Engineering in TCD

AnneElizabeth

bradyle wrote: »

hey i am just bout to go into to 4th year eng in tcd, and unlike most here i choose mech. i just wanted to say on the whole physics front dont worry bout it, i didnt do it for my leavin and despite my best intentions of studyin before gettin to college i was lazy and didnt and i still have managed to make it through three years. once you're the right way inclined its not that bad...so dont let that bias you against engineering...and if worse comes to worse i have physics for dummies ill lend it to ya

also just to say when i started in 1st year i thought i was gonna do civil, end of second when we had to choose you couldn't have gotten me to do that course if my life depended on it. things change and when it comes down to it eng give u more time to decide what to do with yourself...leavin cert is ridiculously early time to decide what to do with your life.

i dont know much bout cs so not going to make any judgments on that course,

except to say engineers are way cooler than computer scientists

also visual studios sucked...its what made me hate computer programming

Ha thanks, that was helpful. Did you have to do a lot of Physics study to catch up? And what other subjects did you do for LC?

(Oh and just out of interest is Mech Engineering any good? My brother's starting it in Galway this year and we reckon he'll drop out cause he doesn't appear to have a clue what it's about xD)

bradyle

glad i could help...well see i may have failed the phys chem course in first year...but that was chemistry not physics fault...i stupidly thought that since i did chemistry for my leavin i never had to go to those lectures...even tho i'd taken a year out and hadn't done chem in for ever...not my smartest moment

no i didnt do much not really like as long as you go to the physics lectures like they do pretty much explain what ya need...mostly f=ma and v=ir...those will be stamped in you're brain forever if u do eng...ill be well shamed if i got them wrong

i did bio chem hist germ and eng irish maths...not your typical engineerin subject choice but i wanted to be a pharmacist when i had to choose

mech engineerin?? honestly i love it...there was times in the 1st 2 years i wasn't sure if i'd made the right choice with engineering but im glad i stuck it out

and dont worry bout your brother not knowin what its about...im goin into 4th year and still only vaguely know. as i see its kinda like all engineerin its tryin to make or improve technology to make peoples lifes better.

mech is still i think the broadest engineerin discipline...most people hear mechanical and think im being a mechanic but in reality there is lots of mech that has nothin got to do with engines i for 1 wanna do bioengineerin which is makin stuff for the body like stints for the hearts hip replacements...

im babbling and not really answered your question...so yea mechs good...and he'll learn what its about hopefully:D

Groinshot

bradyle wrote: »

glad i could help...well see i may have failed the phys chem course in first year...but that was chemistry not physics fault...i stupidly thought that since i did chemistry for my leavin i never had to go to those lectures...even tho i'd taken a year out and hadn't done chem in for ever...not my smartest moment

They split physics and chemistry for us... too many people passing due to being good at one and horribly bad at the other. Chemistry is dialobolically difficult if you don't go to the lectures, and haven't done it before. physics is just plain tough because our lecturer didn't speak very good english at times..... then again if I#d done more work for it I would have done better.

awja

I kinda wish I hadn't gotten a laptop at all! I guarantee you won't pay attention in lectures when you could be playing the latest flash game sensation, or talking to other people in the same lecture on facebook. Better off not being able to procrastinate. There's a whole computer lab specifically for CS/Engineering, any projects you need to do you can do there, or even just waste time on facebook :P

awja

Everybody seems to like their own degree lots in this thread

Basically, there are three components of this kind of course, and courses form a kind of spectrum, going from engineering to pure maths. You just need to decide which you think you'd like best from:

1. Actually making physical things (building and designing computers and other electrical systems) - for this part, you'll be focusing on the physics and electronics side of things, and you probably want to do either electronic engineering or computer engineering. Lighter on the maths (It actually is engineers, I've seen your exam papers :P) Do you think you'd like building concrete things? Designing control systems for complex machines, maybe specialising into robotics? Then you might want this style of course.

2. Writing programs (making games, writing web software, operating systems, etc.) - for this, you probably want to do CS. Sorry to break it to die-hard engies, but you really can't just pick up data structures and algorithms when you know a tiny bit of programming. There's a reason the class is called "Data Structures and Algorithms" instead of "Java". Programming languages are the easy bit, by the time you finish CS you'll know at least six or seven (Java, C, C++, Prolog, Haskell, Eiffel, ARM assembly language, etc.). There's more abstract mathematics involved here, in addition to all the engineering calculus/algebra/linear systems(matrices etc.) you'll learn predicate logic, formal logic, how to write mathematical specifications and prove that programs follow them. You'll be building abstract systems made of code as opposed to physical systems made of electrical components.

3. Doing Maths - (Pure Theory) If you do Maths and take the CS options, you'll kind of have two degrees. This is the other extreme, you won't be doing anything physical or electronic at all. However, you'll still be very well versed in the hard bits of computer science (the area, not the course). Big tech companies like IBM and Goog love maths graduates for their mad analytical skillz. This is probably the most likely option to land you in a bags-o-moolah kind of job as soon as you leave college. :P

Something to be aware of if you think you definitely want to do a CS Masters is that although the CS Masters courses are happy to take on Engineers, if you're a pure CS or Maths student, and you have good grades, you can go straight into a Ph.D. in CS, without having to do a masters first.

zoom!

Hi guys I'm starting engineering aswell in trinity. I just have a few questions. When do we get our timetables, I assume it's when we register? Also, What are the actual dates for when we have to go in, I assume it's the 20th but I'd just like to make sure. Finally, I'm getting a laptop for college, and want to know for the engineering course are there any special specs that I need to look out for?

