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Hey guys. So at the moment, I’m a student at my local community college, I just finished up my first year (during which I changed my major from science to computer science), and I have to take a math class over the summer. Math definitely is not my strong suit which introduces the very real possibility of not passing this class. Without this class and the subsequent class I’ll have to take in the fall, I won’t be able to take any computer science classes at all until I pass them (which means I’d have to keep paying for the classes), which would defeat the purpose of being a computer science major lol.
I’ve just been thinking about what the next move will be if I either don’t pass these classes or if I feel like I can’t, which is why I’m here. I took auto tech for 2 years in high school and loved it. Worked in a shop for a little bit and liked it for the most part. I’ve been thinking that if this doesn’t work out, while I’m still young and while I can still get financial aid (covered my entire first year and what was left over covered my summer class), I would switch my major again (I’d actually have to), but maybe to auto tech or auto body.
I do want to pass these classes and get into computer science (it’s not my dream job or anything), but I think it would be something that I would enjoy doing, but on the same token, I think I would enjoy working in auto tech as well, so what are the pros and cons of my situation? Any advice is helpful 🙂
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In my honest opinion I would say go with passion over pay. From a practical stand point go with pay over passion. In everyone’s opinion I should be doing IT as I am very good at it and am completely self taught. On the other hand I am a diesel mechanic because well desks are not for me I become a beached whale and also because I do not like End User interaction every time I fixed something for the 4th time for the same person I wanted to beat them senseless. This happens a whole lot in IT. As for programming I can write elegant code I just make simple syntax errors that do not show up in debug, etc.
I would say study your ass off and pass the classes. Good coders are worth their weight in gold. Shops are not like working on your car at home and you have mentioned you did some shop time but, were you doing electrical diag, hvac, performance, or transmissions because that is where the money normally is. To master those takes a large amount of time and is not simple. If you do decide to do mechanics I suggest dealership first then move to an independent shop once you have the experience and tools.
If you are still interested in doing mechanics whether it be as a hobby or as a profession you might want to take a look at this:
http://www.ericthecarguy.com/kunena/15-Technicians-Only/55499-so-you-want-are-going-to-be-a-mechanic-technician[quote=”KeithLG” post=137141]Hey guys. So at the moment, I’m a student at my local community college, I just finished up my first year (during which I changed my major from science to computer science), and I have to take a math class over the summer. Math definitely is not my strong suit which introduces the very real possibility of not passing this class. Without this class and the subsequent class I’ll have to take in the fall, I won’t be able to take any computer science classes at all until I pass them (which means I’d have to keep paying for the classes), which would defeat the purpose of being a computer science major lol.
I’ve just been thinking about what the next move will be if I either don’t pass these classes or if I feel like I can’t, which is why I’m here. I took auto tech for 2 years in high school and loved it. Worked in a shop for a little bit and liked it for the most part. I’ve been thinking that if this doesn’t work out, while I’m still young and while I can still get financial aid (covered my entire first year and what was left over covered my summer class), I would switch my major again (I’d actually have to), but maybe to auto tech or auto body.
I do want to pass these classes and get into computer science (it’s not my dream job or anything), but I think it would be something that I would enjoy doing, but on the same token, I think I would enjoy working in auto tech as well, so what are the pros and cons of my situation? Any advice is helpful :)[/quote]
Have you ever heard the phrase “I think therefore I am”? That phrase is very powerful, and once I finally understood the message that it was trying to convey, a bunch of new doors opened up for me. If you think that you cannot pass your math class you are dooming yourself to failure. The words ‘I cannot’ will shut many doors in your life, instead start telling yourself “YES I CAN”. It will change your life.I’m speaking from experience. In high school I was a complete failure when it came to math. I spent my whole high school career in remedial math classes, and I consistently ended up with Fs on my report card in math. I had to start out in community college from the very bottom with math, which was a pre algebra classes that dealt with basic addition, subtraction, division, and multiplication. I told myself that I was going to beat math, and master it. I ended up getting three years through an engineering degree, and I only quit because I did an internship over the summer of my third year and hated the job with a passion. I was stuck behind a desk all day playing with excel spreadsheets.
