Any engineers here? How much does college engineering rank matter for career?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We spoke with practicing engineers before DS picked a school, and some schools had better placement and prestige within industry. Higher ranking schools, especially schools with high engineering rankings, had a better reputation amongst engineers.

From DS’s experience, his friends at better schools are receiving better internship opportunities - greater number of offers, better companies, and higher pay.

DS is at a higher rated school and has done two internships with leading chemical manufacturers. His friends at lower ranked schools have not done any. The number and quality of companies that are participating in the fall career fairs are notable. Also, the recruitment is frequently by alumni.

I’m not saying you cannot get a job from lower ranking schools. The difference is that the options are generally greater from schools with better reputations.

Do you mind sharing where your DS is going to school?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Everyone keeps mentioning ABET-accredited schools, which I doubt 99% of any kids applying to college ever check.

I assume any school worth $.02 is ABET-accredited...correct? I assume there are hundreds of schools in this category.

Yes ABET is common and it is MINIMAL requirements! The most rigorous schools require many more courses in math, physics and engineering than ABET does.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Everyone keeps mentioning ABET-accredited schools, which I doubt 99% of any kids applying to college ever check.

I assume any school worth $.02 is ABET-accredited...correct? I assume there are hundreds of schools in this category.

Have not counted them, but probably most decent engineering programs will be ABET accredited.

If a engineering program is not ABET accredited and the school is not MIT or Caltech or Stanford (or similar) then student should go somewhere else. It is an easy check to make.

Is there an example of a school that anyone has realistically ever heard of that is not ABET-accredited?

Washington & Lee is not accredited. https://www.wlu.edu/academics/areas-of-study/engineering

They seem to indicate that they are not accredited by design. They also list what would appear to be good job outcomes, but who knows.

Accreditation
Throughout the history of our engineering program, we have not sought accreditation through the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET). This decision is rooted in our desire to provide our students with a broad range of courses in engineering while allowing students the flexibility to focus on their interests. Though our objectives are in harmony with accredited engineering programs, we believe it is our student-centered approach that affords majors the unique foundation upon which they build success after graduation.

Outcomes
Employment: UTC Aerospace Systems, Clark Construction, Raytheon, Turner Construction Company, National Grid, Whiting-Turner Construction Company, Apptech Solutions and Space-X.

Graduate School: Carnegie Mellon, UC Berkeley, University of Virginia, Northwestern University, Columbia University, Georgia Tech, University of Tennessee, Virginia Tech and Vanderbilt University.

[Anonymous]

It doesn’t matter. Employers of top companies that hire engineers want the smart guys (and girls) can problem solve, have high work ethic, and aren’t too socially awkward to work well with others.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We spoke with practicing engineers before DS picked a school, and some schools had better placement and prestige within industry. Higher ranking schools, especially schools with high engineering rankings, had a better reputation amongst engineers.

From DS’s experience, his friends at better schools are receiving better internship opportunities - greater number of offers, better companies, and higher pay.

DS is at a higher rated school and has done two internships with leading chemical manufacturers. His friends at lower ranked schools have not done any. The number and quality of companies that are participating in the fall career fairs are notable. Also, the recruitment is frequently by alumni.

I’m not saying you cannot get a job from lower ranking schools. The difference is that the options are generally greater from schools with better reputations.

My DH and his engineering friends would disagree with you. There is a huge demand for engineers and they are struggling to fill.positions. they had a hard time filling internships. what is more i.portant that actual school.are grades.
My husband has been trying to fill a junior level mechanical engineer position and as soon as he makes an offer, another company outbids him. We are talking $130k+ for 2-5 years experience.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We spoke with practicing engineers before DS picked a school, and some schools had better placement and prestige within industry. Higher ranking schools, especially schools with high engineering rankings, had a better reputation amongst engineers.

From DS’s experience, his friends at better schools are receiving better internship opportunities - greater number of offers, better companies, and higher pay.

DS is at a higher rated school and has done two internships with leading chemical manufacturers. His friends at lower ranked schools have not done any. The number and quality of companies that are participating in the fall career fairs are notable. Also, the recruitment is frequently by alumni.

I’m not saying you cannot get a job from lower ranking schools. The difference is that the options are generally greater from schools with better reputations.

Do you mind sharing where your DS is going to school?

They stated "higher ranked" engineering school. If you are wondering the higher ranked engineering schools see below

https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/rankings/engineering-doctorate?_sort=rank&_sortDirection=asc

[Anonymous]

JMU only offers a general degree in engineering. Also is a red flag, see the earlier posts on this.

[Anonymous]

I am in the “school name does not matter for a career” camp, at least for engineering. But one thing that does matter is job fairs and links between campuses and employers.

The job fair at Michigan Engineering or Georgia Tech for example will look a lot different than at another school that has a less robust program even if still ABET credentialed.

So not a deal breaker for one or another, but a small item to consider.

[Anonymous]

I live in GA. UGA has a relatively young Engineering program that is ABET. My GA Tech kid tells me that GA Tech Mech Engineers initial salaries average $20,000 more than their counterparts at UGA. THe access to a variety of engineering labs, and many well funded student competition teams (robots, solar car, etc.) allows the students who want to, to build portfolios of engineering projects that have been attractive to employers.

[Anonymous]

PP, the UGA kids are getting hired though. It's not like any of them have to worry about unemployment.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:JMU only offers a general degree in engineering. Also is a red flag, see the earlier posts on this.

+++++++yes

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I live in GA. UGA has a relatively young Engineering program that is ABET. My GA Tech kid tells me that GA Tech Mech Engineers initial salaries average $20,000 more than their counterparts at UGA. THe access to a variety of engineering labs, and many well funded student competition teams (robots, solar car, etc.) allows the students who want to, to build portfolios of engineering projects that have been attractive to employers.

Look at the course requirements at GT vs UGA. Despite both being ABET they are quite different. ABET is not a high bar.
W&L's "engineering" is not close to ABET: they could not be certified if they wanted to.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:PP, the UGA kids are getting hired though. It's not like any of them have to worry about unemployment.

looking at data, two of the engineering bachelor's degree programs have 8, 12% unemployment. That is not great for an E school

[Anonymous]

What engineering specialty has the most job opportunities?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What engineering specialty has the most job opportunities?

Opinions will vary on this.

In part, that answer might be driven b geography. In silicon valley, there is high demand for people to do logic design, logic verification, board design, write and test software. SpaceX in Hawthorne wants all of those, but they also need MechEs and AeroEs. In the midwest, farm machinery firms need more MechEs, and some engineers with robotics experience.