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Does anyone know what part of maths you need to learn for College? For example is it worth going over functions or logarithms or recurrence relations ect? Because I've not done Higher Maths in 2 years and I'm going over it the now.
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I still don't quite understand recurrence relations and haven't come across any use for them in engineering (knowingly) yet.
Did you do A level maths then? And going to be doing Foundation Degree Engineering Cadet?
Functions and Logs did appear in the later HND stage, after they built most peoples maths skills up a lot, but not in too much detail. As for foundation degree i don't know what degree they would appear in, but if you have an understanding of them already, I'm sure you'll do fine at college, even if you need to swat up on them a bit.
Maths isn't the end all and be all in engineering, its more important to have understanding of why something works, knowing the maths is just a bonus.
Rather someone with a logical thought process then a mathmatical genius who doesn't know how to fault find, I guess its a balance, and you can learn both skills whilst at college..... -
I would think when it comes to doing the mathematical side of engineering and physics (thermodynamics) it would be mostly differentials and integrals rather than logs and functions.Comment
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Yes agreed. Half of thermodynamics is understanding the principle, the other half the maths, which is not so difficult for most.
Its the further maths classes we did which got a bit tricky. But I also know the Foundation Degree Engineers did more mathmatics for the control systems module, in the final phase, but not really sure what that involves.....Comment
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Yeah I done Higher Maths in 5th year at school and got a C which was 2 years ago and I'm doing the Foundation Degree! Yeah I though I'd brush up on my maths incase they hit us with a surprise test when we start! And yeah I was told by my Grandad that that he was taught formulas that you would never use!
Cheers!Comment
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Some formulas do crop up from time to time, if you want to use them, to do a more percise job, which is what you should aim for, your an engineer not a car mechanic.
At Warsash they hit us with a surprise Maths test a day or two after arriving, but it wasn't that hard, it was just to determine who should do Foundation Degree, and who HND, I actually got enough marks for FD, but only by a few percent, so my training manager recommended it'd be better i take the easier route for three years then struggle, as at the end of the day I still got the Certificate of Competency and had more of a laugh on the way.
But you sound like you have more mathmatical experience then I did when I started, you should be okay, a bit of maths revision of what you have previously learnt in the past is a good idea though. 
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Yeah that's true, I'd rather do things precise than doing it just a bit off haha! Well thats good, I just wanted an idea to what to expect instead of going blind and not having a clue
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If your teaching is anything like that at Warsash, you will be taken through EVERYTHING at a very acceptable pace with a very good teacher. Maths is not your biggest problem.....trust me.
If you've been accepted, take it as it comes, and enjoy. A cadetship is a great experience and everything is handed to you in a spoon....panic not!!!Comment
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That may be true for Deck Cadets steamer, but not always the truth with Engineer Cadets, especailly as we did the equivilant of the Deck OOW stability in our final phase in a condensed time, for our Chief Engineers exemptions. However, we are meant to be better at maths, and thats the harder part of stability and ship construction. I see you have wrote on many threads take it as it comes, relax, which is true, no reason to worry, but its also important to be assertive, and put effort in, you are meant to be training to be an officer. Doing your best, not your laziest.....Comment
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A lot of the math module is made up of stuff that the university giving out the FD has decided is the right level for that course as such there will always be bits that are totally irrelavent to the other subjects and to your job. Similarly there will be some stuff covered in other subjects that requires more math than has been covered in the module. Its just the requirements for the FD which is why you cover more stuff than the HND route whilst still being eligible for the same oral exam.
I wouldnt worry too much about learning anything new before hand but brushing up on the stuff that you should know is a good plan. As the course will start from that level, although STC doa 4 week refesher course just for fun.you can take it with a pinch of salt, but i prefer it with a nip of whiskyComment
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I don't doubt that steamer tries his hardest in all respects of training, but if you spend all your time worrying about things you will mess them up. More of a case of relax if you do the work you will be fine. I seen quite a few people fail at uni when they knew their stuff just because near exam times they spent too much time worrying and overworking rather than learning manageable chunks and still having time to chill out.Originally posted by Dosedmonkey View PostComment
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My message is simple-the college will teach you everything you need to know, when you need to know it. So for prospective cadets there is simply no need to panic about any aspect of the course before starting. If you have any areas of weakness, this will be picked up and professional teachers will steer you in the right direction.So yeah, chill out and relax-until you start college!!Comment
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