Thanks

pocket aces

zoom! wrote: »

Hi guys I'm starting engineering aswell in trinity. I just have a few questions. When do we get our timetables, I assume it's when we register? Also, What are the actual dates for when we have to go in, I assume it's the 20th but I'd just like to make sure. Finally, I'm getting a laptop for college, and want to know for the engineering course are there any special specs that I need to look out for?

Thanks

You get a JF Engineering handbook at your orientation meeting with a timetable. The timetables also go up on http://www.tcd.ie/Engineering/undergraduate/baiyear1/ sometime around fresher's week.

aodh_rua

Here's my tuppence worth on the CS versus Computer Engineering discussion.

I did the D stream about 10 years ago. It was just before the bubble burst, so the class was well over 30 strong, topped up by around 10 CD (computers and electronics students), and there were quite a few firsts so I think it attracted many of the better students in the year.

I taught the third year management course for a couple of years in the early noughties, and the D stream had certainly shrunk at that stage - no idea about the current situation.

Looking back now, I don't think doing the engineering degree rather than CS would hold people back from roles in IT firms. From doing recruitment, I see a pretty good mix of applicants across engineering, maths and CS applying for dev roles. The engineering part does have an added appeal though if you want to go into consulting\finance or a career where numeracy is important.

As for the BA awarded along with the BAI, this is a historic tradition going back to the days when all DU graduadtes had to be moderators (holders of a BA). The engineers and dentists still get a courtesy ordinary BA along with their professional degree. This means we can apply for the j.o. MA after a fixed period post-graduation. It is not not not a maths degree - though a lot of engineers think it is.

Groinshot

zoom! wrote: »

Finally, I'm getting a laptop for college, and want to know for the engineering course are there any special specs that I need to look out for?

None. All your programming can be done on an 8 year old Dell laptop, (whichw as dated at the time) and for CAD, you can get access to the college computers at any time to do it. Just buy what YOU want for it.

californiagurl

Hi guys (and gals!)
I'm sorry this isn't on topic but I'm starting in trinity this month but the thing is i'm terrified that i've picked the wrong course:eek:

i filled out my cao at the last moment, and i got my first choice (pharmacy), but now I'm really starting to worry that i won't like it. On the other hand i've always had a strong interest in Engineering, especially mechanical, and i think that'd i would be well suited to it (good problem solver, strong at maths).

So I was just wondering if transferring into jf enginneering is even possible , as I would imagine it's probably full (with people who were a lot wiser with their choices then me!):)

Maybe it's just cold feet, but it's really driving me crazy, any help appreciated!

aodh_rua

californiagurl wrote: »

Hi guys (and gals!)
I'm sorry this isn't on topic but I'm starting in trinity this month but the thing is i'm terrified that i've picked the wrong course:eek:

i filled out my cao at the last moment, and i got my first choice (pharmacy), but now I'm really starting to worry that i won't like it. On the other hand i've always had a strong interest in Engineering, especially mechanical, and i think that'd i would be well suited to it (good problem solver, strong at maths).

So I was just wondering if transferring into jf enginneering is even possible , as I would imagine it's probably full (with people who were a lot wiser with their choices then me!):)

Maybe it's just cold feet, but it's really driving me crazy, any help appreciated!

Have you contacted the Admissions Office in Trinity for advice?

Groinshot

californiagurl wrote: »

Hi guys (and gals!)
I'm sorry this isn't on topic but I'm starting in trinity this month but the thing is i'm terrified that i've picked the wrong course:eek:

i filled out my cao at the last moment, and i got my first choice (pharmacy), but now I'm really starting to worry that i won't like it. On the other hand i've always had a strong interest in Engineering, especially mechanical, and i think that'd i would be well suited to it (good problem solver, strong at maths).

So I was just wondering if transferring into jf enginneering is even possible , as I would imagine it's probably full (with people who were a lot wiser with their choices then me!):)

Maybe it's just cold feet, but it's really driving me crazy, any help appreciated!

I'd advise just give your own course a shot first, if you don't like it after a week or two, and are good at maths, then you should eb alright catching up with the workload. There's alot of physics and chem there too though. You need to have the CAO points,and apply before a certain deadline (and if international, prob pay the fees difference)but you should get it if there's space in the course(which there was last year)

devinejay

Hey guys, just a quick note to you prospective engineers out there, I've books for sale!

D.S. Malik - C++ Programming 4th ed, good for two years of Computer Engineering!

Silberberg's Chemistry 3rd ed

and

Young and Freedman's University Physics 12th ed


I'm willing to let these go cheap enough, I realise it's debatable how useful owning textbooks is especially with the library services available to everyone, and definitely I would say it's not worth buying them new as most of them cost around 50 euro. I certainly used the C++ book a good bit as I like to program without access to the internet because I get distracted easy enough, so reference is handy in that case. The other books were nice to have at home, less lugging around heavy books when I wasn't actually in the library, and at exam time you might find it hard to find the books you want in the library as everyone else is looking for the same ones!

I reckon €15 each or €40 for the lot is a reasonable price, but feel free to make me an offer!

On a less selfish note, I bought the calculus book in first year, and used it loads for the last two years, and intend on hanging on to it for a while yet, so if you see a reasonably priced one it's probably well worth picking up. (It's one that's fairly susceptible to running out of stock in the library at crunch time!)