<p>I got accepted into both for electrical engineering (ECE in UR). Right now, I prefer Rochester. What specifically about NC State engineering would I be missing out by choosing UR instead? Another factor would probably be that I want to be in Air Force ROTC while in college. Thanks for your future input!</p>
<p>Have you applied for an Air Force ROTC scholarship? Have you spoken to anyone at either/both schools about Air Force ROTC? Being a “walk on” is not so easy to do these days. If you are serious about AFROTC you need to contact the units at each school to see if it’s doable.</p>
<p>NC State has an AFROTC unit on campus. UofR does not. </p>
<p>At UofR you would have to take AFROTC classes at RIT which would require transportation and juggling of classes. Would also have to get there for early morning Physical Training a couple of times a week.</p>
<p>NCSU is much less expensive (by about $80k over four years) than UofR if costs matter to you.</p>
<p>Weather at NCSU is soooo much nicer than Rochester.</p>
<p>Lots if off campus student housing available if dorms are not your thing.</p>
<p>Big time major college sports at NCSU…lots of school spirit.</p>
<p>Raleigh is a great vibrant city with lots of young people.</p>
<p>My husband is a MechE NCSU alum. He’s had long successful career in the nuclear power industry.</p>
<p>My son is a NCSU grad. (not engineering) who had a Navy ROTC scholarship. He had a fabulous mentor at NCSU who helped him succeed in getting a slot in one of the Navy’s most elite units. He is currently an active duty officer/ platoon leader deployed to the Middle East. </p>
<p>My friend’s S is a senior at NCSU on a AFROTC scholarship majoring in aerospace engineering. He has been awarded a slot in USAF Nato-Euro Jet Pilot Training, a very select training program. </p>
<p>If you are truly serious about becoming an Air Force officer while getting a good education at a well respected engineering school, you should give NCSU serious consideration.</p>
<p>PackMom: Thank you for your thoughtful reply. 
I’ve already contacted the Assistant Professor of Aerospace Studies at RIT for Rochester. He says that it’s definitely doable but that I’d have to commute about twice a week to RIT. He said: “We have had U of R students participate and generally have been able to support them in participating in Air Force ROTC.” </p>
<p>As for NC State, I haven’t contacted anyone at AFROTC there yet. Thank you for your advice. I will contact them as soon as possible. Raleigh definitely sounds like a wonderful place. Expense isn’t much of a factor for me right now, because I’m still waiting to hear back on this full scholarship opportunity around late April. My only hesitations toward NCSU right now are regarding its class sizes, as compared to Rochester’s or University of Miami’s (the other two schools I’m debating on). When I think about NCSU, I imagine one professor amongst hundreds in a class all trying to learn calculus… Also, a larger AFROTC detachment would mean that there are less slots for cadets to actually commission, right? Please correct me if I’m wrong. If you can, please provide any thoughts you have about my situation. Thank you!</p>
<p>I cannot speak to the specifics of AROTC but I am sitting in a Calculus II class at NCSU right now waiting for it to start. </p>
<p>Some classes at State are big. It is undeniable. CH101 usually has 250 students. But it also has a ton of TAs that have recitation weekly. My CH101 recitation has 11 people in it. </p>
<p>My calculus classes have both had around 80 students. Some classes will have as few as 25, some will have 100. But besides a few classes (Fortran, CH101, and ES100 come to mind) you will not have classes that large.</p>
<p>@ncstatefreshman: Thank you for your perspective. How would you say the class sizes have impacted your education? I know that it is hard to get individualized attention at State, so have you been able to find a supportive group of peers or is it more like every man/woman for him/herself? Haha. Also, what are your comments regarding “weeder classes” at NC State?</p>
<p>spidermc25,</p>
<p>I’ll start off by saying I don’t think it is hard to get individualized attention at State. Maybe I just don’t know how involved professors are at other schools, but if I have ever felt like I needed help I have asked it and received it. If I’m in a class where I want the professor to know my name, then I will go to their office hours, introduce myself, and establish that relationship. Individualized attention may be more readily available at smaller schools, but it’s not hard to get.</p>
<p>I’ve definitely been able to find a group of peers within my major, Paper Science & Engineering. I know that isn’t unique to my major; I see my suitemates come into their rooms with loads of friends in tow, ready to work on a problem set or a particular homework problem. Some programs may be more internally competitive, but I haven’t witnessed any of the “horror stories” that friends have.</p>
