Any Aerospace / Mechanical Engineers who can answer my question?

Question

Hi all, Im currently in my second year of college and im planning to persue Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering. Aerospace is something I love very much, being a flight instructor I decided to further my career and have more career options. My question is about the math involved. Do I really need to be a math genious in order to persue this field of engineering? Reason I ask is because im already in my 3rd math class since Jan 2007, just started calculus, yes, the dreaded mini terms and they throw it at us so fast. Sometimes I really feel as if I understand the math very well and other times I study for hours and never really get a hold on what it is that im trying to learn. How will this affect me? I really want to understand the math better but sometimes I just dont get it and sometimes I do. I'll stop at nothing to persue my career even if I have to repeat a math class somewhere down the road. Any suggestion or advice for me as I persue my dreams and career?

Answer 1

my dad is one and has been one for 30 yrs... he is horrible at math and never used much besides simple math

Answer 2

That depends how good an aerospace engineer you want to be.
Just a few months ago, I was showing out a new way of evaluating field performance for commercial airplane to colleagues, and one said that we could not follow my math, because he forgot it all, having graduated 15 years ago.
(I graduated over 26 years ago)
Yet, he is group leader.
And perhaps this new method will make me rich, who knows.
But I do qualify as being a math genius, so I may be partial.
So, my advice is for the calculus side, since you fear it so much. Do not fear math; it is a tool. And if you do not understand something, try to explain it to yourself -- like if you were your own student -- and develop an intuitive sense for what is going on. That might help you get through with it.

And after thinking about it some more, here is something for you to ponder:
Would you be willing to be a pilot or a passenger aboard an airplane designed by people who do not really know their maths? And how well do they have to know their math for you to trust their design?
Answer this, and you will know your way.

Answer 3

yea well if ur dad is horrible at math and has a job as an aerospace engineer, i dunno how he got his job unless some strings were pulled.
You know when your making designs and things, like back in the day, you would have to do calculations for a lot of things. This can include up to calculus for certain degrees of what you are designing or trying to figure out.
However nowadays, it seems as if most of the designs are done by computer aid - hence they will do the calculations after you put in your values.
To me, i was persueing that field, and my thoughts were "it cant hurt to know math" - but then again my math iq was pretty high.

Answer 4

Well from experience, my son just finished his four years in Aeronautical Engineering.
He has gotten many job offers, however every time he has applied they have given him a test to fill out so that he actually knew what he was talking about.
He graduated with Honor's and his math skills are very high.
Now speaking as a regular person who flies aircraft I WOULD NOT want a person who just gets by designing, testing or even repairing any aircraft. Your life depends on those people when you fly.
So the answer to your question is to study and study again.
My son studied hard throughout his school years, yes he was called the geek, but now with the offers he has, he is being picky about his field.
He has exceptional skills and he deserves the best.
The math will come but you have to persevere and don't settle.

Answer 5

You dont need to be a genius, a working knowledge would be essential. This is because engineering outputs almost always need measurements and math helps you predict or calculate those quantities. For example, you will need some real math to calculate the field strength at point x,y,z from your transmitter. Doing this by field measurement using sensors would be prohibitive in terms of time and money.

So math is required and it wouldnt hurt to memorize a few of those equations and all. Besides, math is the most logical of all subjects (except when it comes to statistics and probability), and its quite easy to learn once you get familiar with the underlying basics.

Finally to the question if you need it to survive in this career, it depends on your work function. You can be a maintenance engineer, then maybe you will never use it. R&D, brace yourself for some big bad calculus!

Answer 6

DOnt worry about the math - get the tutoring you need - it is clear that you have the perseverance - some people are gifted with certain talents - others have to work like hell - I know a personal injury lawyer that said when he talks to clients - he always appears like he knows what the hell they are talking about - but when he gets to his office - he breaks into a cold sweat & cracks open the books - the point is - appearances are everything - math is not as easy "for everybody " but yourself as you might imagine. Because "I know alot about everything" - I will give you a piece of advice - if you are considering aerospace engineering / mechanical engineering - concentrate your studies on STRESS-structural engineering - and take mechanics of composite materials. The University of Washington has a track of course work designed by Boeing to build an army of engineers who are working on the 787 - it is very good. Stress / structural engineering will allow you to move anywhere in the aerospace world .

Answer 7

I have a degree in Mechanical Engineering, and few years back i was like you who wanted to pursue Flying for career.Am a instructor now. Unless you want to be in Design and Engineering just basic math and algebra would do, but its still a good idea to learn math as much as possible. And i would say concentrate on Fluid Mechanics, Mechanics of Solids than other subjects cos you can answer questions of yer students better...just a suggestion

Answer 8

My degrees are in electrical engineering (electronics) and the math gets interesting there, too. We had a book called "The Green Brain" that we referenced constantly when designing. Filled with all the formulas you could use for any situation. I'm sure your chosen profession has the same thing. Besides, it starts to come naturally after a while. No sweat. I'd say go for it, and the very best of luck.

Answer 9

I am a mechanical engineer graduating the year of - yes 1968. try to get as much math as you can but try not to let it hold you back. have a good attitude - go to your profs and get some tutoring if you want/need it. i think if you show you are sincerely trying they will give you a passing grade. i think i got through a calculus course and differential equations on those merits. lots of engineering jobs require little or no high math. i have had the good fortune to work for a couple of automotive companies. i have been in the design rooms, the test labs, the test tracks and the factories. i wouldn't trade the ride for anything else.

Answer 10

The first and the most important question is, what do attract you to your career choice?

If you can answer this question, then try to find the bottomline of this and connection to the math.

For example: I am interested very much with the aeroplane and I want to design the aeroplane. What is required then to design aeroplane? the design knowledge and the capability to operate design software. What is the design knowledge?
one of that is, the knowledge to calculate the trade-off between weight and strength. Math is needed in order to calculate load distribution (especially calculus in actual design case)

Answer 11

Well, the majority of the number crunching is done with computers now, but when I was designing for an aerospace company we did a lot of it without that help.

It is important to understand the theory behind what the computer is doing and often, with that understanding, you can predict results and verify it with the computers.

Keep plugging away at it !