The moral of the story is, I sucked at math, but I was able to work my way up through a whole year of advanced calculus, and differential equations. I also spent a lot of time in physics, and chemistry classes which are also math intensive, especially when you start applying chemistry, and physics to real world situations. Things all changed for me when I started to tell myself that “I can”. If I can make it through classes dealing with calculus and differential equations, you can pass your math classes. Will it be easy? Probably not, but through hard work and preservation you can do it.
Live to impress yourself.
I would not do auto repair unless it is your passion. This can be a very harsh career. I’ve seen it turn many good men, bitter and jaded really quickly. Your salary is not guaranteed, your benefits will suck, and you will constantly have to spend money on tools. I know of at least one guy on this forum that has over $100,000 dollars invested in tools. It will also take a toll on you physically and mentally. That is why I say, you better have a passion for auto repair if you want to get into this career.
[quote=”Pithy Radish” post=137156]
I would not do auto repair unless it is your passion. This can be a very harsh career. I’ve seen it turn many good men, bitter and jaded really quickly. Your salary is not guaranteed, your benefits will suck, and you will constantly have to spend money on tools. I know of at least one guy on this forum that has over $100,000 dollars invested in tools. It will also take a toll on you physically and mentally. That is why I say, you better have a passion for auto repair if you want to get into this career.[/quote]I could not phrase it better myself.
Don’t get me wrong guys, I have every intention of working hard to pass these classes, I just know that sometimes (more often than not in my life) things don’t always work out the way you want them to despite all the effort you put in.
I was 3/4 of the way done with a lengthy response this morning when I got a BSOD and crashed, losing all that (too bad, it was a nice story). The moral of it was that you don’t need school to get into this profession if you are good at teaching yourself. It costs thousands to buy all the books, tools, and parts to learn everything and gain useful experience on your own, it still isn’t cheap. You’d need a car to do practice jobs on, I’d suggest one that worth fixing but also something that you can screw things up on. I used a old VW Jetta and made a nice car out of it that I still have today. I’ve made it to the top level (I guess you could call it that) being self-taught. If you want any further info about that path, feel free to ask.
[quote=”KeithLG” post=137176]Don’t get me wrong guys, I have every intention of working hard to pass these classes, I just know that sometimes (more often than not in my life) things don’t always work out the way you want them to despite all the effort you put in.[/quote]
The point I was trying to make is that right now you’re expecting yourself to fail. Don’t do that, you’re setting yourself up for failure if you do. Even if you don’t believe it start thinking that you will pass your class. I was the biggest failure at math, yet I ended up getting pretty far in an engineering degree. If I can do it, you can do it too.The key is making use of the resources available to you. My school had a free tutoring center. I could sit in that room and do my math homework, and if I was lost I could ask for help from the tutors. You could also work with other people as well. Those two things helped me immensely.
I would also suggest spending some time on youtube. They have some great teachers on there. You can always you can find one for the type of problem that you’re doing. Last but not least, ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS check your answer after you’ve finished the problem. Usually you can plug numbers that you got into the equations, and see if they work out. Always write out every step as well so you can backtrack and see if anything is amiss. This really helped me “diagnose” what I did wrong. I would check my answer and it wouldn’t work out. Then I would go back through my work and find out what I did wrong.
By the way, why would you have to switch majors if you failed your math class? I failed my first pre algebra class and I didn’t get my financial aid taken away. I wasn’t forced to “switch majors.” I really don’t get that logic.
As far as Auto Body, and Repair go I would think twice before I get into the field. I decided to get into the field because I had a burning desire to fix cars for a living. I had a passion for wrenching on my old clunkers, and I always secretly loved it when they broke down because I got to wrench on something. I always helped my friends out with repairs, and I used to help my father fix the family car when I was around 12. Unless you have the passion, and you have the same desire to get into the field I would look elsewhere.
This career is hard on your body, especially if you’re doing body work. You’re also going to be exposed to dangerous chemicals almost every day. You’ll be working on flat rate which means if the book says a brake job should take 3 hours and it takes 10 hours that you’ve only got paid for three hours worth of work. That has happened to a few guys almost every day since I’ve been there. You will also only get paid if you are physically working on a car. That means if you’re in a slow shop, or overcrowded shop you will not get many hours, or you’ll spend all day cleaning your tools for free. You will spend a lot of money on tools, as I said there is at least one guy here that I know of that has $100,000 in tools alone. I know of at least one guy at the shop I work at that has that much money in his tools as well. You will also have to deal with a metric ton of shop politics.
