Colleges and such.

I'm at that point now where I'm about ready to start applying to colleges. I'm looking for some advice from the rocketry community who got some kind of degree in engineering. What college did you go to? What did you like / didn't like about it? Did you apply for any engineering related scholarships? Did your engineering degree help you get a job quickly in a field directly related to your degree?

Not exactly sure right now, but I'm very interested in mechanical engineering or materials engineering with an emphasis on composites (shocker, I know...). Even though it's a rocketeer's stereotype I haven't really looked into aerospace at all, although it's still on my radar.

Any advise will be appreciated. Off to do more calculus homework!

Alex

Bradley university is great for engineering.. Caterpillar is located right there and supports the programs... Peoria, IL... PM if you want more info

I graduated from University of South Carolina, more for proximity (I was stationed in Beaufort, SC in the USMC). Great school but not a national engineering draw.
Several friends and colleagues have degrees from Missouri University of Science and Technology (formerly Rolla). Super school with great programs.
I am nudging my daughter there for the architectural engineering program.
Good luck with your applications and decision.

My son goes to Central Florida for computer programming. He is transferring to Iowa State at winter break, which is very well known for engineering. Good luck in your decision!


Launching rockets (or missiles in my case) is so easy a chimp could do it. Read a step, do a step, eat a banana.

Sent from my iPad Air using Rocketry Forum.

My father taught physics at the local school- they had a 3-2 engineering program with another location. In this case, the 3 part is at a top quality public liberal arts school. Yes, you spend a lot of time in the mathematics classroom and the physics department... but students had an opportunity to get an education in things beyond their major. This is valuable.... learn to communicate, write, analyze, appreciate, and learn.

I was a Mathematics major at Hamilton College... and remember a foundations of language class I took in Anthropology, Comic Fiction, a teaching course, photography, history of the caribbean slave trade, an intro philosophy, music....

N

Jarhead said:

Several friends and colleagues have degrees from Missouri University of Science and Technology (formerly Rolla). Super school with great programs.
I am nudging my daughter there for the architectural engineering program.
Good luck with your applications and decision.

Click to expand...

I work for the University of Arkansas, and we do have a great engineering program...but as Jarhead mentions...MS&T is exceptionally focused in this area. Just got back from a conference there and I always marvel at all of the things they have going on...pretty amazing place and wonderful people!

I mean, how much more fun and exciting could you get than THIS?!?
https://explosives.mst.edu/explosivesprograms/

I went to (and still go to as a grad student) Georgia Tech. We've got top rated engineering programs and lots of hands-on opportunities. We've also got (what I believe to be) one of the nation's only university recreational rocketry clubs. If you want more info on Tech, or come to visit and want to check out our rocket stuff (or really anything else), let me know via PM.

I went to RPI in Troy, NY. Got my job straight from college and have been there 36 years so far.

I found both the education to be excellent and the extracurricular activities most enjoyable. If anything my biggest beef was the academic work interfered with my extracurricular activities

Harvey Mudd is an awesome school. Work hard, play hard, fly rockets. The professors are all incredible instructors and aren't the all-research types who slack on teaching. The best teacher at my grad school would not even be average at Mudd.

I went to Texas A&M and got a BS in Computer Science, which I think is a good option because it allows you to work in pretty much any industry. Everyone needs computer people. It was a good school. All the tradition stuff can be a bit much at times if you don't get super into it, which I never did. It's a pretty big university and I didn't like how impersonal most of the classes seemed until I got into upper level, but once there I found the teachers very helpful.

For aerospace and aeronautical engineering Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University is the place to go. With so many ties in the industry you won't leave without a job with a couple internships. I just started here a month ago (the Prescott Campus) and it is absolutely incredible. I believe the faculty here has an average of 30years in the industry before coming here and it is so cool to talk to them during office hours and ask about their experience. Because of their past industry experience they can literally call up current employees and recommend interns.

I am in love with my school.

What ever school you choose I hope you love it as much as I do here!

Recent article from USA Today...

https://college.usatoday.com/2014/08/20/the-top-10-engineering-colleges-in-the-u-s/

US News data ...

Mechanical related engineering ...

https://colleges.usnews.rankingsand...ges/rankings/engineering-doctorate-mechanical

Aerospace related engineering ...

https://colleges.usnews.rankingsand...octorate-aerospace-aeronautical-astronautical

Greg

... materials.

https://colleges.usnews.rankingsand...eges/rankings/engineering-doctorate-materials

Greg

jpummil said:

Recent article from USA Today...

https://college.usatoday.com/2014/08/20/the-top-10-engineering-colleges-in-the-u-s/

Click to expand...

Stevens isn't that great as a place of learning itself, but the career center is superb (got me my current job) and that could be why it did well on that list.

This is less a comment about a particular school in general, more of a bit of general advice....

I went to the University of Toronto for my undergrad engineering degree (returned as a grad student), and the biggest thing I would recommend is that you are sure to avoid debt as much as possible. I worked to pay for my own tuition and living during the summers and I took a year off between 3rd and 4th year to get some work experience, and graduating debt free is honestly such a privilege. Many of my friends from undergrad are graduating with over $50k in debt (the international students even more!) and are struggling with a job market that's not recovering as fast as the government wants you to believe that it is. A lot of them are going back to school (hurrah, more debt) to try to enter the market with higher earning potential..... I feel for them and it's just a downward spiral when you get to that point.

Personally, after doing 5+ years of post secondary, I would honestly recommend that if you don't have the $$ in your pocket to pay for it without getting loans, work a couple years and see if you actually want to go. I'm not asking you to post your financial situation on the internet of course... I find that our modern culture forces high school graduates to enter university en masse when a good job would be more beneficial and more satisfying for probably 50% of them. If I would go back to choose again, I would probably go to a technical school for a year or so to get some practical training and get out working right away. I enjoy a good project and being able to sit down at the end of the day and know that I made/built something myself and that I'm proud of XYZ work that I did. As a rocket guy I'm assuming you are somewhat the same. So yeah, that's my 2cents.