<p>For example, for aerospace engineering, would it be better to attend a small school like Embry Riddle, where you would have small classes but not so great research than say Georgia Tech, where you would have large classes but great research?</p>
<p>RESEARCH whats up</p>
<p>So research is more important for engineering?</p>
<p>The larger the school is the more money they generally have to spend on their programs, but it all is dependent on how important that program is to the school. Research really isnt very important until grad school though. In reality, I dont see there being much difference for engineering programs between large and small schools. Its more personal preference I guess, but for a school like embry riddle you wont have to worry about the program not getting enough money seeing as engineering is what the university is known for.</p>
<p>there are large schools with small class sizes too, mind you.
it moreso depends on what you are looking for exactly: renowned faculty? research opps? job opportunities during and post-grad? Course offerings? Location? Environment? etc.</p>
<p>Large schools with small class sizes…any clue for UMich, Georgia Tech, Purdue, Embry Riddle? I’m basically looking at those four for aerospace engineering. What I am looking for…well environment, I don’t think I want to live in the snow (seems like UMich would be out) but then I always wanted to snowboard more in college. Embry Riddle looks great with a beach right by it (surf time!) Aren’t the course offerings pretty much the same? I’m planning on getting a MS or PhD, not sure which, but Georgia Tech’s and Embry Riddle’s 5 year accelerated BS/MS seems pretty cool.</p>
<p>You say you want aerospace engineering and then go on to mention ERAU. Embry Riddle would be a much more appropriate choice for aeronautical science than for aerospace engineering. Please do not take this the wrong way, but you may have bigger questions to answer before you worry about the size of the university you want to attend.</p>
<p>Huh? I thought Embry Riddle is great for Aerospace Engineering?</p>
<p>^^^It snows in Indiana in the winter as well. Geez.</p>
<p>Yeah, small engineering schools have bad atmospheres and way screwed up m/f ratios, which just screws everything else up. Go large.</p>
<p>Oh it snows in Indiana? I didn’t know that (I’m from CA). Guess Purdue is off…isnt Georgia Tech pretty screwed up in ratios too? Somethinng like 3m:1f? (I’m a girl, shouldnt be that bad for me hehe) How do small schools have bad atmospheres? And seems like I’m pretty much left with Georgia Tech now, unless I go to a school that isnt as highly ranked/known/respected in aerospace engineering or to a school that snows (UMich/Purdue)</p>
<p>If I were a female I would think twice about living in Atlanta. It’s not the safest city in this country. Now what are you going to do?</p>
<p>Aiya! Perhaps I’ll reconsider snow…or I’ll consider the UCs…though they aren’t that great for aerospace engineering. Luckily, I still have a year til I have to apply and to think</p>
<p>Awww, snow isn’t that bad, you won’t melt. </p>
<p>Personally, I would suggest taking a trip to Aspen if you can to get a feel for a snowy environment if you don’t live in one already to see of you can handle it. Also, to get a feel for what I am talking about with bad atmosphere and screwed up m/f ratio, just take a minute to read through some threads in Case Western’s forum or in a guidebook about Georgia Tech or some of the other schools on your list just to get an idea.</p>
<p>Anyways, if I were you I would do either one of two things:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Live with the cold and go to Purdue or UMich (which is FAR superior to Purdue in every aspect imaginable), and there’s probably other good Big 10 options, too, but I don’t know what they are.</p></li>
<li><p>Go to a school in the south with a good mechanical engineering program (UCLA, USC, UT-Austin, Rice, etc.)</p></li>
</ol>
<p>I live in the SF Bay Area, so it doesn’t snow here. I’ve been to Tahoe/Reno a few times, so I’ve been to the snow, but it’s only for 2-3 day periods. And why a trip to Aspen? Why not somewhere else?
Yea if I get into Purdue and UMich, I’d choose UMich. Oh and hows University of Illinois Urbana Champaign?</p>
<p>Though thats kind of hard to get a small environment in big schools, isnt it? Seems like most of these engineering schools are located in big public universities.</p>
<p>^^^Boring as all get out. Ann Arbor is a superior experience to UC.</p>
<p>UIUC is great, stellar actually. Sorry I forgot to mention it.</p>
<p>Also, just suggested Aspen because of the heavy amount of snow and the fact that it is a popular resort and a great place to spend the holidays 
(really, North Cali or the mountains outside LA would have worked great, too)</p>
<p>Another note- a previous poster made a comment that the small class sizes of a smaller institution would be better than that of a large university, and they are correct. Large Unis generally have a couple of weed-out courses, and they are more impersonal the first two years, at least. Still, the reason why I would highly suggest then is because:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>There will still be all kinds of activities available so you can find your “niche” easier, and</p></li>
<li><p>You will be assured that you can easily avoid the pressure cooker atmosphere of engineering at any time you wish. You can still have a boyfriend who isn’t a completely nerdy techie if you wish, and you can still connect with anybody with any interests, not just those that deal with math. Basically, what I am saying is that these schools will give you a more well-rounded experience and will be more fun than places like Embry-Riddle which is, well, not so much. You maybe can quickly the waves go by as you head back from the library at 3 in the morning after just completing your homework.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>No problem. </p>
<p>So at large universities, the upper division classes are fairly small?</p>
<p>smaller schools like Embry Riddle probably deliver a great education in what they do, but that isn’t the only consideration. Nationwide, something like 1/2 to 2/3rds of all people starting college as engineering majors end up dropping out of engineering. So my advice to 2 out of every 3 prospective engineers is to attend a school where it will be easy to change majors out of engineering; the problem is neither I nor the engineering admissions committee know who those 2 will be ;)</p>
<p>You need to look further into the enrollment in the engineering classes at larger schools. At many UC’s for example, you will take larger math and science classes lower-division, but upper-division your classes will be smaller (for a UC, anyway). Not 10 people, but probably not 100 either. You can find the class sizes by spending some time on the web. First go to the department website and see what classes you’ll be taking; they usually have a recommended sequence of courses such as <a href=“http://maeweb.ucsd.edu/undergrad/advising/degree_chk.php[/url]”>http://maeweb.ucsd.edu/undergrad/advising/degree_chk.php</a> Then go to the schedule of classes and see what the enrollment cap is on the class. To continue the example, for UCSD you’d go to <a href=“UC San Diego Bookstore”>UC San Diego Bookstore;
<p>Heh 2 out of 3 prospective engineers xD</p>
<p>Thanks, I’ll take a look at the schools I’m considering</p>