a little reassurance....

tommyboy26

i have been excepted to maynooth to do the foundation certificate in science and engineering starting in sept.

i will be doing this one year course as a mature student. my hope is to do well in the first year so i can enter the robotics and intelligent device degree that maynooth run.

I was at the open day in maynooth last weekend and really found the talks on the above very interesting. i know that the first year and second year are close to the same as the electronic engineering degree.

I find the subject matter very interesting and enjoy maths and fiddling with things. i was really excited about the next 5 years of study until yesterday when i was talking to someone who had tried the elec engineering degree and dropped out. they said it was extremely difficult and that elec engineering degrees had the highest drop out rate in the country.

i would like someone with first hand experience to give me there thoughts on the course they did?

i know every person learns different and what one person finds difficult another finds easy such is the way with the world but i just want to see what others experienced

any and all thoughts would be greatly appreciated

KeithTS

Hi,
First off, congrats!

I followed a similar route to yourself by going back and studying EE as a mature student.
I had no leaving cert and was very rough around the edges with my maths before starting the course and I got through it alright so you can do it if you put your head down.

I studied at DCU not Maynooth but the general gist of things will no doubt be similar, especially during the first year or two.

The course was difficult and I was immediately at a disadvantage compared to the new cohort as they were used to studying and had a way better understanding of maths etc than I had.
For me all this meant was that I had to work harder than others but as I was a mature student who had worked his fair share of s**t jobs I was way more determined than a lot of others and had no problem spending nights in the library when they were out on the piss. In general engineering courses are full on so it's not like everyone is out every night of the week, those that are won't be around very long.

My first semester was tough in particular as I was in lectures/labs 40 hours a week and in the library til 10pm on top of that 4 or 5 nights a week but putting that work in from day 1 meant I was on top of every subject and it took very little to keep up once I got to grips with things.

The only advice needed from my perspective, and this applies to everyone entering a difficult course: If you start strong and study everything from day one you should be fine. If you leave things til the last minute and cram before exams you're setting yourself up for failure. You would be amazed how quickly you can fall behind. Once that happens your motivation is lost and you start to dread lectures coz you'll be sitting there confused rather than engaged with material you understand.

It may sound like hard work and daunting but it'll be well worth it!

tommyboy26

Thank you for taking the time to write a great response!

I'm a firm believer in anything is possible if you work hard and want it bad enough. The drinking side of college doesn't interest me so I don't see that as an issue.

You Have confirmed allot of what I was thinking In regards to late nights and getting on top of things from the start.

It's just tbh I'm scared ****less of going back to education after 17 years away from it

KeithTS

tommyboy26 wrote: »

Thank you for taking the time to write a great response!

I'm a firm believer in anything is possible if you work hard and want it bad enough. The drinking side of college doesn't interest me so I don't see that as an issue.

You Have confirmed allot of what I was thinking In regards to late nights and getting on top of things from the start.

It's just tbh I'm scared ****less of going back to education after 17 years away from it

I was there myself man, I was really apprehensive about it too but from day one I just settled into it and it was the best decision I ever made. Based on your attitude here I'm sure it'll work out great for you.

If you can get back into doing some maths and that a half hour a day or whatever you can now just to limber up the auld brain and it'll help too.

Turbulent Bill

tommyboy26 wrote: »

It's just tbh I'm scared ****less of going back to education after 17 years away from it

That's a natural reaction. Most colleges will have specific educational support services available for mature students, would be worth checking these out. Best of luck.