<p>Weed-out classes definitely exist, but they are not hard for no reasons. I’m struggling in physics right now but I’m sure that if I was working as much as I should be, there would be no problem. I haven’t come across any classes designed to make a certain number of students fail or anything. They are weed-out classes because they are college-level material necessary for any engineering curriculum and some people aren’t up to that challenge.</p>
<p>ncstatefreshman:</p>
<p>Thank you so much. I’m starting to see that large universities aren’t exactly black-and-white when it comes to individualized attention. I’m not so sure about University of Rochester anymore, haha, especially because of the AFROTC issue. It’s still among UR vs. University of Miami vs. NC State University. (And yes, I know that UM isn’t exactly known for its engineering, but I do see that the department is making massive improvements.)</p>
<p>I know this is almost completely off-topic, but can you say anything about the student and dorm life (if you do live in a dorm) at State? Would you say that the students from State’s different colleges are very segregated? Also in regards to academics, would you say it’s feasible to complete a double major within 4 years in addition to engineering?</p>
<p>I do live in a dorm and I’ve really enjoyed it. I’m in a Living-Learning Village so it’s a bit more involved, but most “normal” people have really enjoyed living in their dorms. We have a really wide variety of room types, both suite and hall style, and a ton of different locations so you can be in the middle of campus or a bit off to the sides. I sound like an infomercial (sorry) but we have over 500 student organizations, tons of club and intramural sports, and plenty of stuff to do. There is no reason not to enjoy your time outside of class here :)</p>
<p>I definitely wouldn’t say that students from different colleges are segregated. Once you’re in your later semesters, you probably will hang out more with people from your own major but I have tons of friends in CALS (Agriculture and Life Sciences), PAMS (Physical and Mathematical Sciences), and CHASS (Humanities and Social Sciences). Engineers tend to flock together because of our self-hatred, but I would never walk around and make remarks like “oh, look at those CNR (Natural Resources) students”</p>
<p>As for double majoring, it depends on how many AP credits you are coming in with and how much you’re willing to work. I’m completing a dual-degree with both majors within the College of Engineering (Paper Science & Engineering and Chemical Engineering). If your majors are related, that will make it easier for sure. But it’s certainly do-able in 4 years… but you might be hating yourself when you’re taking 18 or 21 hours. This ([The</a> Office of Undergraduate Courses & Curricula | Office of Undergraduate Courses & Curricula](<a href=“http://oucc.ncsu.edu%5DThe”>http://oucc.ncsu.edu)) website has all the semester-by-semester curriculum plans so you can get a feel for what class you’ll have to take for each of your majors. </p>
<p>As for UM, the only things I know about it are that they killed it in the ACC this year. If they are making improvements, that’s amazing. But I have to sell you NC State so did you know we have one of the largest engineering career fairs in the country? Last fall we had over 5000 students attend!</p>
<p>ncstatefreshman:</p>
<p>Haha, I really appreciate your “informercial-ness”. Your passion for State even only as a freshman is starting to sell me towards being part of the Wolfpack. </p>
<p>Would you say the dorms are large enough or are they really cramped? It certainly must be a challenge with over 20,000 people!</p>
<p>Also, how are you liking the General Education Program so far? Is it difficult to get the classes you want? Is it somehow flexible enough for you to take a good amount of classes outside of your major? I’m really interested in taking courses in Hindi-Urdu language, astronomy, and mayyyyyybe even music. (Don’t worry, I’m not looking to kill myself!) </p>
<p>Lastly, how would you comment on campus diversity? I know that State is obviously mainly people from NC and is largely conservative. As an LGBTQ ally, I’d like to know if there are any recent significant incidents… I know that State has made a huge improvement in that aspect though, because I’ve seen NC State’s “It Gets Better” video.</p>
