“I aced Business Calculus” - That may or may not mean you’ll like Engineering calc. Maybe you could try Calc 1 at night or online to see how it goes. Most engineering co.urses rely heavily on math, so it’s a good place to start
Among Alabama public universities, Alabama - Huntsville and Auburn offer IE. Their policies on second bachelor’s degrees are shown below:
https://catalog.uah.edu/undergrad/policies-procedures/dual-degree-second-bachelors-degree/
http://bulletin.auburn.edu/undergraduate/academicpolicies/academicprogramsandcurricula/
You may want to take the lower level math (calculus, multivariable calculus, linear algebra, differential equations) and other lower level requirements at a community college first.
The UAH second degree information doesn’t specifically say whether the school will accept transfer credits from courses already used to earn the first degree in lieu of courses required for the second degree. You should ask that question specifically, perhaps the page on transfer credit discusses this. Most of the colleges and universities I am familiar with don’t have specific policies on second bachelor’s degrees, but many do have restrictions on transferring credits previously used to earn a degree (most of those policies are in reference though to graduate studies, they say that one cannot transfer credits for a master’s degree that were already used to earn a prior degree). Again, ask this question specifically. Taking some of the math courses at a community college may be a good idea, but check with the schools you are looking to do your second degree in that they will accept the community college courses for transfer. Some schools may have articulation or transfer agreements with their local community colleges.
It is implied that some first bachelor’s degree course work will be accepted for transfer credit by UAH’s statements that the second bachelor’s degree student must “complete a minimum of 25% of the total degree requirements at UAH for the second degree” and that “Graduation with honors recognition for the second bachelor’s degree requires a minimum of 60 semester hours of coursework taken at UAH above the requirements for the first bachelor’s degree”, though the OP should ask the specific question directly.
That is implied, but that doesn’t mean that the school will accept credits already used to earn a degree. It’s an ambiguous statement, agreed. The OP should ask specifically, “will you accept credit for courses I’ve already taken to earn my first degree, and if so, which ones?”.
Yes, I know Business Calculus isn’t hard as the standard Calculus I-III sequence. I guess I consider it maybe an overview to Calculus I, but certainly not as thorough.
Auburn’s IE program is the one I’ve been looking at. I’ll need to double check on the transfer credit issue.
Another degree that Auburn has that I find interesting Business Analytics. It’s within the college of business, but offers Predictive Modeling courses, several software courses, including SAS, Tableau,and Python among others, and Big Data. It seems like it would make me alot more competitive in the workforce than just the general business degree I have. I’m interested in working with trends in data and just data in general, so this is also an option that I’m considering.
If I were to go for the IE degree, I would want to take as many classes dealing with data as I could. I’m not really interested in working in a manufacturing facility or plant.
The difference between business calculus and a standard calculus course that would be taken by engineering or science students is that the business calculus is an applied course that uses the results of calculus theory to solve specific problems in business. A business calculus course for example may present the integral equation describing the future value of a financial instrument given a certain interest rate and time period for example, then reduce that equation to a finite sum, which you then use to calculate the FV given the numbers. An engineering or science calculus course would derive that equation from the fundamental theory and prove it is valid, not just present it as a given.
The Calculus I-III sequence in an engineering or science program certainly applies the results of calculus theory to solving applied problems, but it also goes significantly into the theory of calculus and why the various results of the theory actually work. It also develops proofs of calculus theorems and derives the resulting equations and theory from first principles (e.g., deriving the derivative from a limit of a finite difference, an integral from a limit of a sum, solving of sequences and series, fundamental theorem of calculus, et al). The more advanced courses deal with deriving techniques of integration (integration by parts, line integration, trigonometric and algebraic substitutions, etc). The final courses develop multivariable calculus, volumes, areas between curves, integral theorems (Gauss, Green, Stokes) and vector field theory (which is important in many engineering and science applications) and may also cover the basics of complex variables and integration in the complex (real-imaginary) plane.
The differential equations course (which may be a separate course or melded into the Calculus III/IV sequence) covers techniques of solving ordinary and partial differential equations and integral equations (which have many practical applications in engineering, science, and business/economics as well).
