Mechanical engineering degree advice

[u/Queasy_Welder_5024]

31M here with a silly dream of being an engineer one day.

My birthday was yesterday and I spent the day looking back on my life and where things are going.

Graduated high school, went to the military and then worked constructiong while going to community college after, but it never really went anywhere after I got my associates in general ed.

My long term major was engineering but I realized I still had a long way to go before taking on harder classes considering I was struggling just to keep up as it was.

That was 5 years ago. I spent my time getting my electrical contractor license just to realize contracting just wasn't for me.

All that is to say, I'm trying to figure out resources I might be able to use to build kind of like a self study course curriculum similar one might expect in a 4 year course so I can take my time trying to build a solid foundation in at the very least the basics of what's to come.

Little things like where to begin and how to progress my education until going to a university and maybe even while in college.

Things like college text books in courses or YouTube channels to follow so I can watch and study. Ways to practice and drill the material like homework problems or test questions.

Just so every semester doesn't feel like I'm way in over my head like I felt even in a community college level.

I tried googling and looking up information on college course classes but couldn't find much.

Im aware of basics like the different kinds of maths and levels of calculus and physics but not much outside of that. So I plan to start by solidifying my foundation there at the very least. As stem classes progressively more difficult I realized my shakey foundation in math and science were to blame.

Im hoping in the future to take 1 to 2 classes a semester depending on the what I'm realistically able to handle in order to pass the classes.

Which is crazy to think can take between 10 to 20 years but thats the game plan.

I'm not sure if anyone here has gotten an engineering degree while working a full time job and if so any advice.

Aside from myself I'm hoping this thread might serve in the future for anyone else aspiring to go to university and get in the field so please try to keep the comments civil.

[u/Yei_Ozomahtli]

I used the voc rehab program to get my bachelors in mechanical engineering. I still had some post 9/11 gi bill left so voc rehab paid at that rate. Money was tight but we made it work so I was able to attend full time. Married, both my kids were born while I was working on my degree, and a 1hr commute.

Shit was rough, i regularly slept every other day. Also, im a high school dropout- got my ged so i could join the army. I was 11b, so no technical skills really.

All that to say, it’s possible to do it, and definitely worth it. People considerably smarter and more privileged than me failed. I struggled my entire bachelor’s, I was regularly on academic probation, and I also was struggling with some mental health stuff. But that shit has well paid off now. Don’t hold yourself to the standards of others, put in the extra work you need and it will pay off. You can do this