Mechanical Engineering vs. Engineering Science

College Majors Engineering Majors
1

<p>I am a (hopeful) Mechanical Engineering Transfer student and I've just about received all my responses from colleges. The two schools I'm looking at are UCSD and UCI. </p>

<p>UCSD was my main school, and my primary major was ME but because it was impacted, I got into my alternate major which was Engineering Science. I chose Engineering Science as an alternate major because when I looked at the coursework for the major (on this page: UCSD</a> Jacobs School of Engineering ), the Engineering Science coursework was pretty much the same as the ME coursework, except 4 less classes. Transferring majors is pretty much not an option, since it involves going from a non-impacted major to an impacted major.</p>

<p>With UCI, I got in as a ME and I was very happy about that. Simple as that.</p>

<p>The thing is I'm not really sure about the difference between ME and ES. I've asked around my work place (I have an internship at a private firm) and it seems no one has really heard of an ES major. I asked my manager and he also said he hasn't heard of the major. He mentioned that ES might be a drawback for future job-searching opportunities if an employer is looking for specific types of engineering, like ME. So my choice is between going to UCSD as an Engineering Science major, or going to UCI as an ME.</p>

<p>Locationwise, both schools are about the same for me. Doing ME was always what I wanted to do, so I've been leaning more towards UCI. But if I went with UCSD, I could attend a "better" school and could keep my internship throughout the year ( as opposed to only coming back to work summers if I went to UCI). Plus, if the coursework is identical and major is just about the same anyway, why not go to UCSD and enjoy the perks? Again, the issue is the big question mark above Engineering Science.</p>

<p>Any advice on my situation would be very helpful. What is ES really and how does it differ from ME? If the two are so similar, why are they separate majors? What kind of work do ES majors do after college (as compared to ME majors)?</p>

2

<p>If it is true, that you can just add 4 courses to UCSD ES to build a program of study that is the same as UCSD ME, then you could theoretically do that.</p>

<p>But the main issue is that if you want to work in an area that requires Professional Engineer (PE) licensing, your degree needs to be in an [ABET</a> accredited](<a href=“http://www.abet.org/AccredProgramSearch/AccreditationSearch.aspx]ABET”>http://www.abet.org/AccredProgramSearch/AccreditationSearch.aspx) major. The ES program is not specifically listed under UCSD’s ABET accredited programs (and is not listed as “(ABET)” in [this</a> PDF](<a href=“http://www.jacobsschool.ucsd.edu/undergrad/admit_day/docs/2010/mae.pdf]this”>http://www.jacobsschool.ucsd.edu/undergrad/admit_day/docs/2010/mae.pdf)), so you may want to ask the department about ABET accreditation if PE licensing may be important to you.</p>

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<p>^ true. If I were you I’d just go for ME at UCI. If no one has heard of ES, including employers, then it might jeopardize career opportunities at ME jobs and you’ll always be worrying about that. Major in what you like (ME) and don’t go for the alternative.</p>

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<p>Usually ES degrees are for folks wanting a more general/broader engineering background. I would not use it for trying to get ME-type employment. ES is probably more for the math/physics majors who want to get into engineering in a supportive role. Because ES is not always accredited at the bachelor level, I would not recommend it UNLESS you are focusing in something like computer science, I.T. or computational science…fields that have a knack for hiring folks of different technical backgrounds. To me, mechanical, chemical, civil and electrical are not like that.</p>

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<p>Thanks for the replies. As much as I wanted to go to UCSD, ME is what I’ve always wanted to do in the first place.</p>