Going into engineering in grad school with a BSc in physics?

Graduate School
1

<p>How feasible is it for someone with a BSc in physics to do a Masters in Mechanical Engineering?</p>

<p>I just finished my BSc in physics and I’m now planning to do a masters in mech eng or something related in the US. My concerns now are:</p>

<p>1) What are my chances of getting into a masters program in mech eng with a BSc in physics? </p>

<p>2) Assuming I get accepted onto a mech eng program, how difficult will it be to keep up with the course, considering not having taken typical undergraduate level classes like programming, engineering drawing, stress analysis, dynamics and control, etc. </p>

<p>3) Do graduate programs bring everyone up to speed before going into the more advanced stuff?</p>

<p>4) If not, is it possible for people to take classes to make up for ‘holes’ in their undergrad studies? I went to a British university, so I don’t really know how things work in the US. Can grad students take undergrad classes? Are there special classes for grad students to make up for such holes?</p>

<p>Thanks for reading. Any input would be much appreciated.</p>

2

<p>1) Probably decent, depending on the overlap between your physics education and the area of ME research.</p>

<p>2) Depends a lot on the research area - some areas are straight engineering, others are applied physics with a little engineering thrown in.</p>

<p>3) Kind of. It is expected that the first year or two will be coming up to speed on your research area, but you will still be doing some research or teaching during that time.</p>

<p>4) Yes. It is not uncommon for grad students to take a couple of “remedial” courses (compared to the rest of their cohort) to make up for either a change of focus or just because said courses were not available at their old school.</p>

3

<p>isn’t electrical closer to a physics degree than mechanical?</p>