<p>GSM, I know it’s not the focus of the thread, but I’d really recommend your son think about just doing a minor in physics along with his major in engineering. I found the added flexibility let me take only the courses in physics that interested me, and let me take a ton of extra classes within my home department that were interesting. I wound up having the choice between graduating a semester early ($$$), double majoring, or picking up my MS in four years. I decided since I knew I was going to do a PhD anyway, the MS was a waste, and I really wasn’t interested in advanced E&M classes plus a few others I had no interest in, so I saved about $10k in loans instead.</p>