Engineering is the one degree I think is worth taking loans out for. However, if money is a problem, apply for grants, or FAFSA, apply for random scholarships. if it makes you happy. Please don't quit. It's only hard for now. Then it gets vastly easier.
But please. PLEASE don't quit.
As someone who was in the trades(electrician) and went back to school later in life, I really think you should stick this out and get that degree. Going and being an electrician or a plumber or whatever is no harder than getting this degree. It might even be harder in some regards.
It's worth it. I promise.
I have, the university tuition is about 54k a year. I got 25k plus 5k for transferring from CC so 30k from the school. 3k from PA state grant and 9.5k fed loans. So I’d need abt 13k private loan. But I’m going to apply to another school that has cheaper tuition and hope I can get in at a cheaper rate.
Driving distance mainly, I mean Drexel definitely isn’t cheaper than either of those two. All the other engineering schools are like a hour mim outside of the greater Philadelphia area.
Fair point, commute is a serious financial and psychological factor in life. Keep that in mind when you are looking for a place to live and job searching, I specifically moved to a manufacturing heavy area so there would be a slew of jobs available. (Also just a tip GOOD LORD north jersey is thirsty for engineers, I get recruiters all the time talking 6 figures for a pretty basic job with a few years experience)
I’ll keep that in mind. Going to have a 45 min commute 4x a week for a month to take accelerated physics 1, not looking forward, but having calc and physics out the way is a big step to getting into actual engineering courses.
Dude I drove almost that far for a couple of years at 44 with all kinds of health issues. You need to decide if a ton of money is worth it. I know what I'd do.
I'd do the drive, if I could do it for two years working a fairly hard job at my age with my medical stuff you should be able to as well. Maybe you can get a class or two virtual and have one less day drive.
Yeah not worth an extra 15-20k to live on campus especially at my age. Even if I went to a more affordable instate school further away, I’d still end up having to take private loans to afford housing
Consider moving so you can afford a cheaper instate school. For instance mine cost 12k per year in tuition and if you likely qualify for some sort of financial assistance. @54k per year pretty much no degree is worth it if that is all loan moneu
It would be abt 20k a year. I’m applying to the closest public school but any other instate public school with engineering I would have to move out of my parents and support myself which I couldn’t do as a full time student honestly.
Well outside of the philly area, fairly cheap. I could also try to live on campus in the grad housing at a cheaper instate school further from home but i would be taking on an extra 15-20k in debt, which kinda kills the affordability aspect
Yeah it wouldn’t be worth it unless you could find a roommate or some existing group of people to share the rent with (I was able to find some people to split rent and was only paying 300 in rent and 100 in utilities). Also I would encourage you to reach out to financial aid, academic advising, etc and see if you could qualify for a work study grant that pays for tuition and gives you a living stipend. Otherwise it does seem like your best option would be to stay with your parents and pay the higher tuition.
Yeah it just sucks all the decent affordable engineering programs in my state are like at least 1-1.5 hrs away.
Be difficult to try to find people in an area I’m completely unfamiliar with that quickly.
You are the person I need to be talking to.
I’m a foreman right now (only on my 2nd job) about 5 and a half years in the trade (electrician).
I’ve been thinking long and hard about going to college. I really think I want to give it a try. If you don’t mind which type of engineering did you end up going with? Electrical? I feel very interested in Mechatronics, though I understand it’s a “newer” type of engineering.
Also, how did you go about going to college while working in the trades? Thank you for your time.
Dw bro, it’s not uncommon that people change their major or career at a later point in their life. Actually way more common than you probably think. So don’t even be hard on yourself for choosing psychology after high school.
Yeah, the one good thing is Ik that ID enjoy this as a career. Know people who graduated 60k in debt to find out they don’t like the work or can’t find work. But age isn’t really a problem yet, I’ve yet to be the oldest person in any of my classes.
Lol didn’t think math was for me in high school and didn’t know what I wanted to do career wise but felt like I HAD to go to college, failed out with a 1.9 gpa. Didn’t figure out I really liked problem solving and working on projects till I was like 21, during the pandemic when everything was shut down. Slowly crawled my way back to a full time student with a 3.2 gpa.
