<p>Hey everyone</p>
<p>So I've been thinking and I was wondering if anyone could tell me the difference between these two majors and the job opportunities material science graduates have (assume either a Masters or a PhD). So far I've been thinking about majoring in ChemE but material science also sounds appealing...</p>
<p>I believe somebody have said that materials is more solid, while ChE is more fluids, although the line that distinguishes the two is rather blurry. I'd say that ChE have more job opportunities available. Companies looking for materials engineers usually look for someone who majored in either materials or mechanical engineering. If you're truly interested in materials only, then chemical or mechanical should grant you more opportunities than a materials degree.</p>
<p>Thanks steevee</p>
<p>I have to agree with steevee that ChemE is a more established and therefore less risky option. You can always major in ChemE, but just take plenty of Materials courses as electives, and, perhaps most importantly, hunt for a part-time materials internship/coop/research-project while in school. Most companies, frankly, don't really care precisely what degree you have, as long as you know the stuff and eagerness to enter the industry. Few, if any companies are going to think: "Wow, you really know a lot about materials, but you don't actually have a materials degree, so we're not going to hire you, but instead, going to hire somebody else who knows less but actually has a materials degree." That's highly unlikely. </p>
<p>As a bonus, a ChemE degree will give you leverage when it comes to salary negotiation time, as you can then credibly threaten to just take a regular (and relatively high paying) ChemE job. Employers will know that so they know that they can't turn the screws on you too tightly. A materials degree doesn't give you that bargaining leverage.</p>
<p>^Thanks for the insight sakky. That's also true when it comes to PhD graduates looking for jobs right? I'm going to look into it. I mean if I find that I like Material way more than Chemical I'll switch (taking an intro to material soon) but for now I'll stick with Chemical Engineering.</p>
<p>If you do find materials interesting, but you are particularly interested in polymers, I suggest sticking with ChE. I find that ChEs usually deal with polymers when it comes to materials science. I worked in a lab this summer and one of the PhD students is working on optimizing reactor conditions and catalyst ratios to produce a particular type of polymer.</p>