<p>I have recently visited Carnegie Mellon and Johns Hopkins, I have a passion for the sciences, but it's quite hard to find a job in the energy sector with a degree in science. As you may have figured I want to work in the energy sector so I plan on pursuing an engineering degree . I'm stuck between chemical engineering and mechanical engineering, so I had a few questions for you all:
1. What do MechE and ChemE graduates do in the energy sector?</p>
<ol>
<li><p>What jobs do MechE and ChemE graduates tend to pursue?</p></li>
<li><p>Are these growing fields or is it hard to find a job in these areas?</p></li>
<li><p>I plan to double major in engineering and public policy, what are the top 5 colleges for this interest?</p></li>
</ol>
<p>thank you very much!</p>
<p>What do you mean by energy? Oil/gas E&P? Regulated electric/gas utilities? Downstream processing and refining? R&D?</p>
<p>Depending where you live and go to school, it may make sense to pursue one or the other. For example, if you live in an energy-poor area you might want the better department that draws more out-of-state recruiters. Otherwise, look at the courses and see which subject appeals to you more.</p>
<p>I’m looking more into developing new technologies for renewable energy such as wind hydro and solar, I’m planning to go to a top tier university not a local college. There’s a very good program in CMU, so I’m looking for other similar options.</p>
<p>Any engineering or science field could potentially be applied to energy research. It’s really hard to recommend one specialization. Check out the research being done in different academic departments and see whether anything catches your eye. Or look up employers you are interested in and find out what majors they hire.</p>
<p>Research tends to get specialized so I think you should pick an area you like and then take advantage of the opportunities you see available.</p>
<p>I realize that but can you answer any of the questions posted above?</p>
<p>For 1 & 2 see above. Here is a page with links to many different research groups:
[Centers/Labs/Facilities</a> | Texas A&M Energy Engineering Institute](<a href=“http://energyengineering.org/centerslabsfacilities]Centers/Labs/Facilities”>http://energyengineering.org/centerslabsfacilities)</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Well, we need energy. I don’t have firsthand experience with renewable research. Academia is reportedly competitive, so you need to be very good (and maybe lucky) to go far there. There are many firms that hire mechanical and chemical engineers and work on renewable energy research (3M, Dow, GE, Siemens, etc.) but you may have less flexibility to choose your projects in industry.</p></li>
<li><p>Double-majoring with any engineering discipline is complicated and likely to require >4 years. I think of public policy as a graduate degree. What are you hoping to accomplish? Maybe look at a minor?
[Minor</a> in Technology And Policy | Engineering and Public Policy](<a href=“http://www.epp.cmu.edu/undergraduate/tnp_minor.html]Minor”>http://www.epp.cmu.edu/undergraduate/tnp_minor.html)
[url=<a href=“http://www.spp.gatech.edu/ms/publicpolicyminor]Public”>http://www.spp.gatech.edu/ms/publicpolicyminor]Public</a> Policy Minor | School of Public Policy at Georgia Institute of Technology<a href=“just%20examples”>/url</a></p></li>
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<p>Thank you very much! I will look into the A&M program and the Georgia Institute of Technology programs. They look very attractive for the things I want to do. Thanks again for the advice.</p>
<p>I’m in the same boat! But I think I will go after a ChemE degree…</p>
<p>I heard solar is interested in EEs, but correct me if I’m wrong. I’m going after ChemE because I want to work on biofuels and biomass and all that jazz. I think wind/solar/hydro might be more related to MechEs and EEs, if I understand correctly.</p>
<p>Also, I heard there are Energy Engineering undergrad degrees? I think it’s a rare few though.</p>
<p>Hm. Okay, to be honest when you go to college even though you major in Chemical Engineering you can take a variety of mechanical engineering classes that are linked with renewable energy. Chemical engineers also deal with storing electricity and nanotechnology, so Mechanical Engineers can figure out how to generate the energy, but if there is no way to store it efficiently it’s useless. I think I’ll do some more research into Chemical Engineering.</p>