Foundation Engineering courses.
Hi guys,
I'm in year 12, so hopefully after this (rough) exam period I'll be deciding what I want to do at uni. One of degrees I'm really considering is Engineering. I love the idea of turning raw materials into something beneficial and productive, and if not for one major concern, engineering would definitely be my first and only choice. However, I'm terrified of the maths, and have always struggled with Maths in general (I got a B at GCSE after hard work!). At times though, I must say that I do find the problem solving in maths enjoyable, I decided not to pick though at A Level because I thought that it was unrealistic of me to pick something I might fail at. But now, I'm sort of reverting back to the idea, and may decide to do engineering via the foundation route. But I've got a few question that I would really appreciate anyone answering.
If anyone here is a foundation engineering student or has been, have you found the transition between your non-maths course hard? Or have you always just found maths easy?
Once understanding the maths, is everything easy sailing from there onwards?
Are foundation degrees in engineering looked down upon by employers?
I'm most interested in Aeronautical engineering at the moment, so just wanted to know what are the career prospects like for it and how much maths is in it compared to the other engineering courses?
Thanks a bunch. ;D
I'm in year 12, so hopefully after this (rough) exam period I'll be deciding what I want to do at uni. One of degrees I'm really considering is Engineering. I love the idea of turning raw materials into something beneficial and productive, and if not for one major concern, engineering would definitely be my first and only choice. However, I'm terrified of the maths, and have always struggled with Maths in general (I got a B at GCSE after hard work!). At times though, I must say that I do find the problem solving in maths enjoyable, I decided not to pick though at A Level because I thought that it was unrealistic of me to pick something I might fail at. But now, I'm sort of reverting back to the idea, and may decide to do engineering via the foundation route. But I've got a few question that I would really appreciate anyone answering.
If anyone here is a foundation engineering student or has been, have you found the transition between your non-maths course hard? Or have you always just found maths easy?
Once understanding the maths, is everything easy sailing from there onwards?
Are foundation degrees in engineering looked down upon by employers?
I'm most interested in Aeronautical engineering at the moment, so just wanted to know what are the career prospects like for it and how much maths is in it compared to the other engineering courses?
Thanks a bunch. ;D
.............Anyone? 
Original post by HeavyTeddy
Hi guys,
I'm in year 12, so hopefully after this (rough) exam period I'll be deciding what I want to do at uni. One of degrees I'm really considering is Engineering. I love the idea of turning raw materials into something beneficial and productive, and if not for one major concern, engineering would definitely be my first and only choice. However, I'm terrified of the maths, and have always struggled with Maths in general (I got a B at GCSE after hard work!). At times though, I must say that I do find the problem solving in maths enjoyable, I decided not to pick though at A Level because I thought that it was unrealistic of me to pick something I might fail at. But now, I'm sort of reverting back to the idea, and may decide to do engineering via the foundation route. But I've got a few question that I would really appreciate anyone answering.
If anyone here is a foundation engineering student or has been, have you found the transition between your non-maths course hard? Or have you always just found maths easy?
Once understanding the maths, is everything easy sailing from there onwards?
Are foundation degrees in engineering looked down upon by employers?
I'm most interested in Aeronautical engineering at the moment, so just wanted to know what are the career prospects like for it and how much maths is in it compared to the other engineering courses?
Thanks a bunch. ;D
I'm in year 12, so hopefully after this (rough) exam period I'll be deciding what I want to do at uni. One of degrees I'm really considering is Engineering. I love the idea of turning raw materials into something beneficial and productive, and if not for one major concern, engineering would definitely be my first and only choice. However, I'm terrified of the maths, and have always struggled with Maths in general (I got a B at GCSE after hard work!). At times though, I must say that I do find the problem solving in maths enjoyable, I decided not to pick though at A Level because I thought that it was unrealistic of me to pick something I might fail at. But now, I'm sort of reverting back to the idea, and may decide to do engineering via the foundation route. But I've got a few question that I would really appreciate anyone answering.
If anyone here is a foundation engineering student or has been, have you found the transition between your non-maths course hard? Or have you always just found maths easy?
Once understanding the maths, is everything easy sailing from there onwards?
Are foundation degrees in engineering looked down upon by employers?
I'm most interested in Aeronautical engineering at the moment, so just wanted to know what are the career prospects like for it and how much maths is in it compared to the other engineering courses?
Thanks a bunch. ;D
hiya i study civil engineering i was kind of in the same position as your in but i did maths at A- level i was lucky to get into the 3 year course through clearing. many mates of mine have done the foundation year and found that maths is alright and some of them are really clever even smarter than the people who took A-level maths- so im guessing you'll be alright.
(caution: you need to pay attention in maths lectures as i forgot most of my maths in the summer holidays). and nah they dont look down on people who done foundation degrees and then went on to BEng... as long as you get good degree classification and they know you have the same if not put a lot of work to get your degree. lastly its hard to compare the levels of maths involved in different engineering courses cos it mainly the same work load and difficulty just different math modules. prospects seem good for aero- you might also want to look at mech eng.(edited 11 years ago)
I was on an engineering foundation year 3 years ago, having not studied maths, physics etc for 8 years! Granted, at GCSE level I got A* in both, and then worked a technical job for 5 years, however, I was rusty to say the least! And, I didn't have those subjects at A level.