I haven’t been working at my job for very long, but I’ve already seen new techs wash out and call it quits. This is a brutal field, so unless you have an aching desire to work on cars, I would not even think about getting into it. You need to be thick skinned, and maybe a little bit of a masochist to be successful here.
[quote=”Pithy Radish” post=137194][quote=”KeithLG” post=137176]Don’t get me wrong guys, I have every intention of working hard to pass these classes, I just know that sometimes (more often than not in my life) things don’t always work out the way you want them to despite all the effort you put in.[/quote]
The point I was trying to make is that right now you’re expecting yourself to fail. Don’t do that, you’re setting yourself up for failure if you do. Even if you don’t believe it start thinking that you will pass your class. I was the biggest failure at math, yet I ended up getting pretty far in an engineering degree. If I can do it, you can do it too.The key is making use of the resources available to you. My school had a free tutoring center. I could sit in that room and do my math homework, and if I was lost I could ask for help from the tutors. You could also work with other people as well. Those two things helped me immensely.
I would also suggest spending some time on youtube. They have some great teachers on there. You can always you can find one for the type of problem that you’re doing. Last but not least, ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS check your answer after you’ve finished the problem. Usually you can plug numbers that you got into the equations, and see if they work out. Always write out every step as well so you can backtrack and see if anything is amiss. This really helped me “diagnose” what I did wrong. I would check my answer and it wouldn’t work out. Then I would go back through my work and find out what I did wrong.
By the way, why would you have to switch majors if you failed your math class? I failed my first pre algebra class and I didn’t get my financial aid taken away. I wasn’t forced to “switch majors.” I really don’t get that logic.
As far as Auto Body, and Repair go I would think twice before I get into the field. I decided to get into the field because I had a burning desire to fix cars for a living. I had a passion for wrenching on my old clunkers, and I always secretly loved it when they broke down because I got to wrench on something. I always helped my friends out with repairs, and I used to help my father fix the family car when I was around 12. Unless you have the passion, and you have the same desire to get into the field I would look elsewhere.
This career is hard on your body, especially if you’re doing body work. You’re also going to be exposed to dangerous chemicals almost every day. You’ll be working on flat rate which means if the book says a brake job should take 3 hours and it takes 10 hours that you’ve only got paid for three hours worth of work. That has happened to a few guys almost every day since I’ve been there. You will also only get paid if you are physically working on a car. That means if you’re in a slow shop, or overcrowded shop you will not get many hours, or you’ll spend all day cleaning your tools for free. You will spend a lot of money on tools, as I said there is at least one guy here that I know of that has $100,000 in tools alone. I know of at least one guy at the shop I work at that has that much money in his tools as well. You will also have to deal with a metric ton of shop politics.
I haven’t been working at my job for very long, but I’ve already seen new techs wash out and call it quits. This is a brutal field, so unless you have an aching desire to work on cars, I would not even think about getting into it. You need to be thick skinned, and maybe a little bit of a masochist to be successful here.[/quote]
To get into even the introduction to computer science class (http://www.nvcc.edu/academic/coursecont/summaries/CSC200.pdf), the pre-req is the class I’m taking now (MTH 166). To get into Computer Science I, I need MTH 173. So if I don’t pass, I don’t get to take even the introductory class to my major. It doesn’t have anything to do with my aid, just getting into the actual CS classes.
EDIT: I think I might be able to take the intro course without this summer class… I feel like such and idiot right now lol. The thread still applies I guess though
EDIT2: I can take the intro class in the fall, but I still need the summer class to get into 173 for Computer Science I
[quote=”MDK22″ post=137152] In everyone’s opinion I should be doing IT as I am very good at it and am completely self taught. [/quote]
Let me start off by saying I am not an automotive technician. Feel free to send a Nun with a ruler over to rack my knuckles for crossing the yellow line and posting in a Technician’s Only forum.. I’ll take my lumps.
I -am- an IT Systems Administrator and Network Engineer and am completely self-taught. I am also -old-, with regards to my industry. The median age is 25 to 30, and there’s a steep drop-off past that point. I am a comparative rarity these days, being 44 and holding a well paying non-management job.
