How to Excel in Engineering at University

1. How to Excel in Engineering at University Dr. Chris Macnab B.Eng. (Engineering Physics) Royal Military College of Canada Ph.D. (Aerospace Engineering) University of Toronto Chris Macnab is with the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineeering, University of Calgary, Alberta, Canada

2. Legal rights you didn't have in high school: Teenagers: the oppressed minority

3. the right to drink

4. the right to work wherever you want

5. the right to live wherever you want

6. full access to the justice system

7. the right to vote

8. Rules your parents give you: • you can't stay out all night • you have to let them know where you are • you have to let them know when you are going to be home • you can't have your partner stay overnight

9. you have to clean your room • you have to go to school • you can't live on your own

10. Rules in high school: • you have to go to school • you can't skip classes • you can’t leave in the middle of class

11. you have to raise your hand to talk • you have to ask to go to the bathroom

12. you have to do your homework

13. you can't eat in class

14. When you graduate from high school : NO MORE RULES!

15. Why we may not feel free after we graduate

16. After graduating we don't have all these rules anymore. We have many rights. But we have been so used to not having these rights that we have trouble asserting them, or even realizing we have them.

17. How we think we should act in University:

18. we should do all of our assignments • we should go to all our classes • we should write down everything in class • we should learn in class • we should read all our assigned readings • we should read our textbooks • we should study from our notes and textbooks • we should work hard • we should do the same things as other students

19. How we think we should be in University

20. we should understand everything • we should know everything • we shouldn't make mistakes • we should get good marks • we should care about our classes • we should do the same things as other students • we should be hard workers

21. What’s wrong with that?

22. These “shoulds” make us follow a set of imaginary rules. Other people will be quite happy when we follow them. But they prevent us from excelling in university. University rewards learning. None of these “shoulds” help us learn, so following them only leads to frustration, stress, and depression.

23. Getting rid of shoulds. Replace: I should _______________ With: If I want to learn, then I must ________ Or: If I want to ______, then I must ______

24. If we don’t should on ourselves • We can prioritize our workloads and utilize time management skills • We can develop strategies for: • note taking • doing assignments • writing tests • We can make decisions for ourselves and actinstead of reacting to what professors give us

25. How to learn, excel, and enjoy yourself at university:

26. If we want to get the most out of university, we must assert our rights!

27. Our universal human rights! The following assertive rights found in: “When I say no, I feel guilty” by Manuel J. Smith (Bantam Books, New York, 1975)

28. we have the right to make mistakes • we have the right to not understand something • we have the right to be wrong • we have the right to be illogical

29. we have the right not to care

30. we have the right not to please others • we have the right to set our own goals • we have the right to decide what will best accomplish our goals • we have the right to decide what is best for ourselves

31. We can decide how we learn the best and our own capabilities. We have the right to decide for ourselves: • what program/classes we will take • how much of our assignments we will do • when we will go to class • what notes we will take • what we will study • when we will study • what marks we will be satisfied with

32. The more we think about what will be best for ourselves, the better off we will be. • The more we do what we have always done, or what we think we should do, the more miserable we will be.

33. How we think professors should act:

34. We get used to what teachers in high school do. We like what some professors do. We then feel all professors should act a certain way. We can get very frustrated and stressed out when they don't act like we expect.

35. How we think professors should be : • they should explain all the material • they should give lots of examples • they should follow the textbook • they shouldn't follow the textbook • they should be hard workers • they should return assignments and tests quickly • they should mark our tests leniently • they shouldn't make mistakes

36. How would your teachers be different in high school if their careers depended only on evaluations done by students?

37. Common pitfalls for students who should on themselves: • approaching classes with fear • spending way too much time on some assignments • running out of time to do other assignments • trying to get on the prof's good side • trying to do everything in a course

38. taking it easy when a test is easy • not working on assignments independently or copying • getting other people to do the work in the labs • doing assignments for the marks and not for the learning • trying to be perfect • Asking “why can’t everyone get an A?”

39. stressing out when a test is difficult • fearing the prof • fearing hard courses • worrying about marks instead of learning • trying to understand everything immediately • never writing down anything that may be wrong

40. Cheating is of no benefit to you so don't do it. You will simply be wasting the many thousands of dollars you spent to go to university. Guess what? For the next 45 years of your career no employer will ever ask you what marks you got in university!

41. How to enjoy your university career

42. Happy want to learn work and play alert enjoy the material Stressed worried about marks work all the time tired hate the material There are two kinds of students

43. The dummies guide to enjoying yourself at university:

44. read sections of the text before you are taught them review the previous lecture's notes before your lecture contact the prof if you don't understand something realize your marks in a course are always relative to other students never crack the text leave your notes at home get the prof to show you how to do a question go see the prof to get a hint on what will be on the test relax in an easy course and work hard in a difficult course Do’s and Don’ts

45. Do’s and Don’ts • take your time understanding things • study for tests by doing old tests and questions you haven't done and old assignments (practice) • try to understand everything immediately • study for tests by reading and memorizing

46. Do’s and Don’ts • set aside a certain number of hours to attempt an assignment • schedule your own time for optimum learning • try to get every assignment question even if it kills you • go to every single lecture even if it kills you

47. Do’s and Don’ts • Refuse to relearn your high-school math • Hire a math tutor

48. Do’s and Don’ts • keep your notes • keep core texts • throw out your notes • sell all your texts

49. Do’s and Don’ts • read books and magazines about science, engineering, and/or computers • joint technical clubs or have a technical hobby • never read outside your courses

50. Advanced guide to enjoying yourself: