My experience of my Aero Eng degree at the University of Manchester:
You'll never understand all of it. You'll never learn all of it. There's no getting round it, it's f***ing hard.
I found that it was all about learning how to pass exams. For this reason, for me the final year was by far the easiest 'cos I'd sussed the exam technique.
Go to every lecture. Learn the lecturer's style. Come revision time, my notes were riddled with post-it notes labelled 'Possible exam question', based solely on the attitude of the lecturer during that topic. I revised those topics ruthlessly the night before, and what do you know? They invariably came up. The signs are there if you watch for them...
Some people on my course worked damn hard and probably know a lot more about Aero Eng than I do, yet came out with 2:2's and 3rds. Me, I got a 2:1, did less work than anyone I know (apart from the drop-outs of course, and there were plenty of those) and had a great time along the way. And as you'll increasingly find out, the stuff you learn at uni is more than likely going to be next to useless in your career - you're going to end up a pilot (fingers crossed) or a manager (yeah, great) in the end anyway and the qualification means so much more than the technical knowledge.
There you have it - the bluffers guide to a degree. Makes a change from giving away BA's secrets now, doesn't it?
WGW
PS: To back up Lady Heath's retort to the lack of pretty women comment, I've met her myself and she's gorgeous...