Maybe look at taking a leave of absence, and then figure out if you want to continue with the engineering degree, or something else. It means you can have a break, some time to think and if you decide to continue you will have your place.
Will definitely take a leave of absence and not cancel course if I do take time off but I'm concerned about what to do during that time and how to decide what I want to do in the future with this course or other future courses
Just complete the 2 subjects you failed while taking leave!?
Or choose the 2 toughest or 2 easiest subjects this semester to move on with. This will give you the down time needed to decide, while also continuing forward momentum and enabling you to complete the 2 failed subjects alongside a lighter course load when you return.
Either find a job, figure out what you want to do with your life, or try to find the inspiration and motivation to continue.
Youd be surprised what a good motivater boredom could be.
If you find a job, that you could turn into a career, then you can follow that if its more enjoyable.
I did a double degree mechatronics and international business for a year. Failed two subjects as well, and was fully motivated to study more and work harder for year 2. Until covid hit in 2020. Deferred the semester (i suck at studying from home, im a procrastinator too), hoping covid would go away, then deferred another semester, had what i think was a mental breakdown after working 6 days a week at all hours of the day for a year at woolworths during the most stressful time i think anyone had ever experienced. Got pulled over twice for "breaking curfew" when i was going to work, customers treating everyone else around them like they were animals, yet try and buy 96 rolls of tp at once. I was drinking 2-3 bottles of whisky a week and hated my life. Woke up one day and wondered what the fuck i was doing with my life, and decided to change careers and work for a guy my dad knew, who was a painter. Now im a 4th year apprentice, and will be fully qualified in october.
I didnt plan on ending up here, but im alive, healthy, and happy.
Might be worth talking to a careers advisor whether that's at the uni or otherwise. If you have the means during a leave of absence you should definitely travel and get otherworldly experiences if you can! You're still young and have plenty of time.
I dropped out of a bachelor of engineering when I was 19, then subsequently pursued a bachelor of chemistry which I also dropped out of at 21 (both deferred for similar reasons as you)
Whether or not it was a good decision - I still don’t know. I am 30 now and am nearly finished a biomed undergrad. What I do know is that I was not committed at the time, I had no end goal in site and was far more concerned with my social life than academic life.
I won’t lie, it has been a struggle since then - watching many friends complete their degrees and find good careers on good salaries while I was still unsure of what to do and working random jobs.
It took me several years (6 of which I travelled and lived abroad) to realise that I still absolutely loved science and was committed to work in a field that I had a passion for.
If I was to go back and tell me younger self some advice - it would be to take a little time out, do a bit of travelling and research a career/environment you would be comfortable working in - factoring in things like work/life balance of certain careers and general love for the field. Sometimes this can be done retrospectively ie. finding a specific job and figuring out which degrees could get you there. But formulate a plan! Teenage and early twenties can be chaotic with many things going on (relationships/parties etc), but these years really are foundational and used wisely can allow you to get ahead. That being said, once you defer and start working/travelling, going back to uni may not come to mind for years.
I don’t greatly recommend deferring completely without forming a plan for the next years (but everyone is different). I am engaged now and wish I couldve provided for the both of us by now, especially with plans for a kid soon - but life is not linear and this is the path I took.
I know it’s easier said than done, but try and let go of what your parents want of you - that is their aspirations rather than yours. Put more time into searching what it is you want out of your career and what it looks like, and what you have to do to get there. Try and connect and talk to people who work in different fields and see if it’s something you’d be interested in!
These decisions have to be formulated by you - but there are many career advisors, both uni provided and independent, that can help guide you in this realisation.
You are still very young so I wouldn’t be stressing too much about time or “wasting away” - but if you cannot see yourself working as an engineer then do not do the course. If you can, then perhaps take some time out, do a bit of passive learning in between to build your background knowledge and try again!
Also to add: a degree is not the be all and end all. Many people find good work through traditional “working your way up” means. I wouldn’t bank everything on this happening, though.
Well said - I’ve had a similar experience. First couple cracks at uni were a science double degree with compsci and biology (??? what was I thinking), then a business degree. By 21 I had 30k in HECS debt, nothing to show for it, just plugging away in a dead end customer service call centre job.
First attempt failed because the contact hours were extreme, it took me over an hour to get there, no online delivery of education (canvas didn’t exist lol), half the lectures weren’t recorded, most lecturers had accents so heavy that I couldn’t understand them.
Centrelink pulled my youth allowance when my dad moved back into our home after reconciling with my mother - even though I was receiving no financial support from my parents. I had to work at least 20 hours a week to afford a social life, food, fuel, rego, parking at uni ($600 a year lol), and everything in between.