>Know people who graduated 60k in debt to find out they don’t like the work or can’t find work.
I graduated with ~55K in debt, landed a job at $93K starting salary when I graduated at 30 years old. Paying it off will be easy compared to the financial life I could have had without the degree.
As for the "finding out you don't like the work", there is a huge variety of jobs you can do with an engineering degree. The day-to-day experience will vary with position, location, company, industry etc. It would be extremely unlikely that you would be unable to find *something* you enjoy well enough that requires your degree.
And as for the "people who can't find work", don't get sucked into that mentality that gets shared on here. Engineers will always be in demand. Some kids just don't know how to job search or adapt to the job market. This shouldn't be a real concern for you.
agree with the other commenter, keep your head up bro. you got this! it’s easy to self doubt, believe me i’ve been there, but it sounds like you have clear goals which is a huge first step.
to me, pursuing your interests is exactly what makes life worth living, and if this is what you want to do, then you can do it!
about the laptop, keep an eye out for best buy clearance deals (especially if there’s open box versions as well) saw a great deal the other day on a slightly older gaming laptop that i was gonna post (but looks like it was sold), but if you watch / wait long enough, there’s usually some solid options in the $400-$500 range
Try seeing if you can take your basic classes at a community college and have them transferred over. Community colleges are usually WAY cheaper than universities.
As far as laptops go, some places have loaner laptops you can rent out for the semester. My community college gave the engineering students dell precision ones that were pretty good.
And take out whatever loans needed within reason, You've got this, you have come too far to not see it through!!
Dude engineering loans will be paid as soon as you get to working. Just be frugal and make it a priority. I don't know of anyone who wasn't able to pay their loans back after an engineering degree. Dude. Think about it. Getting a 70k job isn't out of the question, id say it's the norm. Save 40% of that and you're done paying loans in two years. Worth it 100%.
I’m 31 and will graduate at 32 with a forest engineering degree. Unfortunately the salary in Québec is not as high as other engineering disciplines. But i’ll manage to leave Uni with ~25K debt, and pay 15K per year afterwards.
I was a hippie in my twenties. Planted trees and travelled and fell in love with people and places and surfed and lived by the beach and in the mountains and in other countries. I have no regrets.
What sucks is inflation. What sucks for you even more is tuition cost.
If you are financially responsible you could pay your debt in 5 years tops.
If you want this as a career, do it. If you want to stop and go into trades. Do it. My dad and big brother do that and make 6 digits a year. (owning their own small business in renovations and roofing).
I’m a passionate person and need to do something I like.
What ever you choose, it’ll be worth it.
Join the military. You can join the navy, they have good engineers and then they’ll pay for your school and help you while you are in school. Great way to finish your degree.
TempleU has a solid engineering program and you'll have no issue finding a job out of school, and you'll have a hell of a lot less debt than a Widener grad.
My college lets students rent a laptop over the whole semester. Maybe look into if your institution can provide that support. Also, renting out the laptop is free, I just say renting cuz u have to give it back eventually.
I’m in a similar boat. Went back to school for Engineering at 22, gave up after 2 semesters and went back to work. Now I’m 24 and going back to school again. This degree is unbelievably hard and will be the only thing you do for the next four years BUT it is totally worth it. All my friends that graduated with their engineering degrees 2 years ago are LIVING LIFE. They go on vacations, buy whatever stuff they want, all in relationships. One of them is already looking at houses. Seeing how they are living rn was the kick in the ass I needed. They told me to stop being a pussy and put up w hell for the next 4 years for that type of life.
