<p>I have been going to a community college and have been taking math and computer science classes. I am good at it, but I don't really like the idea of being "chained to a desk" all my life. For someone who is interested in computers and math, what would be some alternative majors and/or careers i should go for? Currently I am majoring in software engineering and I thought I wanted to be a programmer of some sort... But I don't really know what I want. I want to do something meaningful. Something that will give me satisfaction in life. I don't want to program the next angry birds or the next microsoft product. I have been thinking about switching majors altogether to something like renewable energy engineering. I really need help/advice. Thanks guys!</p>
<p>Defining “meaningful” is an individual value judgment. We can’t do that for you.</p>
<p>Have you taken physics?</p>
<p>I realize that meaningful is subjective, but that doesn’t mean people can’t help me. I was asking for advice. You could say I was asking for opinions, which are subjective, but still helpful.</p>
<p>I have not taken physics yet but I was going to next year. I need it for my software engineering degree plus I would need it for pretty much everything else that I have been looking at. So I will definitely start physics in the fall.</p>
<p>What I really can’t decide on is should I keep taking computer classes or should I try some engineering classes or should I take chemistry and math classes that would need for renewable energy engineering? If I stick with software engineering I don’t need as much math which is cool. I would definitely be able to graduate faster also. This is a tough decision. I also recently discovered Geomatics. Does anyone have anything to say about Geomatics?</p>
<p>I myself was in a similar position after finishing up my first year. Although I fell in love with my math and physics classes, I didn’t want to be at a desk my whole life. I love the outdoors and realized that I wanted that to be a part of my career path as well… I was in engineering but switched my major to physics after talking to a geophysicist at my school and learning about the field. I’m now doing a seismology REU this summer studying earthquakes. As part of my research I get to go out in the field and deploy seismic instruments and it’s a blast! Many of the people I’ve met have gone to awesome places like Antarctica, Peru, and Turkey to do research. There can also be a lot of COMPUTER work but that pretty much goes with any field. The geosciences really have something for everyone.</p>
<p>Philosophy if you really want a switch? You can take a more mathy direction with philosophy. Often times, logic is in the philosophy department as opposed to the math department.</p>
<p>Possibly, industrial engineering as well.</p>
<p>Okay, here are my opinions:</p>
<p>First, don’t major in “renewable energy engineering” - whatever that is. ABET doesn’t offer accreditation in that subject and it sounds like a marketing gimmick. Stick with core disciplines like chemical, civil, electrical, mechanical, etc. and try to apply these to alternative energy if that’s your interest.</p>
<p>Also, take your basic science courses (math, physics, chemistry) for engineering. These should complement computer science well anyway. See how that goes before making a decision.</p>
<p>Geomatics could be good preparation for GIS work or surveying.</p>
<p>Renewable energy? You may want to look at EE or ME as they are the most common for the field, but it is a field open to most engineers. </p>
<p>You may want to check out some Industry websites, to see what jobs are available (and where). That may help you in selecting a major.</p>
<p>[SEIA</a> | Solar Energy Industries Association](<a href=“http://www.seia.org/]SEIA”>http://www.seia.org/)</p>
<p>Thanks for the suggestions guys. I definitely want something more hands on. I want to learn skills for the workplace. Although philosophy interests me, I don’t think it is that good for training me as a worker.</p>
<p>Btw, Oregon Institute of Technology has a Renewable energy engineering degree that IS accredited by ABET… So noimagination is wrong when he said ABET doesn’t accredit it. However noimagination offered good advice so thank you. </p>
<p>Keep the advice coming! I really like hearing from everyone.</p>
<p>“Renewable Energy Engineering” is a rare bird, I would think only a handful of schools have the degree. Nothing wrong with going with one of those programs/schools, but don’t feel you have to limit yourself to those programs, if you want to work in the renewable energy field. Most engineers working in this field have standard (ME, EE, etc.) degrees. These degrees give you more flexibility, in case you decide to not work in this field, 5 years from now! :)</p>
<p>Good Luck!</p>
<p>
Good catch. REE isn’t mentioned anywhere on the ABET website except the listing for OIT, so this must be the only such program with accreditation.</p>
<p>Regardless, I stand by my advice: a more mainstream engineering degree will offer you more options.</p>
<p>If your interest is in more hands on or application, then it sounds like you’re looking at engineering. If not, then I would suggest a combination (like “almost any” combination) of CS, math and physics. I would suggest that you don’t see them as a separate, but as very tightly coupled subjects and don’t see them as theoretical. You need CS to solve certain problems in physics and math (the problems could equally well be in renewable energy or anything that you consider “meaningful”), but you also need physics and math to understand the real-world as well as to formulate those problems. Known engineering methods is a separate topic, but they boil down to the same theory at the theoretical level. Thus as long as you’re dealing within CS, math and physics, you’re learning about the same stuff, just in a different orientation (theory being more exact and fundamental, engineering being more about abstraction of the theory and found practices that allow managing more complex systems). There are many ways to wind up doing those problems that you consider meaningful, different levels (theory, engineering, implementation) as well.</p>
<p>I definitely want something more hands on. I have developed back pain as a result of sitting in a chair all day long. I realized that even though I like computer science, I don’t want to be chained to a desk all day. I want to build things. Like hybrid cars or robots or solar panels. This brings up an important question! Do engineers spend all day at a desk? I just realized that engineers might spend very much time physically building stuff. They might spend more time on their computer… Oh crap.</p>
<p>I think that would depend on what job you take. My uncle works on computers all day, but not doing software. He does the hardware part of it. So, he spends as much time on “his computer” as he does actually “maintaining” stuff, lol. The physical and tangible stuff of computers, anyway.</p>
<p>For you, I would suggest Electrical Engineering. It would be better at transferring into the computer realm (like my uncle who has an EE degree), or renewable energy for solar or wind, since both would need an EE somewhere. Mechanical Engineering would be a good option, too. It would be tied, really. Both can go into both fields. I think it would depend what part of renewable energy you would like to work on: designing the wind turbine? Or how to harness the electrical power of it? Or computers: The actual construction of the computer? Or it’s circuitry?</p>
<p>It’s up to you.</p>
<p>@chillpenguin
“Do engineers spend all day at a desk? I just realized that engineers might spend very much time physically building stuff. They might spend more time on their computer… Oh crap.”</p>
<p>Almost all design and a lot of research is nowadays done on the computer (using CAE software) and will increasingly continue to be done so. If you’re in a field or a role that needs field trips or working outside, then you would get change. But e.g. in mechanical or electrical engineering (as well as in civil engineering and probably in a lot of the others also), a lot of the work (at least in design) is actually desk work on the computer.</p>
<p>Engineers may in some cases be, but not necessarily are the people who build things. More often they design, research and calculate, whereas the manufacturing and assembly is done in (separate) machine shops and factories, off-shored and/or done by people more skilled (i.e. professional) in hands on work. This has been discussed in the forums before.</p>