ChemEngineering + some questions

<p>actually, the ivies rank really low in engineering, with the exception of cornell. Can u imagine at MIT?</p>

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actually, the ivies rank really low in engineering, with the exception of cornell.

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<p>Well, I don't know about "really low". What's the worst Ivy ranked in engineering - somewhere in the 50's or so? There are hundreds of engineering programs out there. Hence, even the worst Ivy is still much better than the average.</p>

<p>I found the first year and one half the hardest because of the advanced math and things like thermo, control, heat, mass. But by the end of the chemical engineering program it seems that everything is emperical relationships and the fundamental aspect is gone and so it seems a bit easier. </p>

<p>The most difficult part of chemical engineering was finding a job in the field, which I was never able to do and went to law school. Here we are talking about weeding out: I got through chemical engineering in great shape and got weeded out in the job process in the form of huge piles of rejection letters (huge piles!). I eventually went into law as I saw the foolishness of my ways and lies perpetued by the engineering school (should of sued them!).</p>

<p>Did you do any internships before you graduated??</p>

<p>When I went through, we did not really have internships per se. The big firms hired during the summer and of course, many of these were converted to full time jobs after graduation. </p>

<p>I guess that should have been my cue in that I was not getting summer jobs in the field and the same pattern would likely perpetuate itself after graduation. It is very easy to be delusional until faced with a very unpleasant reality. </p>

<p>I receive the alumni paper and one of the trends is as you mention, internships. They now have provisions where students can work a whole year off from school to gain experience which I think is great. Certainly a step in the right direction.</p>

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The most difficult part of chemical engineering was finding a job in the field, which I was never able to do and went to law school. Here we are talking about weeding out: I got through chemical engineering in great shape and got weeded out in the job process in the form of huge piles of rejection letters (huge piles!). I eventually went into law as I saw the foolishness of my ways and lies perpetued by the engineering school (should of sued them!).

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<p>I've said it before, I'll say it again - you have to be willing to move to where the jobs are. ChemE jobs in Canada are disproportionately located in Alberta. Why didn't you move there? Just like most petroleum jobs in the US are located in the South, the mountain states, around SoCal, and Alaska. You want an oil job in the US, you have to move to one of those locations.</p>

<p>Because when I graduated there was no oil boom like there is now. At any rate, most of the oil majors came to campus like I said (Shell, Esso, etc + Du Pont, Dow etc + Big Paper + Big Pharma). I had interviews and no jobs.</p>

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Because when I graduated there was no oil boom like there is now.

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<p>So why don't you move there now?</p>

<p>Well, now he has a nice job after going to law school. Why would he go back to engineering?</p>

<p>Well, what I meant was, why didn't he move there before law school? </p>

<p>Look, at the end of the day, you have to move to where the jobs are. This holds even if you haven't yet secured a job. For example, if you want to be a movie actor, you basically have to move near Hollywood so that you can take your shot. Granted, most of those aspiring actors will never become stars. But if you're just sitting around in, say, Kansas waiting for some studio to call you up to give you a role, you're never going to get anything. </p>

<p>Besides, what's the worst thing that could happen? You move to Hollywood (or Alberta), and you don't get a job and you end up waiting tables or delivering pizza or whatever. So what? Yeah, allright, maybe you lose some time, but in the grand scheme of things, who cares? At least you * tried*. You tried, it didn't work, so now you can just move on with your life, i.e. in this case, go to law school. That's better than just staying put and feeling bitter about the situation. </p>

<p>Now of course, if you're just not willing to put in the effort, i.e. if you're just not willing to move, then fine. Just say so.</p>

<p>You don't believe that the skills you gained from the successful completion of an engineering curriculum didn't aid you in law school and doesn't aid you now in the practice of law? Or, at the very least, that it wasn't a detriment as you seem to imply?</p>

<p>Here's an interesting anecdote: around half of the graduating seniors from my chemical engineering program (at an admittedly well-down-the-prestige-ladder school) went to a professional school such as law school, med school, vet school, and dentistry school. Only half of the rest went got a job in engineering. The rest went to grad school or some non-engineering job.</p>