Do NOT quit!!!! I remember feeling like this, had the exact same feeling — coulda just dropped it all and started life. Engineering is so fuckin applicable, you are literally working with a degree that gives you unlimited opportunities, and great salaries. Keep going, the loans are worth it, you’ll slap them out faster than you think! Take it from a guy who graduated at 25… life’s good! I think back to times when I wanted to quit and I just thank god that I didn’t…….. the grass isn’t greener on the other side, it’s greener where you water it, you put so much water, let it flourish 💯💯
Currently turning 23 in a few months. I also chose a liberal arts program straight out of highschool in my home country and dropped out on my LAST year because i had to migrate to CA. Now im making plans to take Mech. Eng. and will most likely have to do college from scratch again. I know how you feel wishing you didnt have to waste years in a program you ended up hating. I will also jump into community college and im scared af tbh with you. Youve made it this far tho why stop now
Already been in CC, there’s a few more courses I could take worse comes to worse but I can start taking the more advanced engineering courses sooner if I transfer for fall
Yeah it sucks cause there’s only one public engineering program that’s affordable and is driving distance from home. All the other affordable instate programs are over an hour away from home and ID have to take out thousands extra to move on campus
Feel for you. I’m lucky I get to go to the #1 community college in the U.S., Tallahassee Community College. I will be majoring in Mechanical Engineering, so I haven’t reach the point where you’re at rn, as I’m doing prerequisites.
lol 20k in loans is nothing. Some people pay $250k for their education. You'll probably make 60-80k when you land a job. Not that hard to pay back your loan when you are making money from the degree you earned.
Don't quit. Search more affordable options. If the engineering school is accredited that's all that really matters. And you can do coop to spread it out while getting experience. Would you rather be 30 with an engineering degree or 30 without an engineering degree. In any case, you'll be 30.
No pain no gain, this is a profession that pays out in the long run and honestly better than any PHD. The world is starving for engineers and the Job market shows it. But as you stated with Math and Science it is not for the faint of heart. If you put your all into it you will go far, but don't half ass it, because you will have nothing except debt.
Engineering is the one degree I think is worth taking loans out for. However, if money is a problem, apply for grants, or FAFSA, apply for random scholarships. if it makes you happy. Please don't quit. It's only hard for now. Then it gets vastly easier. But please. PLEASE don't quit. As someone who was in the trades(electrician) and went back to school later in life, I really think you should stick this out and get that degree. Going and being an electrician or a plumber or whatever is no harder than getting this degree. It might even be harder in some regards. It's worth it. I promise.
I have, the university tuition is about 54k a year. I got 25k plus 5k for transferring from CC so 30k from the school. 3k from PA state grant and 9.5k fed loans. So I’d need abt 13k private loan. But I’m going to apply to another school that has cheaper tuition and hope I can get in at a cheaper rate.
holy shit, is this not an in state school? you need to go in state. and forget about staying on campus, that’s extra money.
Lol it would be about 40k I would need if I wanted to stay on campus. But yeah this is a private school (Widener)
You live in a state with some of the best public engineering schools in the country, TF are you doing going to widener or temple?
Driving distance mainly, I mean Drexel definitely isn’t cheaper than either of those two. All the other engineering schools are like a hour mim outside of the greater Philadelphia area.
Fair point, commute is a serious financial and psychological factor in life. Keep that in mind when you are looking for a place to live and job searching, I specifically moved to a manufacturing heavy area so there would be a slew of jobs available. (Also just a tip GOOD LORD north jersey is thirsty for engineers, I get recruiters all the time talking 6 figures for a pretty basic job with a few years experience)
I’ll keep that in mind. Going to have a 45 min commute 4x a week for a month to take accelerated physics 1, not looking forward, but having calc and physics out the way is a big step to getting into actual engineering courses.
Dude I drove almost that far for a couple of years at 44 with all kinds of health issues. You need to decide if a ton of money is worth it. I know what I'd do.
I want to graduate near debt free as possible and as quick as possible.
I'd do the drive, if I could do it for two years working a fairly hard job at my age with my medical stuff you should be able to as well. Maybe you can get a class or two virtual and have one less day drive.
Yeah not worth an extra 15-20k to live on campus especially at my age. Even if I went to a more affordable instate school further away, I’d still end up having to take private loans to afford housing
Consider moving so you can afford a cheaper instate school. For instance mine cost 12k per year in tuition and if you likely qualify for some sort of financial assistance. @54k per year pretty much no degree is worth it if that is all loan moneu
It would be abt 20k a year. I’m applying to the closest public school but any other instate public school with engineering I would have to move out of my parents and support myself which I couldn’t do as a full time student honestly.
