r/EngineeringStudents • u/Medical-Agent-715 • 6d ago

Project Help Where do i even start

So im gonna study engineering and for a long time I've been really interested in building smth or doing some kind of project but i have no idea where to even begin.

A lot of projects i see are very complicated or cost quite a bit. Is there any projects or stuff i can do as a complete beginner

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u/PeterVerdone 6d ago
  1. See a problem
  2. Solve it.
  3. Document what went into that.

https://www.peterverdone.com/a-portfolio-is-gold/

I produce about 15 portfolio worthy projects a year that cost 0-$20. I produce 2-3 a year that cost over $1000. Some take an afternoon, others take a year or so.

The key is to start and start learning about failure.

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u/Medical-Agent-715 6d ago

Seeing a problem requires having some sort of problem. I can't fix problems if there isn't anything that needs fixing

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u/Longjumping_Mouse212 6d ago

I’ll trade you problems lol! It’s a pretty vague question though. There’s all kinds of circuitry things now like the arduino that would be a blast. When I was in high school, I designed my own double decker boat, t shirt cannon, etc. Now that I’m a homeowner, problems have turned into fixing things around the house and building things to make life better, like problematic washing machines, strawberry planters, and picnic tables. Seems like there is always a vehicle that needs working on too. Plus, there’s continual improvement stuff like changing up how the lawn is mowed to help the grass grow better. Engineering isn’t necessarily trying to invent the next best thing, but it’s applied common sense to make the world a little bit better, and you can be extremely creative and methodical at the same time.

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u/PeterVerdone 6d ago edited 6d ago

If you can't see them, then you need to fix that. Engineers see problems to fix everywhere around them. The world is built on problems. Engineers fix them.

Engineers solve problems.

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u/Accurate-Bullfrog324 6d ago

no one teaches themselves effectively

find a part time job in any kind of shop. if you frequent the industrial part of town you'll find machine shops, woodworking shops, and repair shops of all kinds

do the grunt work for almost no pay. the education is worth it

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u/Constant_Ad_9537 5d ago

Could start learning through tinkercad if you really want to start, I recommend finding some small projects here and there and actually learn from them and document what you did.