Beyond Members Careers

[Buster]

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Hey I've sat in your sweet, sweet ride -- I know you gots the $$$ as well. Power couple fo sho.

ha...thanks. We've both been pretty supportive of each other's careers and education.

[thinmyster]

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Medical professionals seem to go for dudes who makes less. I know a ton of tradesmen who are married to doctors, dentists and orthodontists.

I've noticed this too. Add pharmacists to this list.

[Sugarphreak]

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[killramos]

Why are you taking so many courses? The whole degree is like 45-48 courses?

Are you trying to finish the degree in 3 years?

[Sugarphreak]

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[ThePenIsMightier]

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They are mandatory for the program I'm in, no choice. 4 year program. Plus our 2nd terms are way longer... UBC is out already, I've still got several weeks to go.

I went to bed at 1:30am last night... up at 5:45, so f-ing tired right now. Today I am casting high strength cylinders... and I will have my first lecture ever for Revit. In a couple of weeks I will have to be an expert in Revit, never even used it before.

Something's not adding up. It's a nationally accredited program, so universities aren't allowed to wildly deviate.
What school is this and will you walk out the door with a Bachelor's of Science in Engineering, or not?

[ExtraSlow]

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Why are you taking so many courses? The whole degree is like 45-48 courses?

Are you trying to finish the degree in 3 years?

BCIT (where I think he said he is going) has a reputation for being way more intense than "regular" universities.

[colinxx235]

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Something's not adding up. It's a nationally accredited program, so universities aren't allowed to wildly deviate.
What school is this and will you walk out the door with a Bachelor's of Science in Engineering, or not?

Yah +1... something is confusing me

U of C (like all other Engg degrees I believe) was 44 courses to graduate. So the typical was do a 6/5 for 4 years. Or lots of people would take options or try to take a really hard weeder course in the spring/summer depending to reduce the load for the normal school year.

With the exception of if you did Biomedical Engg. That was a beast as you had extra courses plus had to take harder courses (i.e. a Bio Mech would have to do the Electrical 2nd year course instead of the more watered downed mech/chem/civil one offered). Plus the internship was way more involved.

[Sugarphreak]

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[killramos]

What’s the diploma in? Sounds to me like that is what is screwing everything up?

Are they just making you take a ton of courses that don’t count towards the degree or something?

As others have said the core engineering degree is only a few more courses than a regular bachelors. It almost sounds like you are trying to get 2 disciplines (say mech and civil ) in 4 years.

I think I was 5/6 6/6 6/6 6/5 when I did mine off the top of my head. And that was me doing an “accelerated” stream to finish in 4 years out east.

[lasimmon]

I had 9 "courses" a couple semesters at the U of A, but one or 2 of them would be meeting once a week or 2 weeks or some special thing that is only like 1 thing and a report to write.

[killramos]

Yea quarter courses will fuck up the numbers if your school uses them.

I have a couple of them in my masters at ucalgary. BS courses that they something convince you to pay for.

[shakalaka]

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They are accredited, actually they were the first polytechnic to be accredited in Canada. I've heard the program is a lot different than those at other universities in that they focus on practical application. If I can make it through (and honestly I don't know that I can) I will get a BEng and also a diploma.

I don't know the total courses off hand, but I'm doing 16 this year, then I think 17 next year.

Oh man I absolutely hated school, but I got through it. It wasn't easy and there were times when I felt like I wouldn't make it but you just got to keep putting in the grind and essentially change your attitude towards the whole thing. The more you tell yourself that you can't do something, the more that possibility becomes real and vice versa. I know it's a cliché but it is true. Just stay positive and keep putting in the grind - once you come out of it finished and successful the path that your future and career will make will be worth all the effort and hard work. It definitely doesn't hurt speaking with professionals for positive reinforcement if you feel down and out.

Ultimately it's what drives you. My wife did her second masters degree while working full time as an OT - mental health therapist. And being that I am useless at household chores, she took care of them too. And not just any masters - masters in clinical and counselling psychology programs at UofC and UofA are one of the most intense and hard to get into programs out there. That is why you see all these psychologists with degrees from Athabasca and American online programs. They took something like 20 students from a thousand + applications. She did the 3 year program while working full time the entire time and ended with a 3.9 gpa. And that was essentially her also through the bachelor's and the first master's program as well with similar gpa. She's 30 and has two master's, is a registered occupational therapist, is a provisional psychologist right now and well on her way to be registered in a few months. Sometimes contemplates going the Phd route at times also. All done from UofA and UofC to the boot.

