<p>I recently got accepted at UCSD as an environmental engineering major but I can't figure out if the program is ABET accredited. Also, I am not exactly sure what ABET accredited really means. If a program is not accredited, does that mean that your degree is useless?</p>
<p>You can check on their website. [url=<a href=“http://www.abet.org%5DABET%5B/url”>http://www.abet.org]ABET[/url</a>]</p>
<p>ABET certification means the program meets certain minimum requirements determined by committee. They review the program every few years. </p>
<p>When pursuing professional licensure, graduating with an ABET accredited degree may be a requirement, depending on the state. In some states, you may not need that, but you'd have to have significantly more professional experience as an alternate.</p>
<p>Uc-sd is certified in the following</p>
<p>Aerospace Engineering(BS) [2002]
Bioengineering (Biotechnology)(BS) [2002]
Bioengineering(BS) [1987]
Chemical Engineering(BS) [1985]
Electrical Engineering(BS) [1982]
Mechanical Engineering(BS) [1987]
Structural Engineering(BS) [1987]</p>
<p>so if it’s not ABET accredited, my degree is useless? Should I change my major to something else?</p>
<p>^^ No - your degree wouldn’t be ‘useless’. In a lot of cases ABET certification doesn’t have any significance. For example, they’re not ABET certified for CS either but virtually all CS grads get employed, many receive multiple offers, or get accepted to top grad schools. Don’t read too much into ABET accreditation. I don’t know the details on Environ Eng. but you could check to see what companies recruit on-campus for that major, what percentage of Env Eng grads get accepted to grad schools, whether ABET certification is really required by the potential employers, etc.</p>