What do youy mean by "real world" design and engineering. I would expect to learn everything that I'd need to know from the schooling, but is it not as acurate with what will be required from me in the field?

 

Dana makes a very good point. At least in the UK, 'education' is relatively weak on the 'hands-on' part of learning. Personally, I spent a lot of my time outside school messing about with electronic circuits, because it interested me. And I learned a lot of valuable stuff this way.

 

Engineering degree programs tend to be heavy on the math and theoretical. They have to be; there's a lot to cover. Classes in actual design are usually limited to the last year of a four year program, and even then they're not realistic. But depending on the field you're working in, you will likely find that you actually use a very small percentage of what you studied. If you work as, say, a structural analysis engineer for an aerospace company, you may use a lot of what you learned in school. Learning to solve the kind of real world design problems, OTOH, can only be learned by doing, whether you're building model airplanes, electronic circuits, or getting paid for engineering. It's why experienced engineers, even those without any formal engineering education, get paid more and have more responsibility than new graduates from the best schools.

 

Ok so, what should I be doing right now then? I am at a dead end job waiting for enogh money roll in to allow myself to enroll. In the mean time I'd like to get my feet wet and get in to a position to learn and get some experience. I know that I want to be in mechanical design but I'm not sure of which specific area inters me. Possable automotive. So whatcan I do or where can I start looking for an entry level possition? Any ideas?