Here’s the thing. This is also the last job I will ever be able to get in my field. When I got into Computing back in the early 90’s, there were no standards. I’d been in the field for three or four years before even the most basic A+ certification came on. I got that Cert back in the day when it was permanent and you DIDN’T have to re-up it every year.
The biggest difference in the field now is that employers want that paper saying you’re certified. It doesn’t matter that I’ve got 20 years experience anymore. If I go against a young pup with a piece of paper saying he’s MCSE certified, it doesn’t matter if I’ve done the work before or not.. I will not get the job.
There are also a LOT more players on the field now than when I started, so the competition for the career-track jobs is fierce. Employers are using that piece of paper as a filter; if you have it, then you get past the HR trolls. If you don’t, then your resume disappears into the black abyss, never to be seen again.
Automotive work is a -lot- like IT work in that respect. These days, they’re demanding the schooling before you can even get a gig as a lube-tech, or if they don’t, then getting the paper, education, certs, etc. is a pre-condition for continued employment. Yes, you might be able to get a job at an independent shop where things are more loose, but there are a lot of players on the field… a lot of automotive technicians that want the job you have and are quite willing to get a piece of paper saying they’re qualified to do the job better than you can despite your experience.
The IT world and the Automotive tech world has changed drastically in the past few years, especially since the economic downturn in 2002. Quite literally, we must adapt to these changing times or face the very real possibility of being passed over for meaningful employment. Passion for your job is good, but get the job and then DEVELOP a passion for it, if you can.
Just my .02.
I await the knuckle-rapping nun with outstretched hands..
-Hinoki
Hinoki I actually agree with you for the most part. Though the mechanic side there are still dealerships that hire people with no training especially down south. They tend to not like the whole school training because a lot of places will just push kids through. Before I got to my dealership the last kid they hired from a school did a brake job and did not put the drums on the truck. IT is a lot more cut throat if you ask me. I have always been a square peg in a round hole and tbh IT just isn’t for me maybe Network Engineer but, not IT.
[quote=”Pithy Radish” post=137156][quote=”KeithLG” post=137141]Hey guys. So at the moment, I’m a student at my local community college, I just finished up my first year (during which I changed my major from science to computer science), and I have to take a math class over the summer. Math definitely is not my strong suit which introduces the very real possibility of not passing this class. Without this class and the subsequent class I’ll have to take in the fall, I won’t be able to take any computer science classes at all until I pass them (which means I’d have to keep paying for the classes), which would defeat the purpose of being a computer science major lol.
I’ve just been thinking about what the next move will be if I either don’t pass these classes or if I feel like I can’t, which is why I’m here. I took auto tech for 2 years in high school and loved it. Worked in a shop for a little bit and liked it for the most part. I’ve been thinking that if this doesn’t work out, while I’m still young and while I can still get financial aid (covered my entire first year and what was left over covered my summer class), I would switch my major again (I’d actually have to), but maybe to auto tech or auto body.
I do want to pass these classes and get into computer science (it’s not my dream job or anything), but I think it would be something that I would enjoy doing, but on the same token, I think I would enjoy working in auto tech as well, so what are the pros and cons of my situation? Any advice is helpful :)[/quote]
Have you ever heard the phrase “I think therefore I am”? That phrase is very powerful, and once I finally understood the message that it was trying to convey, a bunch of new doors opened up for me. If you think that you cannot pass your math class you are dooming yourself to failure. The words ‘I cannot’ will shut many doors in your life, instead start telling yourself “YES I CAN”. It will change your life.I’m speaking from experience. In high school I was a complete failure when it came to math. I spent my whole high school career in remedial math classes, and I consistently ended up with Fs on my report card in math. I had to start out in community college from the very bottom with math, which was a pre algebra classes that dealt with basic addition, subtraction, division, and multiplication. I told myself that I was going to beat math, and master it. I ended up getting three years through an engineering degree, and I only quit because I did an internship over the summer of my third year and hated the job with a passion. I was stuck behind a desk all day playing with excel spreadsheets.
The moral of the story is, I sucked at math, but I was able to work my way up through a whole year of advanced calculus, and differential equations. I also spent a lot of time in physics, and chemistry classes which are also math intensive, especially when you start applying chemistry, and physics to real world situations. Things all changed for me when I started to tell myself that “I can”. If I can make it through classes dealing with calculus and differential equations, you can pass your math classes. Will it be easy? Probably not, but through hard work and preservation you can do it.