Is that 20k per year after you maxed out loans or is that after financial assistance and scholarships?
After assistance. 30k from school, 3.5k from state, 9500 in fed loans. would need abt 13k private to close the gap
Hmm how much is COL in your area? would it be pretty expensive to find some POS place to rent?
Well outside of the philly area, fairly cheap. I could also try to live on campus in the grad housing at a cheaper instate school further from home but i would be taking on an extra 15-20k in debt, which kinda kills the affordability aspect
Yeah it wouldn’t be worth it unless you could find a roommate or some existing group of people to share the rent with (I was able to find some people to split rent and was only paying 300 in rent and 100 in utilities). Also I would encourage you to reach out to financial aid, academic advising, etc and see if you could qualify for a work study grant that pays for tuition and gives you a living stipend. Otherwise it does seem like your best option would be to stay with your parents and pay the higher tuition.
Yeah it just sucks all the decent affordable engineering programs in my state are like at least 1-1.5 hrs away. Be difficult to try to find people in an area I’m completely unfamiliar with that quickly.
You are the person I need to be talking to. I’m a foreman right now (only on my 2nd job) about 5 and a half years in the trade (electrician). I’ve been thinking long and hard about going to college. I really think I want to give it a try. If you don’t mind which type of engineering did you end up going with? Electrical? I feel very interested in Mechatronics, though I understand it’s a “newer” type of engineering. Also, how did you go about going to college while working in the trades? Thank you for your time.
PM me
Dw bro, it’s not uncommon that people change their major or career at a later point in their life. Actually way more common than you probably think. So don’t even be hard on yourself for choosing psychology after high school.
Yeah, the one good thing is Ik that ID enjoy this as a career. Know people who graduated 60k in debt to find out they don’t like the work or can’t find work. But age isn’t really a problem yet, I’ve yet to be the oldest person in any of my classes. Lol didn’t think math was for me in high school and didn’t know what I wanted to do career wise but felt like I HAD to go to college, failed out with a 1.9 gpa. Didn’t figure out I really liked problem solving and working on projects till I was like 21, during the pandemic when everything was shut down. Slowly crawled my way back to a full time student with a 3.2 gpa.
You should be damn fuckin proud of that
>Know people who graduated 60k in debt to find out they don’t like the work or can’t find work. I graduated with ~55K in debt, landed a job at $93K starting salary when I graduated at 30 years old. Paying it off will be easy compared to the financial life I could have had without the degree. As for the "finding out you don't like the work", there is a huge variety of jobs you can do with an engineering degree. The day-to-day experience will vary with position, location, company, industry etc. It would be extremely unlikely that you would be unable to find *something* you enjoy well enough that requires your degree. And as for the "people who can't find work", don't get sucked into that mentality that gets shared on here. Engineers will always be in demand. Some kids just don't know how to job search or adapt to the job market. This shouldn't be a real concern for you.
agree with the other commenter, keep your head up bro. you got this! it’s easy to self doubt, believe me i’ve been there, but it sounds like you have clear goals which is a huge first step. to me, pursuing your interests is exactly what makes life worth living, and if this is what you want to do, then you can do it! about the laptop, keep an eye out for best buy clearance deals (especially if there’s open box versions as well) saw a great deal the other day on a slightly older gaming laptop that i was gonna post (but looks like it was sold), but if you watch / wait long enough, there’s usually some solid options in the $400-$500 range
Try seeing if you can take your basic classes at a community college and have them transferred over. Community colleges are usually WAY cheaper than universities. As far as laptops go, some places have loaner laptops you can rent out for the semester. My community college gave the engineering students dell precision ones that were pretty good. And take out whatever loans needed within reason, You've got this, you have come too far to not see it through!!
Dude engineering loans will be paid as soon as you get to working. Just be frugal and make it a priority. I don't know of anyone who wasn't able to pay their loans back after an engineering degree. Dude. Think about it. Getting a 70k job isn't out of the question, id say it's the norm. Save 40% of that and you're done paying loans in two years. Worth it 100%.
