've noticed with the friends from high school that I still regularly talk to is that the way of thinking taught in their field of study permeates into their regular thinking. 'Looking over the fence' helped me better understand how I think and how they think.
In my experience, the most innovative, groundbreaking research tends to come from people with background in multiple fields. Taking insights from one discipline and bringing them into another is so important.One of the reasons why I think it is important to get a taste of completely other fields of study is that you are introduced to completely different ways to think.
Instead of a specific class, I'm going to recommend a type of class: the small, reading-focused seminar. Here are some benefits I can think of just off the top of my head: 1. The small class size allows much much more interaction between students and between students and the professor. I (and many others) learn much better in a discussion setting rather than a lecture setting. Plus, there's nowhere to hide: you can't just not show up to class without anyone noticing, you can't not participate without anyone noticing, etc. This increased accountability is a good thing. 2. Doing deep reading in one particular area is hugely beneficial for learning more generally. By getting super-involved in one field, you learn that every different field of study has so many intricacies and you get a deeper appreciation for that. You also learn how to deeply research a topic, which is obviously beneficial for life. 3. Most of these reading seminars end in a long research paper. I don't know about you, but most of my long research papers previous to this were for freshman writing classes where they just spew some dumb formulaic rules at you, and I'm pretty sure if anything I came out of those being a worse writer. Not so in the small seminar. Since the focus is on the content rather than the writing style itself, you learn a lot about argumentation in that particular field, how to critically think about a specific topic, and by doing so your writing ends up being better anyway. Pick some topic you're interested in, say history for example, and see if there are any upper-division reading seminars you can take; my best experience has been those where enrollment is capped at around 15. Many of these classes will probably have prereqs you haven't taken, but you might be able to find something. Plus you can always ask if you can have the prereqs waved.
Thanks for the input! This sounds like a great idea, most of my classes have around 100 people in them, so I do occasionally fall into the trap of "I'm not getting up at 9AM, I won't be missed anyway". Also, I do feel my writing standards drop a little during college, when all I'm doing is writing lab reports and maths-ing. A research paper could do me some good. I'll keep an eye out for some smaller, reading/writing/discussion-based classes.
Wehey!! Congrats on getting into university! My advice to first years is to always to join clubs and societies, even if you're only curious about them. It's always a great way to meet new people, have some relaxation time and find things you never thought you'd be interested in! Also, it's always useful to meet lots of new people. You never know when a connection will come in useful.
Thank you! I'm very excited to join the uni: it's the first thing I cared about and worked for - the first adult thing, you might say. I'll certainly give a thought to joining societies. Who knows what I might find? What's your advice on how to meet lots of new people? I'll spend most of the university time with my classmates, and a few still I can meet in those societies or through other activites. Is there any other venue I don't know about?
Hmm... Sort of a tricky one, my circle of friends I've sort of established through societies; or I happened to know them from before Uni. If you ever keep an eye on Facebook, then people often share events that are going to be happening. Also, most of the people I know from different courses have a class Facebook page or Whatsapp group or something, so social networks are a great way to stay in the loop, even if you're usually not a big user. I suppose if you manage to get over the first major hurdle, which is trying not to be shy when you're talking to new people, then the rest of it will flow naturally. Especially in the first few weeks, don't be too scared to strike up conversation with new people! If anyone is reading this in chatter, feel free to pipe in with some ideas!
Thanks! I was unexpectedly off the grid for a few days, so I'm just catching up on all the responses now. When you explain it like that, signals and systems doesn't sound that bad. The course description on the university's page made me hold a crucifix up to the computer screen. I'll chat to some of the 4th years who took it and see how they found it. If the course goes into all the applications and analogies you went into then it's definitely worth taking.
Echoing your comment. It took me until senior year of college to discover that control theory was a thing, and only then when I was conversing with a postdoc on their research. It's sort of an EE / MechE topic, but definitely a worthwhile learn if OP wasn't already planning on it. Separately, RicePaddy, I had friends who enjoyed taking a mushroom biology class. It can be interesting, depending on your personality, and adds a fun dimension to going on hikes or even through cities that get a bit of rain.
Doing well in things is highly overrated and you should not avoid interesting things because you may not do well in them. When I took vector field geometry it was an elective. I got a B, and it was easily the most interesting math class I've ever taken. As in, it changed the entirety of what I understand math to be.Another one I found were 3rd year Stellar Astrophysics, however having only taken one class which rolled quantum mechanics/electromagnetism/optics into one, I don't know whether I'm well versed enough in the field to really do well in it.
I would consider a history class. I took several over the course of my undergrad career, and my favorite by far had to be Business and Economic History. We spent a long time discussing the economic aspects of WWII, both leading up to the war and during. Specifically, the impact of the Metro Detroit area on the war effort. For example, the Willow Run assembly plant which churned out one B-24 bomber every 59 minutes, producing more than 8000 planes over it's three years of operation.
100 Level history classes are interesting and super easy As an engineer, I really liked the probability class I had to take. That was in part because the professor was awesome though, so your milage may vary. How's your computer programming? I know a lot of MechE's try to get by without really learning it, but it's only an advantage. Also, once you get into industry, you might pivot into a role that needs programming, and having some further background will be beneficial. I have a MechE friend that happened to. I also took a Science Fiction Literature class I enjoyed a lot. A lot of it turned out to be Western History as framed by the science fiction authors of the era, which was very interesting.
Woah, go you with mechanical engineering, electromagnetism stuff. I started out in the harder sciences. The program I'm in now, once I'm done with statistics, Will be pretty smooth sailing.
Classes for my major are things like volunteer, and fly fisherie management.
The one thing I really wish I had taken a class for was computer science/coding. It's a very valuable skill that has applications everywhere. Coding "hobbyists" I know have incorporated it into their careers with great returns, and there's lots of hobby things I would love to do which require some foundation in coding.
As an Electrical Engineer, I did not enjoy signals and systems. I took two philosophy classes as electives. They were both interesting and a breeze. I enjoyed them both.
Ah. I suspected it'd be dodgy enough; I'm not all that confident in circuit analysis and whatnot. After asking a few people I'm beginning to lean towards something in the Arts and Humanities. It seems that people really did enjoy them, and it'd make a pleasant change from maths-ing. I was looking through the Philosophy classes a little earlier and they looked really good. "Formal and Informal Logic" fit my timetable perfectly so I may give that one a whirl.