I will say this though, it is very important to try and find a balance in work/personal life regardless of if you're in school or work. Of course money is important but it shouldn't be everything. I do try to follow my wife's advise in this regard as she is not driven by money at all. She's doing well by virtue of just being hardworking and I don't doubt will be even more successful financially down the line when she has her private practice but I already know that money isn't her main goal. The office she works with right now is so busy that her boss is safely in the $600K-$700K + a year range. But she says that this guy has no life other than work and I don't think it should be quite like that either. Even though my plan is to retire by 50 so I am putting in the grind now but since there are no guarantees in life I try to strike that balance with 'fun' (cars etc) and also focus on making money. It is a hard one to achieve as most people are usually either one way or the other. But try to find that balance that works best in your life for yourself.

With the number of courses you mention, I can imagine that you don't get much spare time but really it is up to you to make it. Take some time out of your day even half hour or 1 hour to go to a gym and exercise, or go for a run or anything active. You will find that being active and exercising does wonders for your mental health. It makes you feel better and uplifted and better prepared to face your day regardless of how difficult it may be. Take some time for friends and family and socialize a bit once a week or so. I don't mean booze it up, but just healthy conversations with loved ones go a long way to uplift your mood and mental health in general as well.

Ultimately it is ALL doable if you put your mind to it and commit to it. It will feel hard, it is supposed to. But once you finish it and come out ahead, it is an absolutely fucking awesome feeling. Just keep grinding and you will get there!

[killramos]

I agree with sticking through it to be honest. Just got to find a strategy to get through it. I always found that it was a time management exercise and that meant prioritizing assignments etc and accepting that some things got half assed or not done at all. Especially with group work, sometimes you have to just trust what other people do without a full review.

[jltabot]

^ This. I'd stick through it if I were you. If its something you've always wanted, it'll be that much more rewarding when you're done. Also, I don't know what your workflow is like, but I found it very helpful doing assignments in groups and working through problems with other people. There are always going to be some things your peers will understand better or are better at explaining things.

That does sound like a heavy course load though. If I remember correctly, mine was 13/14/14/12 (for capstone).

[themack89]

I did my Econ degree in 2 years. The only way I survived was to find enjoyment in the material.

I'm in the midst of a transition right now and studying for CFA+CAIA. Up everyday at 5am to grind it out, and I love every minute of it because I'm in a perpetual state of "I wonder what I'll learn today."

Get excited about it and love it.

[mrsingh]

I went to BCIT, in the civil route that Sugarphreak is in. The degree came into play when I was in the second year. Yes the terms are longer than typical universities, in our third term I was taking 11 courses. I totally get and feel the pain that he was going through. You finish after two years with a diploma in Civil Engineering Technology, then they typically expect you to go work for a year. Then come back for two more years to complete with a Bachelor of Engineering in Civil Engineering. I didn't go the degree route and at the time it was under review for accreditation, which it now has.

[ThePenIsMightier]

I'd like to see this curriculum. Why put someone who's looking for a Tech Diploma through 3 brutal calculus courses plus linear algebra, differential equations and computer programming within the first two years?
That's about 4-5 courses a Tech shouldn't need that's displacing 4+ courses they should be taking.

[mrsingh]

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I'd like to see this curriculum. Why put someone who's looking for a Tech Diploma through 3 brutal calculus courses plus linear algebra, differential equations and computer programming within the first two years?
That's about 4-5 courses a Tech shouldn't need that's displacing 4+ courses they should be taking.

https://www.bcit.ca/study/programs/8660beng#courses

[Nufy]

Props to anyone still working ful time and going to school...

I tried an online degree program a few years back and couldn't do it.

Full day of work then come home to 2-3 hours a night of school work...no thanks.

I managed to get my PL Eng. from Apega a few years back so that will be it for me.

that and 20 years exp should keep me going for a while......I hope.