<p>I'm a junior in Mechanical Engineering and while I like a lot of it (the theory, that is), there are also some classes that uses AutoCAD and Solidworks or the like that I really do not enjoy. The fact that I think this is really what the job actually entails makes matters worse. What can I do if I want to focus more on the theory rather than on the hands-on, teamwork, product design aspect of things?</p>
<p>Perhaps this major is not my cup of tea and I should do something more theory based? Switching majors is really not an option for me because I've already taken a lot of my major classes, so I'm thinking graduate school could be an option. Any thoughts / advice?</p>
<p>“More theory based” – your freshman and sophomore math and physics courses should allow you to switch to a math or physics major fairly easily without delaying graduation, right?</p>
<p>Or if your school offers an engineering physics major, that may be another option.</p>
<p>Well, the job is definitely not just CAD for the majority of mechanical engineers. A lot have to do a little bit of CAD work, but there aren’t many who do that is their primary job function, and the ones who do are really underemployed if you ask me. Usually the real CAD jockeys are technicians.</p>
<p>At any rate, if you really want to focus on theory, I would suggest graduate school. Even with just a masters you will likely not be in a very theoretical positions once you finish your thesis and move on to industry, so it sure sounds a lot like you may be headed for PhD-land, which is a place near and dear to my own heart.</p>
<p>At my job, I never touch CAD at all, because I have a design/draft engineer do the CAD drawings for me. I usually do the background research on what kind of parameters i need for the project, then explain or sketch the parameters to the design drafter. Job function just depends on the company you work for.</p>
<p>There is a huge difference between working in the industry and in academic settings. Therefore, my biggest suggestion to you is get an internship or volunteer in a professors research lab. You are a junior, so there is plenty of time experience what is out there.</p>
<p>It sounds like you would prefer staying in academics if you like theory more, that’s what I choose to do personally. </p>
<p>Not sure how your program is structured but most mechanics classes relay on CAD. What about fluids, heat, nanotechnology, materials, etc. Do you enjoy any of those? They have a lower reliance on CAD software. Plus AutoCAD is in 2d, we are mechys you are not a civil engineer! Joking aside…</p>
<p>I’m developing a slight interest in chemistry that I’ve never once had since taking Gen Chem 1 and 2. How hard is the transition from mechanical to chemical for graduate school?</p>
<p>I’m not sure about that particular path but Graduate school plenty of people jump from one major to another. What is your area of research interest for graduate school, that might help you in figuring out if that’s a good transition. If you mean PhD programs, many offer pretty diverse interdisciplinary options for classwork. Basically your classwork will be tailored to suit what your thesis work is on.</p>