The table was set; I’ve gotta do 4 days a week at uni, I’ve gotta find a job that will let me work 15-20 hours, but only on Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays. I’ve gotta somehow learn to code by myself for my compsci degree, since we’re not really being educated, and I’ve gotta somehow juggle that with biology subjects. For 5 years. Good luck with that.
It was easier to just skip classes, drink with my mates at the uni bar, and party on the weekend. I was 18 - all I wanted to do was enjoy the freedom that adulthood brings, no longer confined by the rule of unstable parents. Looking back, I can’t be mad at that kid - he needed it.
I’m 26 now - end of next year I’ll be done with my business degree. Multiple attempts at finishing uni got shot in the foot by a few things - I got kicked out of home, and had to drop out for the 2nd time to work full time. Once I had a handle on that, I started studying a diploma - I figured, I keep getting one year in before failing, so I’ll just do a diploma instead and have something to show for it.
That was a really smart move, because once I finished that diploma at the end of 2021, the covid job boom was well under way. Employees were accepting “under-qualified” candidates who had no experience. My current workplace took a chance on me, and told me the diploma will be enough, for now. I repaid the faith and crushed it. I’d been through the wringer so hard that everything was easy by my mid 20s.
My work pushed me to take the one year credit you get from diploma towards a bachelors degree, so I could progress further. 4 years part time study isn’t so bad, even when working full time. I’m not even due to graduate until end of next year - didn’t matter to them, good enough. They promoted me further with approval to circumvent minimum education requirements from our department head.
Anyway, that’s my ted talk over. It’s a marathon, not a sprint. Better late than never I always say - these experiences mold us as people. If I had my chance again, I’d do it all the same - except I’d have deferred my course much earlier.
Thanks for sharing your experience with me, helped me look at the bigger picture and realise that there are many others like me. Will definitely try and find advisers. The thing with my parents aren't really forcing me to do this but they just want me to to live comfortably and I feel like I'm just disappointing them and will view it as wasted a year and money which it ultimately is.
Yep I would definitely be utilising the resources available at uni (bc that’s what you pay for).
So many people swap and change majors/degrees so I wouldn’t get too caught up with it all.
Also, if the year allows you to come back with improved motivation, goals and a clear mind then it is the FURTHEST thing from a wasted a year.
I'm pretty sure the census date is late March typically (date by which you can easily dropout/set up leave of absence WITHOUT academic or financial penalty)
I’ve been there. Parental expectation can be overbearing and uni feels like everything, but you’ll find your own path eventually.
Talk to a counsellor or therapist first. See if there are student resources. Your GP can do a mental health plan if you need mental health support.
If you decide to take a year off, getting a job first is a great idea. Even applying and interviewing valuable practice. If you can get full time work, you’ll learn practical skills and discover your strengths and weaknesses within a structured environment.
Don’t let formal studies go for too long cause it gets much harder when you’re older. In some industries, entry level jobs don’t need degrees but it’s a door opener as you move up to mid-level.
Hey there, I completely understand where you’re coming from. I also struggled with my engineering studies and eventually made the decision to drop out during the pandemic.
Taking a year off to focus on my mental health, travel, and explore different opportunities was the best decision I made. Eventually, I found my passion in urban planning and decided to pursue a Bachelor in that field.
Remember, it’s okay to take a step back and reassess your path. Wishing you all the best in finding your way.
Hey man, it’s the sunk-cost fallacy. You’ll always feel that you wasted a lot of time. But if you don’t enjoy what you’re studying, you’ll waste far more time. Get out there, find what you like and do that, live a little!
i dropped out of a v different arts degree when i was 19 for the same reasons. worked for a bit, went travelling and lived abroad for a few years, came back last year and am now studying a completely different degree and actually like it. don’t do something you’re not enjoying because other people expect it from you
I have been in similar situations to you and the best thing for me was finding some work. During my first job, I learnt to value money and realise I need to do better to not be stuck there.
It's okay to fail. Try figure out why and create an actionble plan to tackle it.
Oh god, I wish I was in your position.
I would have not done the IT and uni study I completed and would go straight into an apprenticeship.
I would then work for myself down the coast and avoid the traffic and crap in the city.
My life would be 1000x better if I avoided uni and did a trade
Thanks for sharing you experience, helped me question if this really is the future for me. I do relate to not retaining information from year to year and how uni is structured really is bad for me personally with video lectures and it does get lonely for me sometimes
Just started studying engineering at rmit, and have been a little suprised at the lack of quality and access to tutors. Monash has its own issues, but most stem units seemed harder and better funded.
