When An Engineering Education Doesn’t Teach You How To Really Make Anything
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A reflection on the gap between engineering university education and real-world manufacturing skills. Drawing from personal experience and a conversation with a fellow graduate, the author argues that engineering degrees over-index on theory and academic preparation while neglecting practical design-for-manufacture skills. Recent graduates often produce designs that cannot be volume manufactured, while apprentices can. The author proposes a teaching method using intentionally flawed PCB designs that students must diagnose and fix through multiple manufacturing spins with inexpensive PCB assembly houses — mirroring real-world iteration without requiring group projects or industry placements.
