Anonymous
Post 11/25/2025 11:53     Subject: ABET Engineering Schools
Anonymous wrote:I think you have to like the school. It isn't all about the price tag or whether or not it is an ABET program.


Mostly agree that fit matters.
Anonymous
Post 11/25/2025 11:33     Subject: ABET Engineering Schools
I think you have to like the school. It isn't all about the price tag or whether or not it is an ABET program.

Anonymous
Post 11/25/2025 11:01     Subject: ABET Engineering Schools
Purdue is a good school, no doubt, but can be hard to get accepted for engineering from OOS. So very important to have good backup options.

UIUC also is very good, same caveat.
Anonymous
Post 11/25/2025 08:54     Subject: Re:ABET Engineering Schools
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:How does a non-engineering parent determine a quality engineering program if the student cannot get into the top ranked programs? Do they exist?
Look at ranking websites? Which ones?


The ranking websites ignore rigor. Quality is subjective any day of the week.

When I am hiring engineers (or cS grads), I am happy to hire anyone with a mix of As and Bs from at least any of these VA engineering programs (GMU, ODU, UVA, VCU, VT) and also from either UMCP or UMBC --PROVIDED they took the more rigorous electives on offer in their chosen specific degree.

In my experience all of those programs have good grad school options also.

I don't have time or space to outline elective examples for all degrees. As EE examples, EE upper-level electives in E&M Fields, Digital Communications, Logic Programming (Verilog, VHDL), and real-time (or embedded) systems would be a few of the courses I consider rigorous.


NP here. Thank you so much for this. I am a NoVA non-engineer whose daughter is applying to engineering programs. She has been accepted to ODU, VCU, and University of Alabama Huntsville and is still waiting to hear from GMU, VT, UVA, and Notre Dame. She is most interested in aerospace at this time (due to her experience in Civil Air Patrol) but has been advised to pursue mechanical because it is more flexible. Basically, though, overall, she wants a program that leads to internships, co-ops, *jobs.* And of course it would be most cost-effective if those summer co-ops, jobs were in *NoVA* so she would not have to pay for summer housing and could live at HOME for free.

Help? Any insight from here?


If your kid wants to work in aerospace, major in aero. While mechanical engineering will open doors to most aerospace jobs, there are distinct advantages to an aero degree and attending a school with that specialization. If your kid wants to work in HVAC, any ABET accredited program will suffice. Interested in hypersonics? You'll probably need a top-tier program.

Regarding your school list, I'd suggest adding Purdue and applying before the EA deadline. Since you already have an Indiana school (ND) and a large public university (VT), why not include one of the largest and arguably best aero programs in the country? My son is an aero major at Purdue and loves it.