I am currently going into my third year as a biology major and have been talking to an advisor about doing a 180 and going into civil engineering. Its something im just more passionate about and i feel like i chose bio because it felt safe because I’ve always been good at science, and bio in particular. The advisor said its pretty much too late to switch and that i should complete this major and then apply for the second one. But i dread all oft he classes i have to take and just feel like im dragging myself to requires courses when i should at least have some sort of excitement in my path of study. I dont know what to do and wanted to see if anyone had any advise.
Pretty hard to switch into engineering unless you’ve been taking the core classes (math, physics, more math, materials).
I agree with the adviser to finish this degree and then get a masters in engineering. You can get a head start on that by taking the pre-reqs as you can in your schedule now. Take the math sequence as electives.
Does your school have some other major that your bio courses would count toward, but that would let you shift the direction of your upper-division classes to something more math/physics-ish? Biophysics? Computational biology, bioinformatics, or biostatistics? Physics with a bio minor? Something that would prepare you for an engineering masters without setting you back a year or more in terms of finishing your bachelors?
You don’t have to stick with bio as a major. You could go the physics route as suggested. Is there an environ, conservation or natural resources major that would make use of your bio coursework and allow you to take some pre- engineering coursework?
Agree – the problem with engineering is that it has a number of sequential classes so you can’t just load them all in over a year or two. I recommend you find a major you can graduate with in 4 years, be sure to take any math/science classes required classes for engineering, and pursue engineering in grad school if that is the path you want to take.
If you switch to engineering at this point, it would very likely add one or two more years to your time at university. Can you afford that? Also, some universities restrict entry into some majors, with engineering and computer science being some majors that are frequently restricted.
I see on another thread that you haven’t taken calculus yet. It would be good to do well in calculus if you want to be an engineering major.
What did you intend to do with a biology degree?
Many people take some time to figure out what they want to do with their life. This is not a race. However, figuring out a good path from where you are to where you want to be might take some effort.
Switching into engineering will add significantly to the time to get your degree. But continuing in biology and then having to go back and get the classes needed for engineering would be even longer.
In any case, if you haven’t taken calculus yet, do so ASAP. Having calculus and really understanding is key to getting a degree in engineering.
Can you check into 3-2 engineering programs?
@pjohoo98 - If you did not take the standard engineering math, basic science, and fundamental engineering core that would ordinarily be given in the first two years (calculus, calculus based physics, thermodynamics, fluid mechanics, energy conversion, electronic circuits, statics, dynamics, strength of materials, engineering economics, the various interdisciplinary and discipline specific laboratories, et al, it will significantly add to your time in school to change majors to engineering. If that is ok for you, my hat’s off to you. You have to of course weigh the pros and cons of such a move.
Some in this thread suggested finishing your undergraduate degree in biology and getting a master’s degree in engineering. This doesn’t make one an engineer. A master’s in engineering does not superseed or substitute for an undergraduate engineering degree. The fundamental base of science, non-disciplinary, disciplinary, and specific foundation engineering courses are taught at the undergraduate level. The engineering design and capstone project courses are also taught as part of a bachelor degree program. Master’s degrees do not repeat the foundation engineering training, rather, they are specialized in a specific area of engineering and usually towards a specific topic within an engineering specialty. With a master’s degree but lacking a bachelor’s degree in engineering, you will not have had the underlying math, physics, foundation engineering, and design courses. You may get some training in a narrow specialty topic, but without the undergraduate foundation you will not be equipped to effectively do engineering work.
Some engineering graduate schools will not accept non-engineering undergrads into their engineering graduate programs. Generally, those that do will require the student to take the foundation math and science courses for no credit, that an applicant with an engineering undergraduate degree would have already taken. How would you do well in graduate engineering coursework without calculus, physics, and those underlying sciences? The master’s degree coursework assumes you already have this background and does not duplicate it.
You mentioned you were interested in civil engineering. If you want to do civil engineering work you will almost certainly need to obtain the Professional Engineer (P.E.) license in your state. Sitting for the exam requires an ABET (Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology) accredited undergraduate engineering degree in most states. A few states will permit sitting the exam with an ABET accredited master’s degree only (but in most cases the engineering registration board in that state will look at your work and academic experience and decide on a case by case basis). Most ABET accredited programs - 95% or more - are undergraduate programs. There are a few ABET accredited master’s programs, but not many. With just a master’s but no bachelor’s, it is not guaranteed you will be able to take the exam, and if you are, in many cases more work experience is required (a holder of an ABET accredited undergrad engineering degree can sit for the PE exam with four years of work experience, and take the FE (Fundamentals of Engineering) exam as a fourth year undergraduate engineering student).
Someone else mentioned 3-2 programs. 3-2 programs provide the fundamental science and math courses in the “3” school prior to transferring to the engineering (“2”) school, so again, you will essentially be starting over as a “3” student.
Nothing is impossible of course. My hat’s off to you if you go this route. Just be aware of the plusses and minuses.
Michael, Ph.D., P.E., Consulting Aerospace Engineer
At least sign up for Calc 1 in the fall and see if you like it enough to sign up for Calc 2 and 3. By December, you may have learned more about your preferences.