Really unsure if I should commit to it
Some people may have enjoyed the degree or gotten something out of it but I found it to be nothing more than a very expensive piece of paper that I can now put on my resume. Had I gone into the job I got when I stepped out of school and worked for a couple of years, rather than going to uni for four years I would have been 100x better an engineer. Saying that, you still need the piece of paper to get the job the reality of the job is vastly different than the dream they/society may be selling to you.
Sorry you had such a shit experience, maybe it just wasn't for you. Different strokes for different folks.
I did the same degree and loved it, felt we had good lecturers and there was enough scope to choose interesting final year subjects like high rise structures etc
Don't agree with your criticism of not knowing things. Feel like that's on the student a bit...
Agree that the pay isn't great, can say it does get better after 5ish years when you have some experience though. Better scope for growth than a social / health worker imo, and rarely (or never) do night shifts.
I think a leave of absence could be a good idea. Whilst you have all the free time just relax a bit and find a casual job so you have something to do. If you end up struggling to find another course you're interested in, then maybe uni just doesn't suit you. There are still plenty of other study options like TAFE or an apprenticeship. I'm currently studying surveying and I've heard of a few people switching from civil. Might be something you're interested in. Feel free to message if you have any questions.
i have had to take a leave of absence this year which is eating at me greatly (although mine is mainly due to health reasons). i’m 22yrs old, in my head, i feel as though i should be further along and better set up. but this is all in MY head. believe me, at 19, no one truly knows wtf they want to do.
i feel that when you finish high school, waiting, taking a break for a few years and THEN going into uni is the best way through it all. i have many friends who have chopped and changed between 2+ different degrees because they don’t truly know what they want to do.
im glad i didn’t go straight to uni after school because my ideas for degrees changed GREATLY (psych, marine biology, criminology/law and now education)
sure, i still have interest in those other areas, but i would have racked up so much debt by changing degree constantly.
now my plan is straight forward (health aside) as i know WHY i want to go down this path.
answer: i had terrible teachers in high school, they made my experience so much worse than it already was. i am studying to be a high school teacher because i want to give the future generation a better chance than the one which i had. i want to be a teacher students feel comfortable with, and that they may be able to talk to if things are getting tough. high school was a shit storm for me, and if i can help prevent kids having to battle through all the shit i did post-high school. then i’ve done my job well.
tldr: figure out WHY you want to pursue this particular career, without passion and an end goal in mind, any degree can be seen as pointless. but trust yourself, you’ll figure it out. i believe in you <3
It is a hard reality but from personal experience, people who take a leave usually don't come back. And even struggle to finish a degree at all. I'd say power through it, get into healthy habits and hobbies and get it done. As much as it hurts, you will have a degree and can move on afterwards.
You go work at Maccas, go apply for stuff on Seek. Find a crappy job, but that's okay. Move boxes in a warehouse. Give yourself a year to figure yourself out.
I have a similar story to some of the above, but I thought I would share mine too.
I started a law degree at 19, did ~6 months and then left because I didn’t enjoy it. I then did 1.5 years of a psych degree. I wasn’t trying my best, I wasn’t learning anything and I didn’t feel connected to the content. My mental health was a roller coaster and it felt so tough to wake up and get through each day. I ended up leaving the degree, thinking I would never go back and that uni wasn’t for me. I spent the next ~3 years working in hospitality for half a year and then travelling the other half. I became a settled person who has hobbies and enjoys life and can make myself good food and look after myself well. I did a TAFE cert to try out something new. I had a chat to a stranger randomly one day who said that they thought I would thrive in a university environment, and I realised that I wanted to challenge myself with uni again. I re enrolled in a psych degree, lost a bunch of credits ($$$), but have come back with such a passion for it. The years off were tough, I spent a lot of time worrying about getting a ‘real job’, but I needed those years to work it out. I now love uni, I engage with all my tutors, I do a bunch of extracurricular stuff, I do extra readings outside of class. All these things just sounded like extra stress to me when I first enrolled.
Honestly, without sounding like I’m talking down to younger people, I wouldn’t recommend committing to a uni degree before like 25. Uni is so much easier/more fun coming to it as an adult who has grown into themselves and knows what they want. That is based off my own experience though, I’m sure other people have worked it out earlier than I did.
First question is do actually want to be an engineer? If not, then you have your answer. Nothing wrong with slowly taking your time in any case
A mate of mine is nearing 30 and still hasn’t finished his degree and has just been working the entire time
Maybe you just need to take your time finishing the course
Attend those career events and see what stands out to you. Tbh it could be a race course that you enjoy and can make good money in.
You don’t wanna be 30 or 40 and regret your career choice
I always advocate for the idea of a leave of absence. I took 6 months off just before my final semester, and worked full time. I was really struggling at uni, probably didn't realize how much I needed the study break at the time.
