What engineering schools should DC add to their considerlist?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What about CNU?

They have a limited set of engineering majors -- computer engineering and electrical engineering. Other majors in the "engineering school" are computer science, cybersecurity, information science, physics.

True, but CNU actually is a fine option if DC is interested in any of those degrees. Admissions to CNU are a bit easier than say VPI or UVA and its an in-state public for Virginians. ODU in Norfolk is another less heralded option for VA in-state Engineering. Both used to primarily be commuter schools, but now have more campus life and out of area students.

So CNU's program is new? Do they plan to expand to offer more engineering majors?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Engineer here. There are really no bad engineering programs because they tend to weed less qualified or motivated students out. The difference between elite schools (eg MIT, Stanford) and everyone else is that the weeding out happens during admissions. And of course those elite schools have great networks,facilities, etc. But your child will get a solid education from any program. I say this having attended both a normal school for undergrad and an "elite" school for grad school.

Have you considered co-op schools, like Drexel or Northeastern? These programs will allow your child to actually try out engineering for six months at a time, in a form of extended paid internship. Really good experience and provides your child with info on whether engineering will be a good career fit (vs just class study) and whether they should consider a different type of engineering (eg comp vs electrical) based on the type of work. We engineers call this a feed back loop

This is good advice. I would add that a lot of the schools that don't emphasize coop quite as much as these two still may have a sizeable coop program.

For the right kid, this is a great option!

CWRU has a robust coop program

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Engineer here. There are really no bad engineering programs because they tend to weed less qualified or motivated students out. The difference between elite schools (eg MIT, Stanford) and everyone else is that the weeding out happens during admissions. And of course those elite schools have great networks,facilities, etc. But your child will get a solid education from any program. I say this having attended both a normal school for undergrad and an "elite" school for grad school.

Have you considered co-op schools, like Drexel or Northeastern? These programs will allow your child to actually try out engineering for six months at a time, in a form of extended paid internship. Really good experience and provides your child with info on whether engineering will be a good career fit (vs just class study) and whether they should consider a different type of engineering (eg comp vs electrical) based on the type of work. We engineers call this a feed back loop

This post is the best advice on this thread. Not surprising that it's coming from an actual engineer. I'm not an engineer but have 2 sons who are. What I found is that with engineering, you don't have to nitpick about rankings as much as other majors. Like this poster said, other than the tippy top schools, most schools are fine and will get you where you want to be. Both my sons work at big companies and there is a wide range of engineers from all types of schools. It's not like, for example, law firms where you'll find only top tier schools at the big firms and they're impossible to get into unless you're from a top school (or very top of your class). So you don't have to be hyper-focused on the engineering ranking/program. It's ok to consider location, overall school vibe etc. Especially just in case your dc decides not to major in engineering (which many do). A lot of these top engineering programs are housed in schools that are mediocre in other majors. And except for the very few kids who somehow know exactly which area they want to be in, a school that helps with internships/co-ops is definitely helpful. I know kids who graduated in engineering without having done a single internship (because of lack of initiative on their part and lack of help on school's part). Those are the kids who graduate and struggle to find jobs.

[Anonymous]

No, it doesn't matter what the specific major is. This is undergrad. Just pick a good engineering school.

[Anonymous]

If DC wants a specific field of engineering (e.g., Civil, Mechanical, Aerospace, Electrical, Computer, whatever else) then important to verify that any school of interest actually offers that degree. Any given engineering school might or might not offer a particular flavor of engineering degree.

Also, the PP who observed that most engineering schools are rigorous is correct. I do not know of any “easy” engineering school.

It does matter for employment, however, which field of engineering one goes into and also which set of electives one takes. Someone with an EE degree is not a substitute for Mech E work, to give a contrived example. An EE with electives in communications is different from an EE with electives in motors/power, to give another contrived example. Employers are looking for specific degrees and also for engineering electives which closely relate to the position being filled.

[Anonymous]

You should also research carefully the retention rate. Some schools are notorious for weeding kids out. You also need to consider whether there's a cap on the number of kids allowed in each field of engineering. For example, some schools (I believe Purdue & Va Tech are like this) do not directly admit to the different majors. Instead, you take general engineering courses in your first year and then apply for your choice of engineering but it's based on gpa so you may not get into your choice if there are too many kids applying to that field. So if your dc has a specific engineering he/she has in mind, it could be a gamble to go to a school like this.

