<p>I'm interested in airplanes and how they work, so I think studying aerospace would be more interesting to me, but the job opportunities seem limited. Im considering mechanical because it's suppose to be versatile. I also find other engineering disciplines such as robotics and ElecE interesting as well, so Im thinking mechanical would cover a little bit of that?</p>
<p>I was thinking about either double majoring or picking up a minor. Could a major in mechE/minor in aeroE get the same job as a pure aeroE major? and vice versa?</p>
<p>The general advice for someone like you is to major in MechE and take aero courses as your free electives. Should you really want to specialize, that can come later in grad school.</p>
<p>The advice rogracer gave seems to be the advice people give on here, but I couldn’t disagree more. It’s not hard to get a job in the aerospace industry if you have an aerospace engineering degree. A master’s in aerospace engineering is pretty much worthless since you will not make significantly more money with a master’s degree compared to a bachelor’s degree (if you want to make more money, get an MBA). At the aerospace companies I have worked at, mechanical engineers start out at a lower salary level than aerospace engineers in relatively less prestigious positions. Finally, it’s a lot easier to go from being an aerospace engineer to a mechanical engineer than it is vice versa - and I highly doubt you will want to. My recommendation is try to do aerospace first because the curriculum is slightly faster paced and a little more challenging, but you can always switch to mechanical later if you change your mind.</p>
<p>A master’s in aero most certainly isn’t “almost worthless”. Our aero group requires a master’s as a minimum point of entry, and most people in the department have PhDs. We will hire a BS into the aero group, but they would be required to enroll in a technical development program that would require a master’s to be obtained with a couple of years. Additionally, any new graduate with a technical masters (no experience) will come in a labor-grade higher than one with just an undergraduate degree, so this is equivalent to starting with one promotion under your belt, so there most definitely is a salary advantage. Also, there is no pay-scale difference between a MechE and AeroE with equivalent education.</p>
<p>so would a BS in Mech, then MS in Aero qualify me for most/all aero jobs?</p>
<p>As far as I can tell, MechE and AeroE qualify most people for the same jobs at the same pay. Six of one, half a dozen of the other.</p>
<p>I’d do the one that’s harder to switch into. That way, if you do decide to switch, you’ll have an easier time. Course prerequisite structure is a good way to estimate this.</p>
<p>True on a person with a master’s degree starting a labor grade higher, but I was promoted to that higher labor grade less than a year after starting with a BS. That’s hardly worth two years out of the job market and all the extra debt incurred with a master’s in aero. Not to mention that the company paid for your master’s degree if you wanted to do one part time. Rogracer, I’d be curious to know if you work in aerospace research, rather than at an aerospace defense contractor (where most of the work revolves around manufacturing), like I did. Starting out, there was a pay-scale difference between MechE and AeroE at my company, but it was based on the fact that MechE’s had to start out in design, whereas AeroE’s would start out in better paying functional groups such as structures or aerodynamics. I should clarify that in an equal position with equal eduction, the pay was the same. It was just that with a BS in MechE, a person could not start out in the same position as an AeroE.</p>
<p>BigAarts, I work in a large research and development division within a major aerospace company, so that could account for our differences in perspective. Within MechE, we have 7 different departments…only one of which is “design” (actually, we have two “design” departments…structures and precision mechanical)…the other departments are largely analytical like you are talking about (similar to aero). All the more analytically-oriented departments pretty much require advanced degrees. Serious aero research at our company will require an advanced degree. Hence, a BS in aero as a terminal degree would actually be more limiting than an BS in MechE. Since a BS in MechE (with aero electives) is perfectly acceptable for admission into an aero grad school, I believe my original advice has merit, since, should the OP not want to pursue grad school, I believe the MechE would be somewhat more flexible across a range of industries and not limit him in aerospace (your experience to the contrary noted).</p>
<p>That’s a sound enough basis for your advice. I’ll quit countering your advice in all these threads since you’re apparently still in the field, and I put in 5 years and then bailed out for business school. 
Having an advanced degree to analyze rivets and bolts on an existing aircraft production line seems like a waste to me, but I understand why you would want someone to have one for technical research.</p>
<p>a quick note, Boston university offereS their bs in me with a concentration on AE.
I’m sure A lot of colleges do this, but bu is the only one I know.</p>