Hello! I was looking at Bowdoin’s 3+2 Engineering Program with Columbia. It sounds great! Especially since I’m from Maine, and my parents would never let me go to Columbia because they think it’s too far away and when I told them about this program, they said that after 3 years I would be old enough and they would let me go. Plus, I live like 28 minutes away from Bowdoin. I know these programs are somewhat controversial, so I am pretty skeptical. Here are a few of my questions:
How is Columbia with engineering? I here many people who graduate from Columbia with engineering degrees don’t even become engineers.
Is it harder to get a job straight out of college in engineering if you graduate from one of these programs? Do potential employers see you as disadvantaged if you get your engineering degree this way?
What is better, 3+2 or 4+2?
Finally, how hard is it to transfer from a school after 3 years and start over? Is it difficult to make friends at your new school this way?
Do other students judge you for doing these types of programs? Are they viewed merely as a back-door into the Ivy League?
Columbia engineering is fine. If their grads don't go into engineering, it's probably because they get more lucrative offers in other fields, such as finance or consulting.
No. Completion of the program leads to an ABET-accredited engineering BS degree. The ABET seal of approval means that the degree will be universally accepted as legit.
Don't know about 4-2 routes. It would obviously cost more, but might be more practical than a 3-2 route, because of Point 4 below.
Nobody wants to transfer out after 3 years at a top LAC. Ask Bowdoin how many of their students leave to enroll in 3-2 programs; if they average as many as one per class, I'd be surprised. Prospective LAC students are very interested in 3-2 programs; actual LAC students are not.
Probably not. The requirements to get in are strict, and few people do it in practice.
Part of going to a top engineering school are the clubs, student projects, internships, incubators and study abroad programs you will experience while there, and the other students you will meet. You also have no guarantee of admission, and likely less FA as a transfer in at 3-2 program.
@TooOld4School You actually do have a guarantee of admission as long as you complete the requirements for your major (likely physics) in 3 years, and the prerequisites for the engineering courses (which overlap) and maintain a 3.5 GPA. I don’t know how much more difficult it is to maintain a high GPA in college than in high school, but a 3.5 for me shouldn’t be too difficult.
Getting a 3.5 is a pretty high barrier vs. a 2.0-3.0 if you are directly admitted to an engineering college. I’m not disparaging your abilities, but a 3.5 at Bowdoin is a lot harder than at a typical high school so I would not take it lightly and there are unforeseen circumstances.
It’s been a long time but I was a valedictorian with a 4.5 GPA and I had a hard enough time maintaining my 3.0 in engineering school to keep my scholarships. I wouldn’t want my kid to be tied to a 3.5 requirement to keep a scholarship or transfer to a 3-2 program. What if they don’t, then what?
@azmomof3 if you don’t maintain a 3.5 GPA, you can still graduate with a bachelor’s in Physics from Bowdoin, which isn’t worth nothing. Also, the 3.5 isn’t “required” per se. If you want to get into Columbia automatically , then you would with a 3.5. If you have less than that, you have to apply, and you can be rejected, but you can also still be accepted. Also, there is a back-up plan Bowdoin also does the 3+2 with the University of Maine, so if I don’t get into the Columbia one then I would go to UMaine. So I’m not worried about getting into the 3+2 programs, I am more worried about if I would be at a disadvantage compared to someone who went to an engineering school from the beginning.
I don’t think you would be at a disadvantage for going to a 3+2 program instead of a 4 year program. The disadvantages I see of a 3+2 program in your case would be:
–Not being able to finish out a Bowdoin. My D was at a LAC and developed many close relationships with students/professors. She would have absolutely hated to leave the college one year before graduation.
–Transferring into a school for your last two years can be difficult. Friendships would have been solidly in place by then and it can be difficult to break in socially. On top of the social aspect you will have to adjust to an intensive engineering curriculum.
–An extra year of undergraduate tuition that will leave you with absolutely no advantage in your field.
–If you end up at UMaine you might be at a disadvantage in finding a job as compared to having chosen a higher ranked engineering school upfront.
If you want a LAC experience and engineering, perhaps consider some LACs that offer engineering such as Swarthmore, Lafayette, Bucknell, Union, Trinity (to name a few I can think of offhand).
@happy1 Thanks! The more I think about this concept, the more I see that it isn’t right for me. I’m definitely the type of person who would get too attached and then give up on the concept when I actually have to put it in practice. I would rather go to either a technical school or a top school that has great engineering programs.
@ucbalumnus I’m not so much worried about the cost of Bowdoin, since they have great financial aid, but I am skeptical about Columbia since they don’t offer as much financial aid for transfer students. Also, with Bowdoin, I live so close that my parents said that I could just commute, which would save 10,000 or so dollars a year. However, I don’t WANT to commute or go to a school so close to home. I love my parents, but I would like to experience life outside of that and I think living at a school so close to home or commuting would ruin the “college experience” for me. I don’t know. I might just be better off at a school that has an engineering program on its own…
Do your parents want to restrict you to colleges within commuting distance, or are they ok with you going to a residential college, but with a very limiting distance limit if NYC is outside of it?
Within Maine, there are three schools with ABET accredited engineering programs: Maine Maritime Academy, University of Maine, University of Southern Maine.
If you want an engineering degree, then the best approach is to … go to a school that offers engineering degrees.
For the record, Bowdoin normally requires all freshmen and sophomores to live in campus housing. This is typical for LACs, it’s considered part of the educational experience. They wouldn’t want you to commute, even if your parents were Bowdoin profs and your house was within walking distance of campus. You could only live off-campus as a junior or senior, although most Bowdoin students probably don’t, and those that do probably stay close by. You would not want to live half an hour away.
Tell them that your heart is set on studying engineering in California. Request info from Berkeley, Stanford, USC, UCLA, Harvey Mudd, Caltech, etc. and make sure that they see it. Then NYC will seem much closer.