Things to come: Quality Qualifications - QQ

Depressing set back for me, I had a face to face talk with an educational adviser. As it turns out, just getting straight into the engineering side of things is harder than I thought. I dont have the basic quaifications.

GCSE's- 1 year

Just to start I need to boost my GCSE grades well... 3 of them English, Mathematics and Science to a grade of atleast A*-C. Easy

A levels- 1 year

I need atleast one to start but ive decided on four.

Geography, Maths, Physics and Chemistry.

After all this its onto full time study going from PCFE (Plymouth college of Further Education) and into UP (University of plymouth).

Foundation pathways in technology- 1 year

'Foundation pathways in technology allows those without normal qualifications to progress onto courses in computing, Engineering, Mathematics or statistics, Foundation pathways provides the necessary background to embark on subsequent computing, engineering, mathematics or statistics degree courses.'

....yeah.... applied for, however I have no idea what activities this course involves me to do, the adviser pretty much said that if i want to do engineering this is one course i need to do.

Undergraduate-
Mechanical Engineering- 4years BEng, 5 years MEng.

'This course enables you to develop your skills and broaden your opportunities to develop as a professional engineer. Accredited by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, Our BEng (Hons) affords and excellent start to becoming a Charteered Engineer.

Year 1
year one is common to BEng (Hons) in Marine Technology and Mechanical Engineering with Composites.

Aquire a sound foundation in design; mechanics; materials; electrical principles; thermo-fluids; maths; and business, learning by active involvement in real engineering problems.

Undertake a hands-on module in manufacturing methods.

Year 2

Modules such as materials and structures are integrated through the central design theme, providing a holistic approach to mechanical engineering.

Core subjects, like thermodynamics, fluid mechanics and quality management, are supported by further studies in business, mathematics and control.

Year 3 Placement year (optional)

You are encouraged to take a work placement to gain valuable paid professional experience, many students obtained sponsorship following a successful placement.

Year 4 Final year

Student manufacturing; Failure mechanism and mechanics; quality management and statistics.

Specialise in either thermal and fluid engineering, or control and intelligent systems.

Practice design and computer-aided engineering.

Research a topic of interest for your individual project.

Postgraduate-
Mechanical Engineering- 1 year or 2 years with optional industrial placement.
Ill keep this one short

This programme aims to equip graduates with an enhanced understanding of the key components available to an organisation needing to take a broader,systems approach to increasing the quality of its output and ultimately its competitiveness.

-Personal and professional skill
-World-class manufacturing systems
-Foundation of control and robotics
-Masters stage 1 - Placement preparation
-Composite engineering systems
-Systems approach to project management
-Simulation of engineering systems
-MSc Mechanical Engineering project
-Advanced information technology
-Research skills and project development
-Structural design using the finite element method (1)(wtf?!)
-Project management
-Entrepreneurship, Commercialising your ideas.

Plumbers ~_~

There is alot of money in plumbing.... But I dont care about having the most money nor do I care enough to stick my hands in places where the S'eww'age does flow.
At first it was your average plumber giving their money lectures, coming into the shop on their days off (still dressed like a homeless man) and destroying your mind with numbers following the british pound sign. I can live with that, however you know its bad when you get a call from your college asking why you want to go into engineering, and you give your reasoning and dreams, juuuust to be followed up with the question "How about plumbing? there is alot of money in plumbing" naturally my reply to this is a sigh and a lecture of my own about how my dream is my own and how if they have a 'hard on' for plumbing then maybe they shoud leave their job and go stick their hands in s'eww'age.... Okay maybe I didnt rant back at them, I am joining their college in september after all. I suppose I could always learn to block out their voices with animal sounds.

On another note, ive decided to get an early start of studying, I got a list of books from the adviser and did some shopping. I was in the bookstore, browsing the shelves and sipping a nice hot mocha and I noticed a small boy sat at a desk he couldnt have been any older than ten years old, he was reading physics, My sisters twelve and she denies learning physics, was this kid a boy genius? no no... he must've thought the pictures were funny.
Anywho thats it for today, Im gonna check out my new books over ice cream, Rum and raisin.

Looking for the future.

My name is Alex Henderson but my friends call me tree, I am twenty years old. If the average age of death by age is 80, then I have wasted a quarter of my life.
Reflecting upon this out on the moors I realised now was a time for change. I am bored of sitting around in a shop as life passes me by.
I reflected upon these rocks for several hours thinking of what I wanted to be in life. I considered my options, my likes, my dislikes. Come sunset I look into the warm gaze, a euphoria filling my body, I had finally found it, I want to become an Engineer. Change the world for the better through machines, the world I love around me is dying and its because of the machines, or atleast its a big factor of the problem. So what better way than to be an engineer make machines more green.

Now I just got back from a 60KM walk across the moors over two days. I'm tired, lights out