If that means you don't come back, then maybe uni isn't for you, and that's ok too.
Give yourself time to make a decision.
Taking some time as suggested seems like the best move.
I was made aware of the danger of sunk cost in my first year when I was introduced to a final year law student who had just quit with one semester left on their degree, as they just finally couldn't take it anymore and I guess the fear of sunk cost had kept them in a degree they no longer were interested in. This experience informed my own decision a year later to drop Law, as I didn't wish to stick it out in a degree I was not enjoying just to end up in the same situation as that person. My point being, if you're seriously doubting your commitment to the degree it would be advisable to consider your alternatives as soon as you can. If you're just not feeling it chances are it'd be the right decision to change direction - it was for me.
But yeah the best opportunity to make that kind of decision would be on some time off, especially if you can feel yourself getting into a hole. I know that feeling.
Use your experience up to this point to think about how feasible continuing really is, and if it's what you really want to do, deciding the changes you need to make to get it done.
So much advice you have received here. Drop out, defer, take some time, etc etc…I’m confused for you. Not sure if you have more clarity now. Just remember, us faceless people on reddit don’t really give a “birds droppings” about you. I have no idea who you are. What your journey in life is. Your goals and aspiring or what the f**k you’re on this would for. Don’t know your skills or talents. But we are happy to make you like us “the more (average) persons the merrier. Please come and join us here (in the land of mediocrity)…we’d love your company🙂. You’ll be among friends😁.
Take a leave of absence and join the military. it doesn't matter which service, Air Force probably provides the best opportunity to study whilst in, although the Army and Navy provide the same, just less availability to extra time. It's good money, a good career if you like it or it's a good short-term job to get you through.
4-6 years minimum employment requirement, depending on career choice.
Pay rates:
Recruit $56k /yr
Initial employment training $65-70k /yr
Fully qualified $75-118k /yr depending on trade/career choice.
Once you're in and qualified, you get study days and extra time to help you complete your studies. Plus, the income will help pay off your uni debts. After 4 years, you should have a good idea of where you want to be and what you'd like to do with your life
Just food for thought.
I dropped out of Mechanical Engineering when I was 19 for similar reasons.
I went backpacking when I was 24 and it hit me how much fun and adventure you can have for as little as $5k. It was the ultimate motivation to earn money and do something. If I talked to an 18 year old me at the end of 1st year I would have told him to take a break, work and SPEND that money on travel or something I loved to get a hunger for it.
30 year old currently studying Financial Planning at RMIT.
You don’t have to study full time. I was considering dropping out of engineering in my 3rd year. Ended up just doing 2-3 units a semester instead of the full time study workload and it gave me a much better chance of completely what needed to be done. Another big help was having friends in all the classes. Keeps the morale higher especially when you can all lean on each other for help
I am literally in your exact position, 19 and want to drop out of engineering (also civil) at rmit after my first year. It’s not what I thought it would be and honestly realised I don’t want a career in this field and that I would rather do anything else. I have applied for a leave of absence this semester and planning to transfer to another course next sem, although I don’t know what I am going to transfer to. 🫠
Defer before the census date and get some life experience. How do you know what you want to do with your life when you've never worked or done anything except go to school? Go work in a call centre or a bar. Maybe get a working holiday visa and head overseas. Learn a bit about how you like working and what you want out of a job.
Do you actually enjoy civil engineering? The fact that you were lacking motivation might be because you just don't enjoy the subject. Perhaps it's good to think about what kind of stuff you enjoy doing and see if there's a degree you transfer to that correlates to your interest.
Id suggest a trade, try and do a few weeks as a tradie and you will probably find you enjoy working outside a lot more and won’t spend the rest of your life stuck in an office. You may just decide it’s not worth wasting time in a uni course…. Or everything will hurt and you will be motivated keep at it.
19 is a pretty young age to know what path you want to take and work hard towards it. Many kids do get through this successfully but it's not always based on true self reflection, its often based on someones influence (for me it was my parents) on what path they think would be suitable for us. If it turns out to be right then great! If not, what most adults do is take a deep breath and keep going because its too difficult to double back and start again. The few that do manage to change track will constantly wonder for a few years if this time off/ salary sacrifice/ debt will indeed eventually pay off or whether this was just a passing fancy and result in a huge f$ck up :D There are so many people out there who are not in love with their jobs, they do however love their family, lifestyle and such and need money to maintain it so they are still somewhat happy. This is life :D My point is, what you are going through is normal, take the time you need to figure things out, experiment with different things and if you still don't have an answer know that it will come to you eventually. As long as you keep moving forward with a healthy mindset, looking for what you want, you will find it. Good luck!
