Can anyone help me make a decision between engineering programs (unsure but likely Civil)? I’m looking at Toledo, Ohio State, and UC. Is UC’s engineering program considered to be high caliber?
@iamnotsure Hello there. Current 3rd year CEAS student here. I also had to decide between a few different schools and every day I’m glad that I chose Cincinnati. You can compare ratings and come to a different conclusion with every website you visit, so I would really encourage you to consider how each school would work for you. I can’t speak for OSU and Toledo, but no matter where you go you’ll find success if you put in the work.
I ultimately chose UC CEAS because of the co-op and ACCEND programs. The mandatory co-op program means that every student in Engineering will graduate with about 18 months of work experience. I know some other schools have co-op programs that are not mandatory, which often means that their not as supported as UC. You’ll have a separate advisor for your job search and there are a ton of resources to help you find your first job. Look up a few full time engineering jobs online and you’ll see that almost all require 1.5+ years of experience (which is why the co-op program was a must for me). I’m also currently a member of the ACCEND program, so I’ll graduate in 5 years with a minor, BS, and MEng. If you are looking into graduate degrees at all, it’s hard to beat a 5 year program like the one at UC.
I hope that helps
Hi!
I’m actually going to be an incoming freshman at UC this fall, but currently I take “college credit plus” classes at OSU. I’m also planning on majoring in Civil Engineering and I’ve taken some math and engineering classes through OSU. Personally, I chose UC because even though OSU is a great school, it’s very BIG! A few weeks ago, I was in a similar situation trying to pick between OSU and UC so I met with a civil engineering department advisor at OSU. Basically, you either enter OSU as a “engineering undeclared” or a “pre-major discipline.” Over the course of your freshman year/ half of sophomore year, you have to take specific classes (calc 1, math 1172, physics, chem, eng 1181, eng 1182, etc). I think there’s 8? Anyway, after you complete the specific required classes your freshman year, you have to APPLY to the actual major. The advisor told me that at OSU, they have 180 seats every year for civil engineering and every year they get about 600 applicants, so you’re not even guaranteed to be accepted when you initially apply to the major. Also, you have to have a certain GPA to get into the major (I think it’s a 3.0 or 3.2) but basically all A’s and B’s in your hard maths and sciences. The last thing he told me was that UC is more geared towards job placement and work experience whereas OSU focuses more on research and preparation for grad school. He said that most students don’t participate in co-ops and instead do internships, which don’t necessarily guarantee pay and if you want to do them you have to do them in the summer. It all depends on what you want! Not to deter you away from OSU! OSU is great for students who are very extroverted and enjoy constant useless construction (just kidding!). But really, OSU would be a better fit if you’re wanting to participate in more research, are planning to go somewhere different for a masters, extraverted, enjoy always meeting new people, etc. These are just things that I have learned through my process of trying to decide on a school! I don’t know anything about Toledo though, sorry! (Also not to say that UC isn’t big too it’s just OSU is massive!)
Hope that helps!!!