Hello everyone, I was just curious how I could tell if my major is engineering technology or engineering? I go to JWU engineering for “Electronics Engineering” in Providence RI. I’m aware that it’s not ABET accredited (also thinking of getting out of there because of that reason). I just wanted to know how can I tell if my program is engineering or engineering technology? I keep going to my school’s website and I can’t find anything telling me one way or the other. We have 3 majors in JWU engineering as far as I’m aware. We have Software engineering , Electronics Engineering, and Robotic Engineering Technology.
Robotics is obviously Engineering Technology due to it’s title, however when I keep looking at Electronics Engineering I keep finding just “Electronics Engineering”, with no “Technology” added on to the end of it. I want to be able to confirm or deny if it’s Engineering Technology or not, I’m 80% sure it is engineering technology because it sounds like an engineering technology major. But I just want to know where I could find that information. I signed into JWU’s website and it says “Electronics Engineering BS” Not BSEE or BEET. Is there some alternative site I can look to in order to find this information out?
Looking at the syllabus, I would say that it is a BSEE degree that is (a) extremely inflexible and (b) oriented towards hardware design. Without going into course syllabi, it appears to cover all the bases you would expect to see in a BSEE, but appears to offer no real specialization options while going either very slow or into extreme depth in certain areas. For example, 25.5 credits are devoted to “circuit design” out of 200.25 credits required for the degree, while only 4.5 credits are devoted to E&M. That is more time mandated on circuit design than most schools offer even as an elective specialization, while providing minimal education on other important areas.
I would transfer as soon as possible and not worry about what type of degree you would get if you stayed.
OP, you really should leave that school. No ABET accreditation for something like a EE degree is bad news.
Also, their math requirements are weak for EE. Most ABET schools require Calc 1,2,3, DiffEq, and usually one or two extra classes (i.e. linear algebra, statistics, etc).
If you haven’t enrolled, you would protect your freshman status.
If you have enrolled, try to transfer.
I agree with the above posters that no ABET accreditation is bad news.
Can you the questions asked upthread,?
@MYOS1634 I am a year and a half in and my current GPA is 3.05. I’m currently trying to transfer to Wentworth Institute of Technology. As is, I seem to meet the requirements for transferring so I’m getting the hell out of here if I can.
I can’t transfer to URI since it claims it won’t take non-abet transfer credits for engineering on their website.
Currently I’m considering all options.
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I’m debating about going back in the fall just to take differential equations so
I don’t have to retake calc 2 if I transfer (nearly the entire class got a D or an F from the way the course was run). I did fine in calc 3, as did everyone else. If I do succeed and transfer then I’ll just continue onward and graduate from Wentworth I guess.
Let’s say I take this path, most of my credits would transfer easily into a BEET program. Could I still become an engineer that way by taking the FE and PE? I mean the BEET would be accredited if I went to Wentworth and I would be allowed to take those exams.
Or is electrical engineering (which most of my courses should transfer into as well) the way to go here?
Just deciding between electrical engineering and electronic engineering technnology at Wentworth
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The reason why I want to know if I’m engineering or engineering technology is because I’m considering all options and
I can still get licensed for the FE and PE in Massachusetts if I’m from an unaccredited “engineering” program, but unaccredited engineering technology wouldn’t count as far as I can tell. I was just looking into exploring that option. It seems like all ABET does is make sure you can get licensed in all states. However if I can get licensed in Massachusetts and build from my career (I already work in R&D), maybe that can work out?
I want to be completely sure path 2 is impossible before I transfer. Path 2 is only possible if I’m in unaccredited engineering and not unaccredited engineering technology.
Unaccredited engineering is just bad news. Your first job may be anywhere - not in Massachusetts. You have to be flexible about where you’ll go for that job.
I’d there’s grade repair, yes retake that class to get off your GPA.
@MYOS1634, not really my area of expertise. I’m a software guy, and employers could care less if a CS program is ABET-accredited or not (I don’t believe Stanford’s CS program is, for instance).
It seems that companies who hire engineers care more about ABET-accreditation, though.
Licensure is only important to some engineers. Most R&D positions aren’t going to require licensure (though I’m sure there are exception). The more important (and primary) purpose of ABET is to certify that any accredited program meets a certain minimum standard of preparation for its students. This is why licensing bodies usually use it as part of their process. A non-ABET degree signals to employers that you may not have the same basic skill sets as others coming from accredited programs, which is usually detrimental to your job prospects.
Does your current company know you are in this unaccredited program?
OP- Where do engineers from JWU get hired? I would be reluctant to hire an engineer from a department that is not accredited. It isn’t about licensure. It’s about ensuring that you have graduated from a program that meets a minimum standard. I think JWU is great for the culinary arts, not so sure about their engineering program. It might be best to cut your losses and move on to something that will be affordable to you. I recall you received a generous scholarship or aid from JWU. Your time is worth something, too. Think long and hard about how far you want to proceed with JWU.
@boneh3ad Yes they know I’m in an unaccredited program, I told them. It was risky to tell them but they decided to keep me here since I’ve been doing fine. @VMT we have had one person go to raytheon believe it or not. I’m not sure how that happened.
Link to that web site? That seems highly unusual. However, it is possible that some of the courses at your current school may not be accepted for subject credit.
^ CCRI likely has an agreement with URI due being its feeder CC and in the agreement there may be oversight/overlap in the lower level classes, whereas the OP’s classes are not part of the agreement.
You’re better off transfering anyway - because what you see with URI is going to be the norm.