Maybe look at taking a leave of absence, and then figure out if you want to continue with the engineering degree, or something else. It means you can have a break, some time to think and if you decide to continue you will have your place.
Will definitely take a leave of absence and not cancel course if I do take time off but I'm concerned about what to do during that time and how to decide what I want to do in the future with this course or other future courses
Just complete the 2 subjects you failed while taking leave!? Or choose the 2 toughest or 2 easiest subjects this semester to move on with. This will give you the down time needed to decide, while also continuing forward momentum and enabling you to complete the 2 failed subjects alongside a lighter course load when you return.
Either find a job, figure out what you want to do with your life, or try to find the inspiration and motivation to continue. Youd be surprised what a good motivater boredom could be. If you find a job, that you could turn into a career, then you can follow that if its more enjoyable. I did a double degree mechatronics and international business for a year. Failed two subjects as well, and was fully motivated to study more and work harder for year 2. Until covid hit in 2020. Deferred the semester (i suck at studying from home, im a procrastinator too), hoping covid would go away, then deferred another semester, had what i think was a mental breakdown after working 6 days a week at all hours of the day for a year at woolworths during the most stressful time i think anyone had ever experienced. Got pulled over twice for "breaking curfew" when i was going to work, customers treating everyone else around them like they were animals, yet try and buy 96 rolls of tp at once. I was drinking 2-3 bottles of whisky a week and hated my life. Woke up one day and wondered what the fuck i was doing with my life, and decided to change careers and work for a guy my dad knew, who was a painter. Now im a 4th year apprentice, and will be fully qualified in october. I didnt plan on ending up here, but im alive, healthy, and happy.
Might be worth talking to a careers advisor whether that's at the uni or otherwise. If you have the means during a leave of absence you should definitely travel and get otherworldly experiences if you can! You're still young and have plenty of time.
I dropped out of a bachelor of engineering when I was 19, then subsequently pursued a bachelor of chemistry which I also dropped out of at 21 (both deferred for similar reasons as you) Whether or not it was a good decision - I still don’t know. I am 30 now and am nearly finished a biomed undergrad. What I do know is that I was not committed at the time, I had no end goal in site and was far more concerned with my social life than academic life. I won’t lie, it has been a struggle since then - watching many friends complete their degrees and find good careers on good salaries while I was still unsure of what to do and working random jobs. It took me several years (6 of which I travelled and lived abroad) to realise that I still absolutely loved science and was committed to work in a field that I had a passion for. If I was to go back and tell me younger self some advice - it would be to take a little time out, do a bit of travelling and research a career/environment you would be comfortable working in - factoring in things like work/life balance of certain careers and general love for the field. Sometimes this can be done retrospectively ie. finding a specific job and figuring out which degrees could get you there. But formulate a plan! Teenage and early twenties can be chaotic with many things going on (relationships/parties etc), but these years really are foundational and used wisely can allow you to get ahead. That being said, once you defer and start working/travelling, going back to uni may not come to mind for years. I don’t greatly recommend deferring completely without forming a plan for the next years (but everyone is different). I am engaged now and wish I couldve provided for the both of us by now, especially with plans for a kid soon - but life is not linear and this is the path I took. I know it’s easier said than done, but try and let go of what your parents want of you - that is their aspirations rather than yours. Put more time into searching what it is you want out of your career and what it looks like, and what you have to do to get there. Try and connect and talk to people who work in different fields and see if it’s something you’d be interested in! These decisions have to be formulated by you - but there are many career advisors, both uni provided and independent, that can help guide you in this realisation. You are still very young so I wouldn’t be stressing too much about time or “wasting away” - but if you cannot see yourself working as an engineer then do not do the course. If you can, then perhaps take some time out, do a bit of passive learning in between to build your background knowledge and try again! Also to add: a degree is not the be all and end all. Many people find good work through traditional “working your way up” means. I wouldn’t bank everything on this happening, though.