<p>Just wanted comment on individualized attention at NCSU. Our d is a high school dual-enrolled student at NCSU. This semester she is taking PY-205 which is Physics for Scientists and Engineers (Calculus-based). At registration, we were a little annoyed to find she had to register for 4 sections for this class, but now I see the advantages. One of those sections is only for the few exams during the semester, so everyone takes the exams at the same time, but this section only meets a few times/semester. Her lecture has a max of 106 students and it’s not quite full. From comments the prof has made, it doesn’t appear he’s had many students come to office hours or even email questions to him. The Lab is capped at 24 students. The other section is a Problem-Solving section where the students work on problems related to what they are covering in class with the help of a TA. That section is capped at 30 students. The department also offers free tutoring help throughout the week ([Tutorial</a> Services - NC State Department of Physics](<a href=“http://www.physics.ncsu.edu/classes/tutor.html]Tutorial”>Department of Physics)) and apparently the math department does as well. D has emailed the professor several times this semester and he’s always gotten back to her quickly. Last year she took a class in another science department and the prof was amazing. There were about 90 students in the section, but after one introduction, the prof knew d by name and went out of her way to offer other outside opportunities that she thought d would be interested in. So far every prof and administrator we’ve encountered have gone above and beyond when contacted for assistance. Our impression is that they are eager to get to know the students and help them if the student makes any kind of effort. I’m sure there are exceptions, but I would also bet most students merely show up to class and never seek additional contact.</p>
<p>Dorms are definitely large enough! You are never required to live on campus so I would say most people live off campus by their junior year. We have A LOT of dorms and right now there is no shortage of rooms. I know this because my roommate moved out (dropped out of NCSU) and I’ve had a single all semester.</p>
<p>As for GEPs, I haven’t taken many because I came into State with 21 hours from AP credits, mostly in humanities and social sciences. As a freshman I know it can be challenging to get into the most popular GEP courses. These are usually the ones largely regarded as being easy, or ones that satisfy two requirements (like a US Diversity Humanities course or a Global Knowledge Social Sciences). Besides those, I haven’t heard of people have horrible problems taking the classes that they want to. Just make sure you plan your schedule accordingly if you want to graduate with a double-major in four years :)</p>
<p>If you’re in an engineering discipline, your GEP course-load (assuming no AP credits coming in and no high school foreign language) will be in foreign language (I don’t know how many credits), 6 hours of Humanities, 6 hours of Social Sciences, 5 hours of Interdisciplinary Perspectives, 3 hours of US Diversity (can overlap with another course), 3 hours of Global Knowledge (again can overlap). The lists of classes that satisfy each requirement are found here: [GEP</a> Course Lists | Office of Undergraduate Courses & Curricula](<a href=“Undergraduate Courses, Curricula, and Academic Standards”>Undergraduate Courses, Curricula, and Academic Standards), and you’re always welcome to take classes outside of your major.</p>
<p>I know that the College of Natural Resources has it’s own Office of Diversity and I’m pretty sure there is one university-wide. These offices will offer programs and try to keep NC State going in the right direction. But commenting as a student, I feel like we are generally a tolerant bunch. The majority of our students will be white, christian, and southern, but that doesn’t mean that there aren’t people from every walk of life here. As an atheist I have never felt discriminated against, even when the Brickyard Preachers were yelling biblical verses at me. We have a Free Expression Tunnel in the middle of campus where students are free to paint whatever they want. We self-censor this and I know there was a racial slur written on the tunnel during the election. It was painted over by a watchful student within the hour.</p>
<p>I haven’t heard of any recent LGBT incidents occurring on campus, but I might not be in the right circles to hear about them. I try to read The Technician, our newspaper, to stay up-to-date on University issues and they haven’t covered anything recently. You can read it online and I would highly suggest it. If there is a serious problem on campus, they will cover it.</p>
<p>NeedAVacation,</p>
<p>That’s been my experience as well. I’m in PY205 this semester and my problem session has 20 students in it; my lab has 14. My lab might be small because it’s at 8:05 in the morning, so I don’t know if every section is like that, but they all thin out as people drop in the course in the first few weeks.</p>
<p>ncstatefreshman and NeedAVacation:</p>
<p>Thank you both so much for your insight. I never thought it’d be possible to have labs with less than 20 students at State! I will remember these things in mind when forming my decision.</p>
<p>It really is possible to have small classes at a big state u. My S was in the College of Natural Resources, one of NCSU’s smaller departments. He got a very nice merit scholarship from CNR,btw.