[Anonymous]

Ohio State University

[Anonymous]

University at Buffalo

[Anonymous]

https://www.collegetransitions.com/dataverse/top-feeders-engineering/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You should also research carefully the retention rate. Some schools are notorious for weeding kids out. You also need to consider whether there's a cap on the number of kids allowed in each field of engineering. For example, some schools (I believe Purdue & Va Tech are like this) do not directly admit to the different majors. Instead, you take general engineering courses in your first year and then apply for your choice of engineering but it's based on gpa so you may not get into your choice if there are too many kids applying to that field. So if your dc has a specific engineering he/she has in mind, it could be a gamble to go to a school like this.

Researching the retention rate does not seem to be an easy task. We visited Cornell recently for a general tour and the Econ major tour guide cited a statistic showing a very low retention rate for chemical engineering while the glossy engineering materials we got from the Yang Welcome Center indicated that 86% of kids who enroll in the college of engineering graduate within 4 years. The only school website I’ve found that has somewhat deducible engineering retention rates is Purdue and there the rates seem to be much lower but among the highest of the various schools that comprise that university.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Case Western Reserve, Johns Hopkins, Carnegie Mellon, RICE, Uof Michigan, MIT.

Slightly off course, is John Hopkins good for computer science?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Which is your instate? I think it’s crazy to pay OOS cost for engineering majors. If MD, go to UMD. If VA, try VTech. If he is interested in research, bigger schools offer more research opportunities. Research exp is also necessary if he wants to get PHD at some point. I am an engineer and my son got his bs from UMD then PHD from MIT. Just as a reference.

your answer isn't helpful because:

a) Some schools weed people out so getting in is just half the battle. Why do that?
b) Kids can get merit aid at OOS flagships and make the cost comparable. They don't even have to be tippy top students.
c) Not everyone can get into their own state's flagship.

Glad your son is so special that he can get a PhD from MIT. Truly happy for you that he is so talented. Who needs advice if their kid is the top of the class? It is the rest of us that are looking for more varied opportunities.

a. getting in not half the battle. if you have hard time getting in, eng is not for you
b. instate cost about 25k, OOS cost about 45k/privates cost 65K or so. tell me which school given that much merit for middle of the pack students
c. see a.

"tell me which school given that much merit for middle of the pack students?"

- Never said "middle of the pack", but simply not tippy top.


My kid had nearly straight As the last three years, SATs like the OP's kid, and good but not world class ECs - not top 10% at her school but plenty darn good. She is happily attending an OOS flagship that came in at around $30k in a part of the country with much more appeal than Blacksburg (which would not have accepted her). She won't get weeded out because the school does less of that.

- Not getting in to VT doesn't mean you can't make it as an engineer. Don't be silly. Stop with the generalizing.

Blacksburg is also a depressing-looking place. Not every 18 year old wants to live in a place like that. I am white but have white and non-white kids (divorced and remarried). I've been told by my non-white child and their non-white friends that if you're not white, Blacksburg feels very hick-ish and MAGA!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Engineer here. There are really no bad engineering programs because they tend to weed less qualified or motivated students out. The difference between elite schools (eg MIT, Stanford) and everyone else is that the weeding out happens during admissions. And of course those elite schools have great networks,facilities, etc. But your child will get a solid education from any program. I say this having attended both a normal school for undergrad and an "elite" school for grad school.

Have you considered co-op schools, like Drexel or Northeastern? These programs will allow your child to actually try out engineering for six months at a time, in a form of extended paid internship. Really good experience and provides your child with info on whether engineering will be a good career fit (vs just class study) and whether they should consider a different type of engineering (eg comp vs electrical) based on the type of work. We engineers call this a feed back loop

But those schools do not guarantee co-ops, do they? Like internships, some get them and some do not. Not sure why people say "go to a co-op school" like you're handed a co-op as part of the education. If you go to a co-op school and struggle to find a co-op, I suspect you look like a failure and feel like one. And there are all types of reasons why qualified people could struggle to find one. Same way not all qualified people get admitted to schools. More applicants than seats.

[Anonymous]

Auburn for aersspace

Colorado, Colorado state, Pitt,

[Anonymous]

Olin in massachusetts, rose hullman in Indiana, Florida tech