<p>Why would you choose SMU over Texas A&M for engineering? </p>
<p>Can you give me a good reason to pay at least 15,000 more per year?</p>
<p>The key question is whether the added cost is worth the benefits.</p>
<p>Is $15K a year worth having professors know who you are?
Is $15K a year worth having professors and not TAs teach all of your classes?
Is $15K a year worth having professors who are supportive and not trying to weed you out?
Is $15K a year worth having the opportunity to conduct top tier research as an undergraduate?
Is $15K a year worth having face time with leaders in industry minutes from campus?
Is $15K a year worth having hands-on opportunities in labs as an undergraduate?
Is $15K a year worth going to a school that doubled the national employment rate for their engineering graduates in 2011?
Is $15K a year worth having the opportunity to work with top companies like Lockheed Martin in the SkunkWorks Innovation Gym?</p>
<p>There is a lot to consider and cost is definitely a factor. SMU’s Lyle School of Engineering is a place that gives you all of the advantages and they are easily accessible. Now, that’s a return on your investment!</p>
<p>How difficult is it to maintain the 3.0 GPA that is required to keep the scholarships at SMU while majoring in engineering?</p>
<p>Engineering is supposed to be challenging. With that said, Lyle retains its students very well. It helps when you have small classes and professors that know students by name. It also helps that they have two programs, Lyle Ambassadors Helping Ambassadors and the Lyle Help Desk (through the Lyle Office of Recruiting and Retention), on top of other SMU wide amenities like the LEC to help students when they are struggling. In short, that is the beauty of coming to a school like Lyle. All the great things (professors, research, Innovation Gym, Hunt Institute for Engineering and Humanity) are VERY accessible.</p>
<p>My girlfriend just got back from Destination SMU and found out they are requiring engineering students to take three English courses and 2 years(4 semesters) of a foreign language. She has now taken SMU off her list because of the foreign language requirement. She will not be joining me at SMU… She is now trying to decided between Texas A&M and UT. She says they understand engineering is difficult enough without adding to the requirements. She wonders if they will now change their engineering to a BA in Mechanical Engineering. MIT doesn’t even require foreign language for its engineering graduates…</p>
<p>I thought it was 2 semesters of a foreign language. Can someone from the school verify? These new requirements need to be realistic for engineering students. Making us rethink our previous commitment.</p>
<p>its part of the general ed requirements for the entire school not just engineering majors</p>
<p>Do you know if the requirement is 2 semesters or 2 years (4 semesters) of a foreign language?</p>
<p>actually, i see nothing on their catalogs about engineering majors taking foreign languages…I only see it as required for high school prep.</p>
<p>I was also at Destination SMU on Monday and at the academic preview session for engineering, the speaker mentioned something that was in the process of being created, but he wasn’t completely sure of the details so he then deferred it to Mickey Saloma, who was also unsure about the details, but somewhere in the discussion I also heard something about a new foreign language requirement for all SMU students, among other things. It’s definitely real, but perhaps someone should contact SMU to get the exact details (if they even have any). Since it is so new, maybe the requirements will
only affect future applicants, because they really can’t just spring something like this on us.</p>
<p>I’ve already emailed the appropriate people about it. From my understanding it’ll be two semesters of foreign language like the rest of the school. That said with the new curriculum it’ll be easier to test out of foreign language than it used to be.</p>
<p>How can a student apply to a school if they don’t know what the requirements will be for graduation? There is a contract between the student and the school. Students who are choosing to enroll at SMU don’t have any idea what it will take to get a degree. </p>
<p>My girlfriend said the speakers were unclear what would be required for next year’s freshman class - it sure doesn’t sound like they know what they are doing. </p>
<p>Her father is livid. He said it sure doesn’t reflect well on the administration’s understanding of what is important to educating an engineer.</p>
<p>The confusion stems from the revamping of our liberal arts base that everyone takes. Here’s the official word:</p>
<p>"It is a two semester foreign language requirement which is awesome that other schools aren’t requiring of their students. Think about it, this is actually is yet another attribute that will help distinguish Lyle graduates to potential employers. They are getting an ABET accredited degree AND MORE!</p>
<p>The foreign language requirement ensures that we are educating well rounded engineers that will thrive in an evolving global market. It is this very global market that will put a premium on the ability to communicate across cultures. At SMU Lyle, our engineering students will have more than just top-notch technical skills. Our students will leave SMU with vital written and spoken communication skills that will help them share their latest innovation around the world"</p>
<p>@johnangle - By test out of the foreign languages, do you mean by stuff like AP exams, or will SMU have its own exams to offer to let people test out of them? I took 3 years of Latin in high school but I decided against taking the AP class/exam, so I’m hoping that I can last least use what I know from those 3 years to get out of 1 or maybe 2 semesters of the foreign language requirement. Even though I hear that the Latin professor at SMU is really fun.</p>
<p>There’s a placement test you can take at AARO</p>
<p>This new revisions is very concerning for a technical based degree and profession. I have researched Vanderbilt, Rice and Duke programs and they are limited on liberal arts with all the required engineering demands. <a href=“http://www.vanderbilt.edu/catalogs/undergrad/UGAD.pdf#ecourses[/url]”>http://www.vanderbilt.edu/catalogs/undergrad/UGAD.pdf#ecourses</a>
[General</a> Education Requirements](<a href=“http://www.ruf.rice.edu/~currrev/UWRJHword2.html]General”>General Education Requirements)
[Planning</a> Your Degree | Engineering at Duke University, Pratt School](<a href=“http://www.pratt.duke.edu/first-year-plan]Planning”>The First Year | Duke Pratt School of Engineering)
The administration needs a year to rethink this and make sure that it will remain accrediated. As a parent, I am really questioning the investment. If my child wants to double major in a liberal arts area, then I understand the new requirements but not for a technical degree in a liberal arts university.</p>
<p>The new UC is 85% the same as the old GEC, and the same number of hours as the old one. The new UC was part of our Quality Enhancement Program for re-accreditation.</p>
<p>Can we find exact information on SMU’s website about the new course requirements? Or is it going to be up sometime soon? I was going to commit to SMU pretty soon, but I need to be able to see what exactly I’m going to be faced with before I do. Right now it feels like I would be going in blind so I don’t want to take that risk.</p>
<p>I emailed with some people who developed the UC today and the message I got was this:</p>
<p>They’ve been developing this for two years now, and 85% of classes currently offered will “map” to the new UC. The biggest change is that the current requirement to take two cultural formations classes is gone. The language requirement can be satisfied through a number of ways (HS proficiency, classes here, co-op/internship, study abroad, etc) and is more flexible than the previous two semester requirement. </p>
<p>Next, they said the UC actually provides more flexibility for students to pursue multiple interests or to major in intensive degree program like engineering, business, music, etc. because courses can count toward multiple UC requirements instead of just one. The purpose is to provide students the opportunity to customize their UC experience to their own interests and needs while retaining the foundation for a liberal arts and sciences degree.</p>
<p>They also sent me a pdf with some more specific information that they’re going to put up on the 2016 page asap. Between then and now please feel free to email me with specific questions and I can either answer them or ask the people who developed the UC. This is really technical and honestly the differences between GEC and UC are fairly minor… your engineering load will not change, nor will your overall university experience.</p>
<p>Thanks, johnangle. My daughter is a sophomore at SMU and will take her final GEC course (cultural formations B) next fall. Although, the changes you mentioned won’t affect her degree plan, what you describe WILL give entering first years a lot more flexibility in customizing their educational experience. Trust me folks, this will make a great university even better!</p>