Our foundation maths teacher was AMAZING! We started on week one with decimal places would you believe, and ended on integration and various other A-level stuff. Physics/mechanics was similar. With a foundation year, they give you exactly what you need for the degree, and so can even put you at an advantage to those who come in with A levels when you eventually progress to your first year of the actual degree. What I mean by this is, you don't just do maths and physics topics (at least we didn't). We did a "skills" module as well, containing report writing, presentations, use of Excel (which is a great modelling tool). In fact, myself and my mate are arguably the best students on my course.....both of us ex-foundation guys!
In terms of the level of maths involved, as whizz-kid said, engineering principles span across all disciplines, hence the maths is also pretty similar. At my uni, the mechs, motorsport, and I believe aero guys all sat the same maths modules.
With regards to employers views on a foundation year.......they will not care! You will need to have good marks at Masters level if you are serious about progressing in the engineering field. At this point, nobody will give a damn what happened prior to university study! My A level grades are wack........A/D/D in random subjects. Why? Because I was a stupid 16 year old when I chose them! At 27, I can assure you I am nothing like that person now, and employers will know this. Just plough all your effort into your higher education study and you'll be fine!
Ace
Our foundation maths teacher was AMAZING! We started on week one with decimal places would you believe, and ended on integration and various other A-level stuff. Physics/mechanics was similar. With a foundation year, they give you exactly what you need for the degree, and so can even put you at an advantage to those who come in with A levels when you eventually progress to your first year of the actual degree. What I mean by this is, you don't just do maths and physics topics (at least we didn't). We did a "skills" module as well, containing report writing, presentations, use of Excel (which is a great modelling tool). In fact, myself and my mate are arguably the best students on my course.....both of us ex-foundation guys!
In terms of the level of maths involved, as whizz-kid said, engineering principles span across all disciplines, hence the maths is also pretty similar. At my uni, the mechs, motorsport, and I believe aero guys all sat the same maths modules.
With regards to employers views on a foundation year.......they will not care! You will need to have good marks at Masters level if you are serious about progressing in the engineering field. At this point, nobody will give a damn what happened prior to university study! My A level grades are wack........A/D/D in random subjects. Why? Because I was a stupid 16 year old when I chose them! At 27, I can assure you I am nothing like that person now, and employers will know this. Just plough all your effort into your higher education study and you'll be fine!
Ace
If you worked hard for GCSE Maths to only get a B, you will probably struggle greatly with engineering maths, but that's not to say the foundation year won't prepare you if you work hard.
At least with a B in GCSE Maths, you're capable of handling it if you put in the effort.
The real question is, do you enjoy maths? I'm about to graduate with an engineering degree and I must say don't even contemplate engineering if you dislike maths. Engineering is really a fancy name for applied maths. Though the maths isn't as theoretically difficult as in a maths or physics degree, it's still difficult for most students.
At least with a B in GCSE Maths, you're capable of handling it if you put in the effort.
The real question is, do you enjoy maths? I'm about to graduate with an engineering degree and I must say don't even contemplate engineering if you dislike maths. Engineering is really a fancy name for applied maths. Though the maths isn't as theoretically difficult as in a maths or physics degree, it's still difficult for most students.
Original post by Virtus May
If you worked hard for GCSE Maths to only get a B, you will probably struggle greatly with engineering maths, but that's not to say the foundation year won't prepare you if you work hard.
At least with a B in GCSE Maths, you're capable of handling it if you put in the effort.
The real question is, do you enjoy maths? I'm about to graduate with an engineering degree and I must say don't even contemplate engineering if you dislike maths. Engineering is really a fancy name for applied maths. Though the maths isn't as theoretically difficult as in a maths or physics degree, it's still difficult for most students.
At least with a B in GCSE Maths, you're capable of handling it if you put in the effort.
The real question is, do you enjoy maths? I'm about to graduate with an engineering degree and I must say don't even contemplate engineering if you dislike maths. Engineering is really a fancy name for applied maths. Though the maths isn't as theoretically difficult as in a maths or physics degree, it's still difficult for most students.
Yeah I did past papers and started revising about a month before the exam to get a B. Though I was only two marks from an A. To be honest, I enjoyed some parts of the maths like the trigonometry and hated others e.g. vectors. But I found the past papers quite fun to just get through compared to other subjects.
Also, working as an engineer would you be using quite a deal of maths or is the maths just used for understanding the concepts?
ace-card, what where the other students on the foundation year like? A variety of ages and backgrounds?
I've had an offer from Southampton for their Foundation Year leading to MEng in whatever I choose, after going back to college only last September. Their offer is BBB in my AS exams and I'm also wondering whether that will adequately prepare me for the workload vs staying to do my A2s?
I've had an offer from Southampton for their Foundation Year leading to MEng in whatever I choose, after going back to college only last September. Their offer is BBB in my AS exams and I'm also wondering whether that will adequately prepare me for the workload vs staying to do my A2s?
Original post by mikeorchard
ace-card, what where the other students on the foundation year like? A variety of ages and backgrounds?
I've had an offer from Southampton for their Foundation Year leading to MEng in whatever I choose, after going back to college only last September. Their offer is BBB in my AS exams and I'm also wondering whether that will adequately prepare me for the workload vs staying to do my A2s?
I've had an offer from Southampton for their Foundation Year leading to MEng in whatever I choose, after going back to college only last September. Their offer is BBB in my AS exams and I'm also wondering whether that will adequately prepare me for the workload vs staying to do my A2s?
So, where are you studying at the moment? Did you accept the offer for Foundation Year (FY) from Southampton? Or are you going to accept it later?
I am asking because I consider to go on FY there after completing my Access To Engineering course therefore I'd like to know how the FY looks like.
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