A recent UA thread has me wondering/worrying about post-grad job opportunities at both schools. S19 will be touring both UA and UAH in a few weeks and plans to learn more about their engineering programs Would love to have input from recent engineering grads or their parents with regards to their experience finding a job. S19 seems most interested in mechanical engineering right now but has also at times expressed interest in aerospace. He is high stats so will qualify for significant merit at both (Full tuition/housing at UAH and Presidential Elite at UA) which make them both highly desirable. Thanks! (Will cross-post in UA forum.)
My son is a senior at UAH, and while not an engineering major, he has several fraternity brothers and friends who are. Many of his brothers/friends have been been working co-ops or internships since their sophomore years, so they have gained valuable on-the-job experience. Some will be graduating into their jobs. Another fraternity brother graduated from UAH and had plans to return home for graduate school. Two weeks before starting classes, he got a call from Boeing with a job offer. He took it.
The school holds two career/internship fairs each year – one in the fall, and one in the spring. The spring fair is coming up. Here is a list of the employers scheduled (there could be others added). Many of the employers are seeking engineering majors.
@momreads Thanks! Very helpful! (I was hoping you would chime in! 
)
@momreads, thanks for that information! Somewhat related - I was wondering if you’d heard how competitive it is to get an internship or coop at UAH? I’ve heard horror stories from other universities where there are too many applicants and well-qualified students are left out in the cold, so to speak (or they’re lining up at 3 AM for when the co-op office opens to get a spot on the list).
Unsure about the competitiveness for an internship or co-op. My son’s friends have not had too many issues landing them. All are strong students. I can remember him telling me stories that one of his brothers came into a chapter meeting asking if anyone was interested in an internship. Apparently the young man’s dad worked locally as an engineer, and his firm was hiring interns. Another young man had just landed an internship with a power company in Birmingham. The internship provided a very nice salary and housing.
UAH’s career services dept is really one of the strengths of the university. My sophomore son is finding multiple opportunities from companies he met on campus.
The key appears to be gpa; most companies want a min 3.0 gpa before they’ll talk to you. There are a few that want 3.5. If a student meets that hurdle, there is plenty of work to be had at a myriad of companies.
My son is currently working for Boeing on the Space Launch System (SLS) and got that job the end of his freshman year. Two of his sophomore suite-mates got internships for this summer with Northrup Grumman.
As an aside, my son thinks the following is the order of engineering demand among employers: Computer Engineering/Computer Science, Electrical, Industrial, Mechanical/Aerospace. In addition, there are quite a few business opportunities available to support these companies as well.
Don’t know as much about UA’s career services dept, but we did tour there, and a senior engineering student told us her perception was that UA had more opportunities focused on research (ie working with profs) as opposed to hands-on work with companies.
@gertyberty thanks! How does your son find campus life? Are they able to stay in dorms during internship/coop programs?
He loves campus life! His primary activities, besides studying, are his religious campus ministry, the climbing club, and the fitness center. He also participated in space hardware club freshman year (VERY active at UAH), which he liked a lot, but he just doesn’t really have enough time to devote to it with the Boeing job.
The students I know with internships are not able to stay in the dorms but receive housing stipends from the companies. Also, for summer internships, there are many students trying to sublet their apartments, so it’s not difficult to find cheap housing.