<p>I am a student in NE… the field is now in a wierd position (but good for us) Majority of current work force was trained during nuclear power’s golden age. after charnobyl and the three mile island, any development seized. this means that lots of people who are now working will retire soon- opning spots for new engineers. in addition the green movement that we see today will likely cause an increase in the demand for nuclear power. top that off with the fact that Nuclear Engineering the the “scariest-sounding major”- not my words- which means that at my school, which has about 50k students, and where engineering is only second in size to liberal arts and sciences, there are only 80 people (from freshmen to phd) in the departmen. the outcome will likely be that the demand will skyrocket for a litttle, so will pay, than both will subside as more kids go into nuclear. now is the time
oh and us is about bagin its first nuclear plant construction in decades, while china has around 25 projects in the process of finalization…
and if you do not want to go into the private sector, there is military- not as bad as you may think, and ground-breaking research (thats what i want to get into- nuclear fusion research…)
anyway, i hope it helps</p>
Correct me if I’m wrong - I was under the impression that nuclear engineering was learning how to build nuclear plants and the process of creating power by nuclear means. As far as I’m aware, nuclear and atomic physicists are the ones working in fusion.</p>
<p>Yes, you are correct- it is mostly physicists working in nuclear fusion research, however having a nuclear engineering background gives you a broader area of opportunities. You can, in fact, work on theoretical projects with this degree; a lot of concepts do correlate. Form conversations I have had with people in CERN (Im actually from Europe and my family is heavy into the scientific community there) they have multiple nuclear engineers working with them- more on actual construction operation of the devices than the theoretical and design phases. However, to do this you really need to get a PhD. As an undergrad, or even with some grad school, you are not really capable of true contribution (most likely.) what you can do though, is if you later on find that research is not for you, you can always go back to the staple of nuclear engineering, which is fission power. To maximize my future choices, I am currently doing 2 minors- in Business Admin and in Physics. This will enable me (hopefully) to either enter research or advance in management of a power plant. Plus I will give me a taste of all 3 professions.</p>
<p>Also, fission is a big thing for me. Can Material scientist be a part of a fission reactor project in long shot? I mean, after all, fission reactor is only a blueprint until people find suitable materials to build with… right?</p>
<p>Materials science is very interesting but more in the areas of metallurgy, coatings (overlaps with chemistry) and physical electronics (overlaps with EE). The opportunity to work with nuclear stuff is very rare.</p>
<p>as for "Much better job market for Materials. " thats not completely true. there are a lot more spots BUT ALSO a lot more applicants. plus the salary is (on avg.) higher for NE as of now- and IMO very likely to increase in the near future (5-10 years)</p>
<p>^Re: switching majors, that’s all dependent on the school. </p>
<p>At my school, I switched my major (between engineering disciplines) this semester as a junior. It was entirely possible in my case and I’m still set to graduate in four years (I could technically even graduate early if I pushed it).</p>
<p>However, I have friends at other schools who’ve told me that switching majors after freshman year is near impossible.</p>
<p>In general though, all engineers essentially take the same classes their freshman year.</p>