It seems that if you try to play this game like a straight up shooter, you get owned hard. The VATS system doesn't seem to be very helpful as of yet and the people seem to just come in packs and I just feel cheated at times. Are there any ways of preparing for what lies ahead in the wasteland? I just started heading to the radio station and can't get away from strong groups of enemies.

You need to level up. Keep armor and weapons repaired. The issue with this game is if you do not focus on weapon skills you can die easily.  
 
Use energy weapons. They are super strong. 
 
I have over 400 hours in the PC version of this game. Mods and DLC combined. Try to level up a bit more before moving on. 

" @The_Laughing_Man: can you level up easy early on? do i have to do side quests? "

If you're good/neutral aligned, I'd recommend you go to Moira at Craterside Supply in Megaton and begin the "Wasteland Survival Guide" sidequest. It'll teach you the ropes pretty well, and give you plenty of XP. If you take my advice, make sure to do the bonus objectives when it's not too much trouble; there's some sweet perks that come along with them. 
 
If Moira rubs you the wrong way or you're evil, though, and you turned away from Megaton and never looked back, just do some exploring. You need some knowledge of the map to survive out there. And if you ever see anything that looks like the devil off in the horizon, you better run like hell.

Stay away from downtown D.C. for a bit.  I made the mistake of trying to go into the city after I left Megaton and I would constantly get beaten up by Super Mutants.  
 
It may be best to go to Megaton, get a feel for what's going on.  From there do a bit of wandering and level up on the random side quests you'll certainly encounter.  If you're getting killed very often then turn the difficulty down a bit.  I did that myself and it made the game much more enjoyable.

" And if you ever see anything that looks like the devil off in the horizon, you better run like hell. "

" @Little_Socrates said:

" And if you ever see anything that looks like the devil off in the horizon, you better run like hell. "

Word. "

Take some time to scavange, and sell stuff for caps. 
Also, dont spread your points too thin, you'll basically become good at nothing if you try to power up everything. ie, focus on one type of weapon stat like guns, and avoid putting points into energy weapons. If you spread the points to everything available, you'll end up with a character that really doesn't have any strengths.

" @Rayfield said:

" @Little_Socrates said:

" And if you ever see anything that looks like the devil off in the horizon, you better run like hell. "

Word. "

What exactly are we talking about here?   "

Do u have the DLC? if u do.. if u do operation anchorage before anything. it sorta makes everything cake. since early game power armor!

If you see someone with a spinning beard, don't be alarmed. Everythings cool.

Be careful when walking over a hill or around a corner. 
 
You need to make sure that you don't spread your points out too much when leveling up. Focus on three main skills and stick with them, like small guns, lock pick, and repair. Get those up pretty high then bring up a couple other skills.

" If you see someone with a spinning beard, don't be alarmed. Everythings cool. "

if your early on then dnt take guys head on unless you have to. even if they know you're there, get round behind them, sprint up to one, go into vats and shotgun to the head. very good tactic. 

Is it necessary to invest in weapons skills? Ideally I'd like to put my points in the Intelligence/science type stuff so I can get more out of the conversations, but I also don't want to just get wrecked in every fight I come across.

Just wait until you get Fawkes, then you don't have to worry about anything anymore.