Success in Engineering ELEC 104 Fall 2010

Introduction Engineering is hard! But each of you can get your BSEE degree in four years The Citadel EE program has many very successful EE alumni that had poor HS grades and low SATs Other departments also have many ex-EE students with excellent math and science backgrounds that would have made outstanding engineers

Some Case Studies Let’s look at some example transcripts… Get into five groups Study the transcript Look at: SAT, Math performance, ECE performance, Overall GPA, Summer School What can you tell about this student?

How to succeed What is success? Success is the achievement of goals! Money? Happiness? Stuff? Feeling of Accomplishment? Success is the achievement of goals!

Set Goals Goals give you direction Write your goals down Ask: Why do I want to achieve this goal? How can I ensure success at meeting this goal?

Set Goals Divide goals into primary and secondary, long term (>1 year) and short term Make graduating in EE a primary long-term goal Don’t let hardship deter you from your goals – it WILL get tough!

Set Goals In your group, make a list of goals in each quadrant Primary Short Term Long Term Secondary

Work Hard Ability vs. Effort What is effort? Effort is 99% of the game There will always be someone with more ability than you What is effort? Using mental power to get something done Requires time and energy With good time management, it is totally in YOUR control!

Work Smart Recognize what is important to achieving your goal and what is not Becoming an expert at anything: You must study the theory and practice Examples? Chess Musical Instrument Sports

Think Positively Be aware of negative attitudes that can create failure Weak commitment to EE Becoming a “victim” Failure to seek help Procrastination Avoiding weaknesses Negative view of authority figures

Use the tools What tools are available to students? Other students Faculty Computer School Resources – LOTS! Textbook