<p>So from what I've gathered, it's actually pretty common for engineer majors to graduate in 4+ years. I realized with the track I'm on, I CAN graduate in 4 years, though I would have to overload my courseload a bit. Would it be alright if I just take an extra year to a. slightly dilute my courseload, and b. take other interesting classes as an undergrad, or is this frowned upon by grad schools? I think taking the extra year would allow me to accomplish things, probably result in a higher GPA, and also give me more of a life outside of academics, though I wouldn't hesitate at all finishing in 4 years if graduaing late is detrimental to my chances by any means.</p>
<p>Oh, and obviously, there's the cost part, but other than that, I can't really think of any other disadvantage.</p>
<p>Taking an extra semester in school has a cost disadvantage, as you noted (check whether any need or merit financial aid continues for an extra semester in school). Entering the workforce later also has a theoretical disadvantage in lifetime earnings (since you will be working several fewer months), though changes in economic conditions can affect that (graduating in the bottom of a recession can mean spending the extra months unemployed instead of working).</p>
<p>The graduate schools’ application and admission cycles may be based on a spring graduation, so if you take nine (or seven) instead of eight semesters, you will likely want to fit in a co-op job semester in somewhere to make it all line up.</p>
<p>cost is not too much of a big factor in my book. im more concerned about mastering the material properly during my undergrad stay and also taking into account if graduating late can pose any other major disadvantage. it seems the general consensus there isn’t any, though if anyone else would like to shed more light on this, by all means, please do so.</p>
<p>I’m in the same situation in that I can graduate in 4 (actually - could do 3 1/2) years but I think I will stay an extra semester or two because I want to take other classes in other departments in the university, and not take just engineering classes.</p>
<p>Nah no disadvantages, although personally, I wouldn’t do it, but that has to do with my personality. I hate putting things off, I generally like doing the hardest thing and taking few classes a day sounds like a waste of time, but thats just me. Many people do it, and there is no disadvantage. Only problem as you mentioned is money, so if thats a problem you have to consider it, but otherwise taking an extra year is probably better as you get to take some more classes, have some more fun and have more time to do hw and get a better GPA. You pretty much explained it yourself, so this is just some reassurance.</p>
<p>Check with your school also whether they have a policy that discourages taking more than 8 semesters or 12 quarters (e.g. having to petition for an extra semester or quarter).</p>
<p>Also, a lot of engineering majors graduate in more than 4 calendar years due to co-op jobs during one or more of their semesters. But they may still only be doing 8 semesters or 12 quarters of school.</p>
<p>Money. You spend an extra years worth of tuition and you’re a year behind in your career. Depending on your university, that’s an extra $10,000 - $40,000, which is a lot. A lot of people say that taking less classes will get you a better GPA, but personally I disagree. It seems like the more classes I take at a time the better grades I get since I’m more focused on getting stuff done. Less classes can cause you (me) to slack off a little.</p>
<p>But if you don’t have an internship and you’re about to graduate, it might be better to stay an extra semester in the fall to get one or else you won’t find a job. Maybe tell the school that you want to take more technical electives to better your understanding of a certain topic.</p>
<p>I don’t get the point of calculating how much “could” be lost over one year. There are WAY too many variables to predict that.</p>
<p>Student #1 could graduate in 4 years and get a job with Employer #1 using technology/skills that pay X amount.</p>
<p>Student #2 could graduate in 5 years and get a job with Employer #2 using technology/skills that pay Y amount where Y is much greater than X due to supply/demand.</p>
<p>We don’t even know about sign-on bonuses or 401K matching differences between the employers. We don’t know how much are the contracts worth of each employers. We don’t know if the students are…hell, just too many factors.</p>