Once he got past all the pre-reqs, the classes in his major were rarely more than 25-30 students. When he graduated he was the only student at NCSU graduating with his particular degree that spring. In the graduation program there were headings for each particular major in CNR. Under S’s major there was just one name listed…his…crazy at such a big school.</p>
<p>PackMom: Haha, that’s really interesting. Can you comment on how you think NC State will be financially impacted as a public university in the future? Or do you think NC State’s momentum towards improvement and building on its programs will continue to go strong? That’s my other worry about attending a public school…</p>
<p>By the way, just saw and read about the Hunt Library. NOTHING can top that! Haha. I’m starting to really favor NC State now.</p>
<p>I’m so glad to hear it! Hunt is a really impressive building and the atmosphere is amazing in it. Have you had a chance to tour campus and see it yourself?</p>
<p>ncstatefreshman:</p>
<p>Sadly, I won’t be able to visit any colleges in the mainland. I live in Saipan, CNMI, which is a really tiny island in the Pacific (about 9000mi away). Airfare is too expensive! I’m living through pictures and videos online, haha. If you could recommend any sites to help me out, I’d appreciate it. =) Right now I’m looking through the NSCU campus tour on the site. I used to think it’d be difficult for me to adjust rooting for State as an avid Duke fan before (peace!), but it looks like State has SO much to offer…</p>
<p>I really think the Hunt Library is representative of NC State’s future. It’s looking really bright! It definitely beats out the engineering resources at University of Rochester (though the school architecture there is definitely aesthetically-pleasing, haha). Engineering-wise, it looks like it can’t get any better than State! Roc’s focus seems to really be in biomedical, optical, and audio engineering; whereas State’s engineering has a really wide variety of strengths… really astounding. I wouldn’t know where to start at State! Do you know anything about the focus of the electrical engineering program there?</p>
<p>There are a surprising number of Duke fans on campus because we are so close. One of my closest fans cheers for Duke all the time except for when they play State, because she is a NCSU student.</p>
<p>As for photos and videos, there are a few videos of tours on Youtube. If you want to see any classrooms or buildings, I would be happy to take a picture for you. I don’t think I could get to Centennial soon but I’d be happy walking somewhere on campus for you.</p>
<p>A lot of people don’t like State’s campus because it’s a little… eclectic. But I think it’s beautiful in its own special way and I love the bricks. Obviously, Centennial Campus is beautiful and there is no denying it. </p>
<p>I don’t know anything specific about EE at State except someone’s comment that we have an awesome robotics program or team? I’m sure you’ve read everything on the website but their departmental website has quite a few awards on the front page. </p>
<p>“Starting in the 2009-2010 academic school year, the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department will offer a new undergraduate concentration in Renewable Electric Energy Systems (REES) within the Bachelor of Science Electrical Engineering degree program.” </p>
<p>That seems really cool, too!!</p>
<p>I’m getting so excited about NC State, haha. I’ve been researching all day. Personally, I think that I’ll love the bricks. Anything change is a good change coming from an island full of run-down businesses and buildings!</p>
<p>I just have a question about New Student Orientation. I researched the dates and got this:</p>
<p>“Engineering
Monday, July 8 – Tuesday, July 9
Tuesday, July 9 – Wednesday, July 10
Wednesday, July 10 – Thursday, July 11
Thursday, July 11 – Friday, July 12
Monday, July 15 – Tuesday, July 16
Tuesday, July 16 – Wednesday, July 17
Wednesday, July 17 – Thursday, July 18”</p>
<p>The site says that it’s required of all freshmen. I’m just wondering why they make it so early. I mean, as compared to the move-in day in August. For me, wouldn’t it mean to fly all the way there to NC in July, fly all the way back home to my hometown, and then fly there again in August to move in? .__. Please tell me if I’m interpreting this the wrong way… lol.</p>