Live to impress yourself.
I would not do auto repair unless it is your passion. This can be a very harsh career. I’ve seen it turn many good men, bitter and jaded really quickly. Your salary is not guaranteed, your benefits will suck, and you will constantly have to spend money on tools. I know of at least one guy on this forum that has over $100,000 dollars invested in tools. It will also take a toll on you physically and mentally. That is why I say, you better have a passion for auto repair if you want to get into this career.[/quote]
I’m almost 100% positive we are the same person Pithy. I dealt with the same thing in highschool, and went the community college. Learned to how add, subtract, divide all over again. Got all the way to diff eq before I realized engineering just isn’t my thing.
[quote=”Pitt” post=137315][quote=”Pithy Radish” post=137156][quote=”KeithLG” post=137141]Hey guys. So at the moment, I’m a student at my local community college, I just finished up my first year (during which I changed my major from science to computer science), and I have to take a math class over the summer. Math definitely is not my strong suit which introduces the very real possibility of not passing this class. Without this class and the subsequent class I’ll have to take in the fall, I won’t be able to take any computer science classes at all until I pass them (which means I’d have to keep paying for the classes), which would defeat the purpose of being a computer science major lol.
I’ve just been thinking about what the next move will be if I either don’t pass these classes or if I feel like I can’t, which is why I’m here. I took auto tech for 2 years in high school and loved it. Worked in a shop for a little bit and liked it for the most part. I’ve been thinking that if this doesn’t work out, while I’m still young and while I can still get financial aid (covered my entire first year and what was left over covered my summer class), I would switch my major again (I’d actually have to), but maybe to auto tech or auto body.
I do want to pass these classes and get into computer science (it’s not my dream job or anything), but I think it would be something that I would enjoy doing, but on the same token, I think I would enjoy working in auto tech as well, so what are the pros and cons of my situation? Any advice is helpful :)[/quote]
Have you ever heard the phrase “I think therefore I am”? That phrase is very powerful, and once I finally understood the message that it was trying to convey, a bunch of new doors opened up for me. If you think that you cannot pass your math class you are dooming yourself to failure. The words ‘I cannot’ will shut many doors in your life, instead start telling yourself “YES I CAN”. It will change your life.I’m speaking from experience. In high school I was a complete failure when it came to math. I spent my whole high school career in remedial math classes, and I consistently ended up with Fs on my report card in math. I had to start out in community college from the very bottom with math, which was a pre algebra classes that dealt with basic addition, subtraction, division, and multiplication. I told myself that I was going to beat math, and master it. I ended up getting three years through an engineering degree, and I only quit because I did an internship over the summer of my third year and hated the job with a passion. I was stuck behind a desk all day playing with excel spreadsheets.
The moral of the story is, I sucked at math, but I was able to work my way up through a whole year of advanced calculus, and differential equations. I also spent a lot of time in physics, and chemistry classes which are also math intensive, especially when you start applying chemistry, and physics to real world situations. Things all changed for me when I started to tell myself that “I can”. If I can make it through classes dealing with calculus and differential equations, you can pass your math classes. Will it be easy? Probably not, but through hard work and preservation you can do it.
Live to impress yourself.
I would not do auto repair unless it is your passion. This can be a very harsh career. I’ve seen it turn many good men, bitter and jaded really quickly. Your salary is not guaranteed, your benefits will suck, and you will constantly have to spend money on tools. I know of at least one guy on this forum that has over $100,000 dollars invested in tools. It will also take a toll on you physically and mentally. That is why I say, you better have a passion for auto repair if you want to get into this career.[/quote]
I’m almost 100% positive we are the same person Pithy. I dealt with the same thing in highschool, and went the community college. Learned to how add, subtract, divide all over again. Got all the way to diff eq before I realized engineering just isn’t my thing.[/quote]
Yeah I know, I swear every time you post I see some kind of parallel to my own life. Heck, we even work on the same brand of car now hahaha. By the way how is life in the Toyota dealership? Have any angry parts guys when somebody decides to bring in a Lexus IS250 or 300?Slow brother, sooooo slow. Still on oil changes and rotates. We have techs barely cracking 30 flag hours a week. The struggle is real right now lol.
I spent the better part of last night greasing jacks and fixing/testing/inspecting shop tools very slow around me as well.
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