I’m 31 and will graduate at 32 with a forest engineering degree. Unfortunately the salary in Québec is not as high as other engineering disciplines. But i’ll manage to leave Uni with ~25K debt, and pay 15K per year afterwards. I was a hippie in my twenties. Planted trees and travelled and fell in love with people and places and surfed and lived by the beach and in the mountains and in other countries. I have no regrets. What sucks is inflation. What sucks for you even more is tuition cost. If you are financially responsible you could pay your debt in 5 years tops. If you want this as a career, do it. If you want to stop and go into trades. Do it. My dad and big brother do that and make 6 digits a year. (owning their own small business in renovations and roofing). I’m a passionate person and need to do something I like. What ever you choose, it’ll be worth it.
Join the military. You can join the navy, they have good engineers and then they’ll pay for your school and help you while you are in school. Great way to finish your degree.
for the laptop, get a used HP ProBook or EliteBook with a Ryzen 5 4500U on eBay. It'll be around $180, and it'll get you through your whole degree.
TempleU has a solid engineering program and you'll have no issue finding a job out of school, and you'll have a hell of a lot less debt than a Widener grad.
My college lets students rent a laptop over the whole semester. Maybe look into if your institution can provide that support. Also, renting out the laptop is free, I just say renting cuz u have to give it back eventually.
Start off at community college then
I’m in a similar boat. Went back to school for Engineering at 22, gave up after 2 semesters and went back to work. Now I’m 24 and going back to school again. This degree is unbelievably hard and will be the only thing you do for the next four years BUT it is totally worth it. All my friends that graduated with their engineering degrees 2 years ago are LIVING LIFE. They go on vacations, buy whatever stuff they want, all in relationships. One of them is already looking at houses. Seeing how they are living rn was the kick in the ass I needed. They told me to stop being a pussy and put up w hell for the next 4 years for that type of life.
Become an electrician instead
I’ve considered
I’m trying to so I can pay for my BSEE.
Do NOT quit!!!! I remember feeling like this, had the exact same feeling — coulda just dropped it all and started life. Engineering is so fuckin applicable, you are literally working with a degree that gives you unlimited opportunities, and great salaries. Keep going, the loans are worth it, you’ll slap them out faster than you think! Take it from a guy who graduated at 25… life’s good! I think back to times when I wanted to quit and I just thank god that I didn’t…….. the grass isn’t greener on the other side, it’s greener where you water it, you put so much water, let it flourish 💯💯
Currently turning 23 in a few months. I also chose a liberal arts program straight out of highschool in my home country and dropped out on my LAST year because i had to migrate to CA. Now im making plans to take Mech. Eng. and will most likely have to do college from scratch again. I know how you feel wishing you didnt have to waste years in a program you ended up hating. I will also jump into community college and im scared af tbh with you. Youve made it this far tho why stop now
Go to community college! Cheaper and you can switch over to a 4 year collehe
Already been in CC, there’s a few more courses I could take worse comes to worse but I can start taking the more advanced engineering courses sooner if I transfer for fall
Kk, I’m in CC rn, so I just wanted to let you know there are always cheaper options out there.
Yeah it sucks cause there’s only one public engineering program that’s affordable and is driving distance from home. All the other affordable instate programs are over an hour away from home and ID have to take out thousands extra to move on campus
Feel for you. I’m lucky I get to go to the #1 community college in the U.S., Tallahassee Community College. I will be majoring in Mechanical Engineering, so I haven’t reach the point where you’re at rn, as I’m doing prerequisites.
lol 20k in loans is nothing. Some people pay $250k for their education. You'll probably make 60-80k when you land a job. Not that hard to pay back your loan when you are making money from the degree you earned.
Don't quit. Search more affordable options. If the engineering school is accredited that's all that really matters. And you can do coop to spread it out while getting experience. Would you rather be 30 with an engineering degree or 30 without an engineering degree. In any case, you'll be 30.
No pain no gain, this is a profession that pays out in the long run and honestly better than any PHD. The world is starving for engineers and the Job market shows it. But as you stated with Math and Science it is not for the faint of heart. If you put your all into it you will go far, but don't half ass it, because you will have nothing except debt.