Getting an Engineering Degree

[EliteNinja]

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(1) I'm going to have to relearn math. It's been well over 10 years since I took a math course or did much of anything complicated. I might even have to start back before Calculus.

This was the biggest problem for the people I know who have attempted this.

One guy wanted to re-take his math courses, but was not allowed to do so since he already had credit for them. He ended up taking them at a local community college. It was a bureaucratic nightmare with the university, since they didn't allow part-time freshman engineering students, but he was able to pull it off because he already had a degree.

The other guy assumed that all the calc would come back to him once he started working with it. This turned out not to be the case. He would need several hours of tutoring a day. His friends with math backgrounds would tremble when they heard the phone ring at 2AM. It took him a semester to get back up to speed.

Going back to get a second degree is tough. Engineering is tough: an engineering degree requires a different game strategy than an Econ degree, with the possible exception of some of the rigorous micro BS's. If you want to start it part-time, you might consider taking the engineering-level calc classes, and seeing how it goes. (An engineering degree requires a different calc sequence than many econ degrees.)

JMO

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Man, I took all the lower level Maths two times.
Differentiation, Integration, and Linear Algebra.

I still struggle with Math nowadays.

The degree is worth it.

But Mechanical Engineers don't get the most fun jobs. A lot of air conditioning/ heating system design/maintenance work out there. Seems pretty boring to me.

I'm in Materials Engineering/Science. Much cooler.

[Patrick del Poker Grande]

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But Mechanical Engineers don't get the most fun jobs. A lot of air conditioning/ heating system design/maintenance work out there. Seems pretty boring to me.

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This all depends. Yes there are a lot of HVAC jobs out there, but there are also a lot of very cool jobs out there for a good ME. You're describing the 'problem' that MEs have a very large range of knowledge that's applicable to a very large range of jobs. Less qualified people get less desireable jobs. It all depends on you.

[gvibes]

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Gvibes: Bingo. I'm a litigator. I actually have only a marginal interest in getting a PTO number because I'm a little long in the tooth to start prosecuting applications (IOW, if I could do it I would but I don't need to). My interest has really been more sparked by the conversations I've had with engineers in the course of my work.

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Honestly, from my one summer internship doing IP lit (I know, huge experience - talk to me in a couple of years), I don't think it's worth it.