1st off, where are you going to school? If you are not in yet, try to get into Kettering University. Probably the best automotive engineering school around. I wanted to go there, but could not afford the 22k per year tuition.
The good thing w/ my school, the first 2 yrs is all auto classes, and the last are all engineering classes. Take the classes on what you want to do. I took 3 engine classes alone, where i learned all the math involved in design, flow...everything. I then took a suspension geometry class and HVAC class and so on.
If you could find a community college that offers automotive technology courses, try picking up a few per year there. It's cheap and you'll learn what you need to know.
Like previously stated, language is important. I wanted either German or Japanese in high school, and only German was offered. It turned out now that I continued with it through college and picked up an easy minor.
-Tim
