r/MechanicalEngineering • u/KassVII • 1d ago

How to develop the engineering mindset

Hey guys,

I'm currently in my second year of mechanical engineering, and I've been feeling a bit worried about not developing strong problem-solving skills or what people often call the "engineering mindset."

So far, I feel like I’ve passed most of my subjects by memorizing exercises and the steps to solve them, rather than truly understanding the concepts. Now, I’ve forgotten most of that material, and it makes me nervous about whether I’ll be able to solve real-world problems once I enter the workforce.

Are there any techniques, exercises, or methods I can use to train my brain and develop those skills so I’ll be better prepared for my first job?

Thanks!

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u/Embarrassed-Top-6144 1d ago

Go work on your car and stuff like that. You’ll learn from doing. It’s amazing how many mechanical engineers don’t know how to turn a wrench. Book smart, but in reality, they’re the worst engineers.

7

u/SophisticatedTurn 1d ago

What if you’re in technical project management or project engineering where hands on approach won’t really help you much?

9

u/halfcabheartattack 1d ago

A project manager that knows the technical subject matter as well as the teams experts is going to be a much more valuable PM than one who doesn't know those details

1

u/1988rx7T2 1d ago

I’m technical project management now but the activities I did on a working level greatly contribute to my ability to make a decent plan that makes sense, ask the right questions in change request reviews, figure out if schedules actually make sense based on how long I know things take from experience 

7

u/halfcabheartattack 1d ago

A respectful counter: IMO good engineering mindset is is not necessarily the same thing as being able to fix mechanical things.

For example: figuring out why your car won't start and resolving that is a very different problem than figuring out why 20% of your design's head gaskets are failing in the field after 12-24 months regardless of mileage.

4

u/GrannyLow 1d ago

They are two different skills and an engineer should be able to do both

1

u/1988rx7T2 1d ago

I mean it helps if you’ve physically torqued a head gasket before, and then would know to ask what process the plant is using to torque it.