It is important to realize that the majority of engineering and science coursework in the an engineering degree curriculum uses the results of calculus and has much mathematics specific to the particular subject, and frequently has theoretical development and proofs of its own in connection with the specific math methods or tools the subject requires. The bottom line is that the engineering calculus courses have more theoretical development than the business calculus course. Some of that theory may seem abstract if one has taken only applied courses, but it’s certainly not impossible to learn and to grasp.
The Business Analytics degree sounds like a very good option and wouldn’t involve as much of the math and science courses for engineering you would need for Industrial and Systems .
Yes, it is definitely an option! However, it is a business degree, and I already have a bachelor’s in business. I’ve taken all of the core business courses that the business analytics degree requires. I would just need the major courses. I talked with a professor at Auburn about it last year. I’ll probably need to reach back out and talk with him some more.
On the IE side, I’ve read where IEs are very versatile and can work in many different places, not just a plant.
Yes, ISE is very versatile. Virginia Tech has very detailed post grad surveys (you could Google it), with employers and job descriptions , salaries , of graduates. Many ISE grads end up as analysts or consultants , not as many in manufacturing or plants. You can also look at Accounting and Information Systems grads, and Business Information Technology grads, etc. to get an idea of options with a business degree. See if Auburn has something similar that gives you some idea of where their grads end up.
Since you already have an undergraduate business degree and are interested in business analytics, you might consider a graduate degree or certificate as opposed to another undergraduate degree. If your goal is to become more employable, perhaps something like this would help and seems aligned with your interests. https://harbert.auburn.edu/academics/graduate-certificates/business-analytics/
Yes, I would rather end up being an analyst if I got an IE degree rather than being in a plant. Even though it would be a second bachelor’s ISE seems like it would have solid job opportunities in a wide range of places. Auburn also has a Co-op program that can give engineering students an opportunity to work at companies in their chosen engineering major. I spoke with some one at the co-op office, and they said students often end up co-oping for a year- a fall, spring, and summer semester. It seems like that could be invaluable for me; to be gaining work experience as I get my second degree. While I would be back in school, I would also be getting real world job experience before ever leaving engineering school. I’m going to have to go back and get something to make me more employable. With the general business degree I have, job prospects are pretty abysmal, honestly.
Maybe you could pursue some kind of certification. For example, our daughter (an Econ major) once applied for a job that said “pricer certification preferred”. (I’m not sure what that it is, and she did not have it. But she got the job. It was a good stepping stone to current job).
Did she get the pricer certification after she took the job?
@2ndDegree - I don’t think so… she probably learned on-the-job… She had started college as an engineering major and likes geeky data analysis. She is terrific with Excel (and now statistical analysis tools too). She’s a quick learner, and I think her 2 years of campus job at Help Desk / Tech Support are helpful on her resume.
The Pricer example was just one I’ve heard about. I bet there are other various mini-cert programs that could be a differentiator when you job hunt.
Suggestion: I suspect that good Excel skills are helpful in any field. If you already have Excel expertise, there is a site (I can’t recall the name) where you can take a quiz that would enable you to claim Intermediate or Advanced skills. That is probably helpful in any field. If not, there are plenty of online resources to help you learn more.
I’ll be honest… this came totally from an uneducated Google search. But perhaps this type of short term training could add value to the resume? (Others - please feel free to chime in if this would be a waste of time. I’m just looking for ideas that don’t force the Op into several years of college for a 2nd Bachelor’s degree). - https://www.michiganstateuniversityonline.com/lp/business-analytics/career/master_certs_ba_1503v2/?campaignid=70161000000RtGw&vid=2109937&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=MSU%20-%20BA%20-%20Analyst%20%5B70161000000RtGw%5D&utm_term=business%20analyst%20certificate&gclid=CjwKCAjw4avaBRBPEiwA_ZetYo3uxrH4-ZN5V_UhkULPS81pdcaowRib57-XTbmZ4OxEVxw2GtuJJRoC9VIQAvD_BwE
@colorado_mom I mentioned something similar in post #33 at Auburn, which is instate for the OP.