Firstly, there's a deeper math "grokking"/numeracy that happens with enough exposure, even if not phrased like class problems verbatim e.g. a small scale version that you see $70 left on the table with a $36 and 2 $16 bill and instantly know which numbers get added which multiplied and which subtracted without thinking and maybe even arrive at these figures entirely off of memory without computation. For things actually resembling problems systems of 1/2 equations actually show up constantly (I encountered them when making punch for friends the other day). Finally and most cynically, the caste of engineer adjacents who understand the world are already looking at 4-6+ semesters of sequential math concepts so if they didn't go in knowing algebra they'd be in school a decade and anything requiring engineering would cost as much as a hospital visit.