Ok, if there is one thing that everyone’s unamously anxious about in first year, it’s this.
GETTING INTO YOUR CHOOSEN SPEC
People with GPAs from like 0.1 to 8.9 always have the tiniest sliver of doubt. Why? Because your selection process is based on your GPA ranking compared to everyone else in the entire first year engineering cohort (and actually outside of it too – you can transfer into second year engineering from other degrees as well!). Truth is, you don’t know exactly where everyone else is sitting and you REALLY don’t want to miss out on your first pick and just be thrown in a “spare slot”. No, thanks.
If you’re interested in the selection process, how to get into a specialisation (and what to do once you’re out of it), keep an eye out for our future blog post that will cover the whole trajectory!
How Does the Selection Process Actually Work? What do to if I’m in a spec that I genuinely hate?
Ok let’s lock ourselfs in and throw away that key
*image of basil yeeting a key*
Firstly, let’s address the frog that’s the hardest to swallow: you want to get into a good spec, to get a good job, to get a good life. And you have ⚡1 YEAR⚡ to achieve the grades in 7 subjects that will define that entire trajectory of your life. So, you need a good spec RIGHT NOW OR EVERYTHING ENDS. (Yikes, that’s a lot of pressure 😮💨! )
Because of this rigid pathway philosophy that so many people like to mentally subscribe to, most people seem to think that your checklist in life for a “good” job goes as follows:
- Get into university (congradulations ✅ you passed Step 1)
- Get into your choose degree (your ✨spec✨)
- Get an internship (in this economy 🫣😰??)
- Get a job
Finally:
Hang on.
…”what if I don’t get into my first nomination”? Or, what if you choose the “wRonG” thing?
Working a constant 9-5 in something you even remotely find disinteresting for 45+ years of your life sounds…exasperating. I know at least that it would drive. my. head. in.
If, deep down, you’re scared or worried about this situation happening to you, then let me give you some bold advice 😮💨:
Your specialisation choice does not matter.
At least as much as you think that it does. Let me explain:
Your choice now relates to the technical skills that you will be capable of andformally recognised foron paper when you exit the University. But the four years here do not have to define what you would like to do with your life.
Don’t get me wrong, your specialisation will still provide you with a strong base of knowledge in a specific area that you can use (and more importantly, that other people like employers will recognise you for), so it’s still *very important to take your selection process seriously*. If you’re unsure of what specalisation that you’re into going for, knowing what is out there in the market early on means that you can make informed choices now about your career paths rather than going off of a romanticised idea of it or not really caring – you can find out more about this here. Market choices also help you to know HOW to market your speclisationa and mold it into what you are interested in as well – after all, the more that you know about how the engineering industries work, the more you can market your brand and tailor your degree to the specific career path(s) that you want.
Knowledge of how the system works is true power. In that case, if you don’t end up in the “right” spec either in retrospect or because of cutoffs, you do not have to conform to a set path.
But if I don’t stick to a set path, won’t I be behind compared to other people?
No and yes.
You may be behind in certain technical depths, but your breadth of knowledge means that you’ll understand more about how each technical skill relates to each other because of the comprehensive experience that you have cultivated. Some positions, such as management and consulting, reward the ability to understand the bigger picture graciously 💰. Plus, technical depth is always something that you can drive yourself to explore more, either later or now, through self study and your connections with people to lead you to research and development opportunities.
Whilst grades, extracurriculars and even your specialisation choice are all important to make you stand out, understanding how to play the system to your advantage gives you the most control over your own career path. That means that even if things don’t work out (from you having an off day to a major disaster occurring), if you don’t end up in the “right” spec either in retrospect or because of cutoffs, you do not have to conform to a set path. Having autonomy over your career path and your decisions puts you in the best position.
But like all things in life, you
So..after all of that, what are the common pathways to get into engineering?
That being said, you don’t want to spend around 4 years of your life studying something you LOATH TO IT’S VERY CORE (for me, I’m looking at structural…)
Hey!
Oh sorry
So, how can you get into your chosen spec? And how will your spec help you?
Why your spec doesn’t matter as much as it seems and how to view specs (the scale thingo) – get the part 2 bloggers to describ your degree in 3 words
nd I’m not saying to use your friends, but just think…it would be nice to work in the same office as them for 4 months regarless of what spec you’re in.
- clubs – network with older students, know people out in the industry who are accesible with years more knowledge under their belt
- reach out to lectureres – i had a meeting with a tron guy last year, and with people IN THE INDUSTRY – showing commitment SHOWs that you really care AND it forms a relationship with people early on.
I’m going to be honest with you guys: if you follow these tips sacoreligiously, you are honestly placeing yourself in the top percent of those likely to get a job regardless of what your grades and extra curriculars are like***.
Promote and market yourselfs
Most engerneers do not, so you’re putting yourself out there
So where do I start?
Lik
You know that old saying “It’s not what you know, it’s WHO you know?”.
nowledge of how the system works is holds the most power in breaking in to the engineering industry game.
What do you think that employers look for? Technical skills? Nope. Communication? Nah, not even close.
WHY YOUR SPEC DOESN
abriviations post!
- Find a way to market your specalisation for the industries that you like (or think you might like).
For example, through networking, I’ve figured out that I’m interested primary in the following three engineering sectors:
Consulting: You need to be able to look at the entire engineering process to
Software: BME learns a good basis for coding, and you can take electives in years to come that focus more on coding or data science. Therefore, you can market your degree as having a focus on coding languages. Heck, you even learn the basics of python and networking in one of your first papers in Part II! This makes you more qualified for applying to internships than the mechatronics kids are before they take their coding paper in Semester 2.
Devices Design: As I’ll expand more on in one of the future posts, BME is actually very similar to Mechatronics in the sense that it covers elements of Mechanical, Electrical and Software engineering. Because you learn about the way that these three elements interact with each other, you can create a pretty convincing case t
Obviously for other specialisations your answer can be harder to mould. BME sometimes needs a bit of explaining as well as it being one of the broadest specialisation, which leaves you open to marketing it in a truthful and helpful way.
f you can find a way to overcome your
Think of it like an experiment. Find a test group (like a club), test out putting your best foot forward – and hey! if it doesn’t work out, you never have to interact with them again
Find a test group
Whilst it is obvious, remember that you should never lie about your experiences or fabricate your capabilities. At the end of the day, you are providing a solution to them as well that they are investing into, and you want to form a genuine connection with people through mutual respect, curiosity and trust.
I think not. Don’t get me wrong: social skills never fully accounts for unaccountability in other areas, such as academics.
Stay tuned for my future blogs where I will talk about how to think of each specalisation in more detail once you know your subjects a bit more :).
Oh before I forget, this is Basil the BME frog. We’re here to guide you :). basils tip of the post basil’s numero uno for today is
n saying all of this, genuine concerns
- Earning potential straight out of university
- Extra learning later down the line – try to follow what you think you are interested in as much as you can
- But won’t I be behind compared to other people?”
management vs technical
It’s all well and good to just pick what you want if you have a clear idea. But for 85% of us, simply “choosing” a specialisation right now can feel so overwhelming, especially if you don’t know what industries even do or even more so…what you actually like!
PSst Let’s be real BME is like a 2 for 1 degree, you’re kinda like a doctor and an engineer at the same time! (just not a registered doctor, but you can go into medicine afterwards!) <– blog post on paths to get into engineering and what to do after biomedical engineering! something else bad – you don’t feel like you’re good enough compared to everyone else, including the tron kids.
What are some downsides of BME? certain thigns are taught very badly