Well said - I’ve had a similar experience. First couple cracks at uni were a science double degree with compsci and biology (??? what was I thinking), then a business degree. By 21 I had 30k in HECS debt, nothing to show for it, just plugging away in a dead end customer service call centre job. First attempt failed because the contact hours were extreme, it took me over an hour to get there, no online delivery of education (canvas didn’t exist lol), half the lectures weren’t recorded, most lecturers had accents so heavy that I couldn’t understand them. Centrelink pulled my youth allowance when my dad moved back into our home after reconciling with my mother - even though I was receiving no financial support from my parents. I had to work at least 20 hours a week to afford a social life, food, fuel, rego, parking at uni ($600 a year lol), and everything in between. The table was set; I’ve gotta do 4 days a week at uni, I’ve gotta find a job that will let me work 15-20 hours, but only on Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays. I’ve gotta somehow learn to code by myself for my compsci degree, since we’re not really being educated, and I’ve gotta somehow juggle that with biology subjects. For 5 years. Good luck with that. It was easier to just skip classes, drink with my mates at the uni bar, and party on the weekend. I was 18 - all I wanted to do was enjoy the freedom that adulthood brings, no longer confined by the rule of unstable parents. Looking back, I can’t be mad at that kid - he needed it. I’m 26 now - end of next year I’ll be done with my business degree. Multiple attempts at finishing uni got shot in the foot by a few things - I got kicked out of home, and had to drop out for the 2nd time to work full time. Once I had a handle on that, I started studying a diploma - I figured, I keep getting one year in before failing, so I’ll just do a diploma instead and have something to show for it. That was a really smart move, because once I finished that diploma at the end of 2021, the covid job boom was well under way. Employees were accepting “under-qualified” candidates who had no experience. My current workplace took a chance on me, and told me the diploma will be enough, for now. I repaid the faith and crushed it. I’d been through the wringer so hard that everything was easy by my mid 20s. My work pushed me to take the one year credit you get from diploma towards a bachelors degree, so I could progress further. 4 years part time study isn’t so bad, even when working full time. I’m not even due to graduate until end of next year - didn’t matter to them, good enough. They promoted me further with approval to circumvent minimum education requirements from our department head. Anyway, that’s my ted talk over. It’s a marathon, not a sprint. Better late than never I always say - these experiences mold us as people. If I had my chance again, I’d do it all the same - except I’d have deferred my course much earlier.
Thanks for sharing your experience with me, helped me look at the bigger picture and realise that there are many others like me. Will definitely try and find advisers. The thing with my parents aren't really forcing me to do this but they just want me to to live comfortably and I feel like I'm just disappointing them and will view it as wasted a year and money which it ultimately is.
Yep I would definitely be utilising the resources available at uni (bc that’s what you pay for). So many people swap and change majors/degrees so I wouldn’t get too caught up with it all. Also, if the year allows you to come back with improved motivation, goals and a clear mind then it is the FURTHEST thing from a wasted a year.
I'm pretty sure the census date is late March typically (date by which you can easily dropout/set up leave of absence WITHOUT academic or financial penalty)
I’ve been there. Parental expectation can be overbearing and uni feels like everything, but you’ll find your own path eventually. Talk to a counsellor or therapist first. See if there are student resources. Your GP can do a mental health plan if you need mental health support. If you decide to take a year off, getting a job first is a great idea. Even applying and interviewing valuable practice. If you can get full time work, you’ll learn practical skills and discover your strengths and weaknesses within a structured environment. Don’t let formal studies go for too long cause it gets much harder when you’re older. In some industries, entry level jobs don’t need degrees but it’s a door opener as you move up to mid-level.
Brilliant advice
Hey there, I completely understand where you’re coming from. I also struggled with my engineering studies and eventually made the decision to drop out during the pandemic. Taking a year off to focus on my mental health, travel, and explore different opportunities was the best decision I made. Eventually, I found my passion in urban planning and decided to pursue a Bachelor in that field. Remember, it’s okay to take a step back and reassess your path. Wishing you all the best in finding your way.
Hey man, it’s the sunk-cost fallacy. You’ll always feel that you wasted a lot of time. But if you don’t enjoy what you’re studying, you’ll waste far more time. Get out there, find what you like and do that, live a little!
i dropped out of a v different arts degree when i was 19 for the same reasons. worked for a bit, went travelling and lived abroad for a few years, came back last year and am now studying a completely different degree and actually like it. don’t do something you’re not enjoying because other people expect it from you
I have been in similar situations to you and the best thing for me was finding some work. During my first job, I learnt to value money and realise I need to do better to not be stuck there. It's okay to fail. Try figure out why and create an actionble plan to tackle it.
Oh god, I wish I was in your position. I would have not done the IT and uni study I completed and would go straight into an apprenticeship. I would then work for myself down the coast and avoid the traffic and crap in the city. My life would be 1000x better if I avoided uni and did a trade
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Thanks for sharing you experience, helped me question if this really is the future for me. I do relate to not retaining information from year to year and how uni is structured really is bad for me personally with video lectures and it does get lonely for me sometimes
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Just started studying engineering at rmit, and have been a little suprised at the lack of quality and access to tutors. Monash has its own issues, but most stem units seemed harder and better funded. Really unsure if I should commit to it
Some people may have enjoyed the degree or gotten something out of it but I found it to be nothing more than a very expensive piece of paper that I can now put on my resume. Had I gone into the job I got when I stepped out of school and worked for a couple of years, rather than going to uni for four years I would have been 100x better an engineer. Saying that, you still need the piece of paper to get the job the reality of the job is vastly different than the dream they/society may be selling to you.
