<p>*Hi @MemphisGuy - He is accepted to ChemE and would like to double major in Chemistry. He has some acceptances from other colleges ranked in the top 10 for their ChemE programs, so I think one of the concerns (mind you, he is an 18 y/o male who doesn’t really share!) is a lack of knowledge about the reputation of Bama’s ChemE program and outcomes (specifically regarding grad school acceptances at some of the leading ChemE schools). </p>
<p>My point to him has been that at the undergrad level, an ABET program levels the playing field somewhat and the ability to graduate from Bama with no student debt frees up that money for grad school funding.*</p>
<p>My son was a ChemEng’g grad from Bama (last May). I can’t speak to the grad school outcomes because he and his ChemE friends either went to med school or directly into very highly paid positions. I will ask him if he knows what grad schools some of his other fellow grads went to.</p>
<p>That said, I would venture to say that with a ChemE degree from Bama getting accepted to a very good ChemE grad school would not be difficult. Grad school acceptances are more about: high GPA, high GPA within major, course curriculum, high GRE scores, LORs, research, etc. With those in hand, getting accepted into a very good grad school can certainly be had. </p>
<p>Schools don’t really care about undergrad name when accepting grad students (unless maybe you’re attending some podunk school). They care about those above-listed things. When my older son (Math) went thru the grad school app process, he found that the accepted students came from all kinds of schools…from ivies to flagships to even some rather unknown, but good schools.</p>
<p>247rtc: I am sure others will answer your questions about ChemE. </p>
<p>M2CK’s son was a ChemE major. He has since graduated and is attending medical school. </p>
<p>My D is an EE major at Bama. She is enjoying her classes and her experience at Bama.</p>
<p>Greg Singleton is in charge of the high school-type programs including the SITE program offered in the summer. Probably should have tailored his comments to his audience. He is director of Engg Student Services and a delightful man.</p>
<p>Since your son has an interest in Chem and ChemE, I suggest that you try to meet Dr. Bonizzoni when you visit Bama. He’s only been at Bama for a few years. He was educated in Italy and did his post-doc at UTexas. His English is excellent and he’s great with students. My son had him for Organic Chem (that’s another good story), and adored him.</p>
<p>I would also talk to him about working in his lab.</p>
<p>I’m not sure if this is the case with every local reception, but the one we attended in suburban Philadelphia back in November had a heavy emphasis on engineering, which was great for us because we haven’t visited Tuscaloosa yet either. I forget who did the major presentation (the assistant dean of engineering maybe?), but I’m sure he would have answered any questions we’d had if we’d stuck around. The reception was jam-packed and it was a school night, so my son got his freebies (free tee shirt!) and we hightailed it out of there, but we were very impressed with the main speaker and what he had to say about the engineering program, especially how they try to produce well-rounded engineers, who are comfortable relating to people in liberal arts disciplines.</p>
<p>A lot of the evening was clearly targeted at juniors and those who had no previous contact with the university, and our son had already been accepted into the engineering school and awarded the Presidential Scholarship, but it was still well worth attending. (And the food was great!)</p>
<p>Thanks for sharing the Engineering visit report, VAmomof4! Great that Bama could parlay the experience of other schools along with their wish lists to design so many nice features into their Engineering complex. Also good to hear about the UG focus along with research opportunities and supports in place. </p>
<p>So helpful to learn about your ambassador’s experience as a student. Very impressive to have 3 coops and an offer waiting from Chevron! We live in a suburb of Houston and understand that those big O&G internships/coops/1st jobs are very competitive (require a min. 3.5 GPA to even get a look). That speaks well of UA’s reputation within that industry.</p>
<p>Thanks M2CK & congrats on your son in med school! Any info you hear about his friends and grad school acceptances would be great. The engineering ambassador at Capstone Scholars had applied to some pretty lofty schools (like MIT) but was awaiting acceptances. </p>
<p>I’ve always heard it boils down to grades, GRE, LOC and meaningful research participation but that seems to fall on deaf ears with DS as he tends to use his peer group as his main source of knowledge. Of course, what he hears from them now may change quite a bit in a couple of months when some start receiving their financial aid offers and realize if they make it off the waitlist they are looking at UG expenses close to $200,000.</p>
<p>Cuttlefish123, you’re right, M2CK is fast! Actually, this entire board is so very helpful compared to many of the other schools and just seems like an extension of the welcoming spirit you see at UA. Glad to hear your D is enjoying her EE experiences there. Despite Dr. Singleton’s issues with addressing the target audience, you did see his overall enthusiasm and interest in the students. A nice switch from some of the college presentations whose presenters seem pretty removed from their students (or the one leading engineering school who told the audience that research was usually only available for grad students… with a snicker). Yes, we snickered as we got up and left :-)</p>
<p>M2CK, thanks for the info on Dr. Bonizonni. DS is crazy about Chemistry, has been taught by a PhD level Org Chemist for three years now from PreAP Chem, into AP Chem and this year Honors Organic Chem. He also manages the school chem lab for her for an additional class period, sets up all experiments, prepares the required solvents, etc. After school he tutors the AP Chem kids along with a couple of college students when needed. Just a total Chem “nerd” and will be looking for a new mentor in college to replace what he has grown used to here.</p>
<p>Thanks to all who replied with info about their local presentations. I’ve spoken with our local recruiter and he wasn’t sure yet as to whether Engineering would be represented but it sounds like they are usually on the panel. We will probably join the crowd of 700+ expected for the Houston event in a couple of weeks.</p>