Hi!
I would really appreciate it if the three of you answer some of my questions and give me different perspectives 😊
Some info and context:
I finished my hsc this year and I want to do aerospace engineering in the future. I’m really interested in this kind of field and I would love to do a major in physics as well as I really love all space related stuff and even went to space camp in USA when I was in year 11 so I’m really passionate about it.
Now the really dilemma (well they are few lol) I only did general maths and haven’t done physics in highschool. I only came here to Australia 2 years ago and I didn’t know the whole system here and I did not know the difference in maths levels here, on the other side, I did a lot of physics when I was in my country so I don’t feel very disadvantaged not doing it.
(1) How would you recommend doing engineering with no 2 unit knowledge whatsoever? Would I be able to survive if I go over calculus this holidays before uni start? Do unis help ppl in this kind of condition or should I really re-consider engineering as a whole?
So, doing engineering on just 2U mathematics is (dangerous but) possible. On the other hand, the hard truth is that without 2U, there's gonna be a LOT of problems, since they will always assume you have the bare minimum knowledge with calculus.
Being quick to give up on it is probably a shame given your strong interest factor, so before you rush to that decision you should consider how capable you are at self learning. Of course, some 2U concepts such as Euclidean geometry proofs might not be of use, but you will need ALL of the calculus sections as well as some solid understand understanding of many of the standard curves (e.g. hyperbola, parabola, simple cubics). They probably don't directly contribute, but they're concepts you're assumed to know and when university lecturers talk about it, they can call it 'trivial'.
Although not doing physics here isn't a huge detriment seeing as though HSC physics isn't too useful to engineering here either. Having done physics overseas is quite sufficient.
So basically, it is possible to survive, but you need to put in an EXTENSIVE amount of work if you want to. If you're as interested as you say you are, then this may very well succeed; in fact you should consider doing a bit of 3U on top of 2U to aid this. It's going to be very difficult nonetheless, because it will most likely take up the entire summer break. (It's one thing to understand it, but it's another to know how to apply all of it.)
(Bridging courses are also a viability but keep in mind the cost factor in that stuff.)
I got an srs offer from WSU to do Engineering majoring in robotics and mechatronics. I already accepted the offer and I was planning to enroll and do well in first year there and transfer to unsw. I know that unsw is renowned for eng and computer science and they are really active in those fields. However, I found out from wsu that im not eligible for hecs help or fee help because im a permeant resident and still have 2 years to go to be eligible for hecs or fee help. So basically, if I want to do first yeat at wsu and then transfer to unsw. I would pay upfront fee ($9000 yearly) and apply to unsw and even if I got accepted, I would re-do first year because there is no credit transfer between wsu and unsw (correct me if im wrong).
So I have two options, either stay at wsu and do the full degree, or waste ($9000) in the first year and hopefully get into unsw and re-do first year eng in unsw (well if I got into unsw, I would do double eng/science so I can major in aero and physics)
The other day, I found out that there is a third option, so unsw has this program which is called UPP basically it is a uni prep program for people aged from (17-19) and you have to write a personal statement stating why you want to do it. It offers an engineering stream where they teach maths, physics and eng units. The program is 18 months and could be 1 year for people who show good results and after that you can transfer to unsw first year eng. The good thing about the program is it guarantees you a spot in eng first year (if you pass your units), the units you take in the prep year is credit transferable and most importantly (in my case) is it is fully funded from the gov for the whole year. so, I would only pay the student service fee ($250)
(2) – In the end I only have 3 options, either stay at wsu and do robotics for 4 years and pay upfront fees every year.
- do first year in wsu and waste ($9000) and transfer to unsw to re-do first year to do aero/physics
- Do Unsw prep program, pass everything, use the time to work and save up some money and transfer to first year eng.
- Any other ideas or options would be really appreciated 😊
Thank you for taking the time to read all of this
UNSW is, of course, brilliant. Because we're UNSW.
Now this question is
very personal. It's possible for us to give us our opinions but we can
never really rub off our opinions on you for this stuff, because your own financial status is on the line.
There's nothing really wrong with WSU. Just because UNSW is fabulous doesn't mean WSU sucks in any way; you can still do a degree there and go far with it. Wasting $9K-$10K as a result of zero credit transfer is too brutal in my opinion to be worthwhile.
I'm actually aware of the prep program; have had friends do it before. Although I'm not particularly sure what you learn during it though. Basically, the prep program is good if you're more like me and really have your mind set on UNSW. It's not too hard to get into and so long as you put in enough effort into it, like you said it'll guarantee you a spot the year after.
So in my opinion, it's really just about how much you want to go to UNSW here. If you're not overly concerned about it and wouldn't mind playing it safe, there's nothing wrong with going to WSU. But if you want to pick UNSW that badly, then the prep program might be a better choice.