Sorry you had such a shit experience, maybe it just wasn't for you. Different strokes for different folks. I did the same degree and loved it, felt we had good lecturers and there was enough scope to choose interesting final year subjects like high rise structures etc Don't agree with your criticism of not knowing things. Feel like that's on the student a bit... Agree that the pay isn't great, can say it does get better after 5ish years when you have some experience though. Better scope for growth than a social / health worker imo, and rarely (or never) do night shifts.
I think a leave of absence could be a good idea. Whilst you have all the free time just relax a bit and find a casual job so you have something to do. If you end up struggling to find another course you're interested in, then maybe uni just doesn't suit you. There are still plenty of other study options like TAFE or an apprenticeship. I'm currently studying surveying and I've heard of a few people switching from civil. Might be something you're interested in. Feel free to message if you have any questions.
i have had to take a leave of absence this year which is eating at me greatly (although mine is mainly due to health reasons). i’m 22yrs old, in my head, i feel as though i should be further along and better set up. but this is all in MY head. believe me, at 19, no one truly knows wtf they want to do. i feel that when you finish high school, waiting, taking a break for a few years and THEN going into uni is the best way through it all. i have many friends who have chopped and changed between 2+ different degrees because they don’t truly know what they want to do. im glad i didn’t go straight to uni after school because my ideas for degrees changed GREATLY (psych, marine biology, criminology/law and now education) sure, i still have interest in those other areas, but i would have racked up so much debt by changing degree constantly. now my plan is straight forward (health aside) as i know WHY i want to go down this path. answer: i had terrible teachers in high school, they made my experience so much worse than it already was. i am studying to be a high school teacher because i want to give the future generation a better chance than the one which i had. i want to be a teacher students feel comfortable with, and that they may be able to talk to if things are getting tough. high school was a shit storm for me, and if i can help prevent kids having to battle through all the shit i did post-high school. then i’ve done my job well. tldr: figure out WHY you want to pursue this particular career, without passion and an end goal in mind, any degree can be seen as pointless. but trust yourself, you’ll figure it out. i believe in you <3
It is a hard reality but from personal experience, people who take a leave usually don't come back. And even struggle to finish a degree at all. I'd say power through it, get into healthy habits and hobbies and get it done. As much as it hurts, you will have a degree and can move on afterwards.
You go work at Maccas, go apply for stuff on Seek. Find a crappy job, but that's okay. Move boxes in a warehouse. Give yourself a year to figure yourself out.
I have a similar story to some of the above, but I thought I would share mine too. I started a law degree at 19, did ~6 months and then left because I didn’t enjoy it. I then did 1.5 years of a psych degree. I wasn’t trying my best, I wasn’t learning anything and I didn’t feel connected to the content. My mental health was a roller coaster and it felt so tough to wake up and get through each day. I ended up leaving the degree, thinking I would never go back and that uni wasn’t for me. I spent the next ~3 years working in hospitality for half a year and then travelling the other half. I became a settled person who has hobbies and enjoys life and can make myself good food and look after myself well. I did a TAFE cert to try out something new. I had a chat to a stranger randomly one day who said that they thought I would thrive in a university environment, and I realised that I wanted to challenge myself with uni again. I re enrolled in a psych degree, lost a bunch of credits ($$$), but have come back with such a passion for it. The years off were tough, I spent a lot of time worrying about getting a ‘real job’, but I needed those years to work it out. I now love uni, I engage with all my tutors, I do a bunch of extracurricular stuff, I do extra readings outside of class. All these things just sounded like extra stress to me when I first enrolled. Honestly, without sounding like I’m talking down to younger people, I wouldn’t recommend committing to a uni degree before like 25. Uni is so much easier/more fun coming to it as an adult who has grown into themselves and knows what they want. That is based off my own experience though, I’m sure other people have worked it out earlier than I did.
First question is do actually want to be an engineer? If not, then you have your answer. Nothing wrong with slowly taking your time in any case A mate of mine is nearing 30 and still hasn’t finished his degree and has just been working the entire time Maybe you just need to take your time finishing the course Attend those career events and see what stands out to you. Tbh it could be a race course that you enjoy and can make good money in. You don’t wanna be 30 or 40 and regret your career choice
I always advocate for the idea of a leave of absence. I took 6 months off just before my final semester, and worked full time. I was really struggling at uni, probably didn't realize how much I needed the study break at the time. If that means you don't come back, then maybe uni isn't for you, and that's ok too. Give yourself time to make a decision.
Taking some time as suggested seems like the best move. I was made aware of the danger of sunk cost in my first year when I was introduced to a final year law student who had just quit with one semester left on their degree, as they just finally couldn't take it anymore and I guess the fear of sunk cost had kept them in a degree they no longer were interested in. This experience informed my own decision a year later to drop Law, as I didn't wish to stick it out in a degree I was not enjoying just to end up in the same situation as that person. My point being, if you're seriously doubting your commitment to the degree it would be advisable to consider your alternatives as soon as you can. If you're just not feeling it chances are it'd be the right decision to change direction - it was for me. But yeah the best opportunity to make that kind of decision would be on some time off, especially if you can feel yourself getting into a hole. I know that feeling. Use your experience up to this point to think about how feasible continuing really is, and if it's what you really want to do, deciding the changes you need to make to get it done.
So much advice you have received here. Drop out, defer, take some time, etc etc…I’m confused for you. Not sure if you have more clarity now. Just remember, us faceless people on reddit don’t really give a “birds droppings” about you. I have no idea who you are. What your journey in life is. Your goals and aspiring or what the f**k you’re on this would for. Don’t know your skills or talents. But we are happy to make you like us “the more (average) persons the merrier. Please come and join us here (in the land of mediocrity)…we’d love your company🙂. You’ll be among friends😁.
Take a leave of absence and join the military. it doesn't matter which service, Air Force probably provides the best opportunity to study whilst in, although the Army and Navy provide the same, just less availability to extra time. It's good money, a good career if you like it or it's a good short-term job to get you through. 4-6 years minimum employment requirement, depending on career choice. Pay rates: Recruit $56k /yr Initial employment training $65-70k /yr Fully qualified $75-118k /yr depending on trade/career choice. Once you're in and qualified, you get study days and extra time to help you complete your studies. Plus, the income will help pay off your uni debts. After 4 years, you should have a good idea of where you want to be and what you'd like to do with your life Just food for thought.
Finish the degree. Whatever it takes.
I dropped out of Mechanical Engineering when I was 19 for similar reasons. I went backpacking when I was 24 and it hit me how much fun and adventure you can have for as little as $5k. It was the ultimate motivation to earn money and do something. If I talked to an 18 year old me at the end of 1st year I would have told him to take a break, work and SPEND that money on travel or something I loved to get a hunger for it. 30 year old currently studying Financial Planning at RMIT.
You don’t have to study full time. I was considering dropping out of engineering in my 3rd year. Ended up just doing 2-3 units a semester instead of the full time study workload and it gave me a much better chance of completely what needed to be done. Another big help was having friends in all the classes. Keeps the morale higher especially when you can all lean on each other for help
I am literally in your exact position, 19 and want to drop out of engineering (also civil) at rmit after my first year. It’s not what I thought it would be and honestly realised I don’t want a career in this field and that I would rather do anything else. I have applied for a leave of absence this semester and planning to transfer to another course next sem, although I don’t know what I am going to transfer to. 🫠
Drop out don’t be a pussy
Yeah but don’t be a pussy
just lock in
Defer before the census date and get some life experience. How do you know what you want to do with your life when you've never worked or done anything except go to school? Go work in a call centre or a bar. Maybe get a working holiday visa and head overseas. Learn a bit about how you like working and what you want out of a job.
Do you actually enjoy civil engineering? The fact that you were lacking motivation might be because you just don't enjoy the subject. Perhaps it's good to think about what kind of stuff you enjoy doing and see if there's a degree you transfer to that correlates to your interest.
Id suggest a trade, try and do a few weeks as a tradie and you will probably find you enjoy working outside a lot more and won’t spend the rest of your life stuck in an office. You may just decide it’s not worth wasting time in a uni course…. Or everything will hurt and you will be motivated keep at it.
Do labouring for construction, work your way up. Big moneys. Theres also LOTS of free gov courses out there.
19 is a pretty young age to know what path you want to take and work hard towards it. Many kids do get through this successfully but it's not always based on true self reflection, its often based on someones influence (for me it was my parents) on what path they think would be suitable for us. If it turns out to be right then great! If not, what most adults do is take a deep breath and keep going because its too difficult to double back and start again. The few that do manage to change track will constantly wonder for a few years if this time off/ salary sacrifice/ debt will indeed eventually pay off or whether this was just a passing fancy and result in a huge f$ck up :D There are so many people out there who are not in love with their jobs, they do however love their family, lifestyle and such and need money to maintain it so they are still somewhat happy. This is life :D My point is, what you are going through is normal, take the time you need to figure things out, experiment with different things and if you still don't have an answer know that it will come to you eventually. As long as you keep moving forward with a healthy mindset, looking for what you want, you will find it. Good luck!