Today I was surprised to have been admitted to UCLA, so now that the option is there, I’m strongly considering it. My dilemma is that I want to major in a type of civil engineering and only was accepted to UCLA’s Engineering Geology, which is a non ABET accredited program. Cal Poly Pomona can offer me an accredited BS in Civil Engineering at a cheaper price. Does UCLA’s name recognition justify the lack of accreditation and larger price tag? Or will CPP offer me a comparable career outlook? Thanks!
getting an engineering degree from CPP won’t hamper your career prospects in any way. UCLA is great but, it isn’t worth carrying $20k+ of student loans - if that’s you choice, then it’s easy.
Only one data point, but my husband’s company prefers CPP Civil Engineer grads over UCLA. His company doesn’t even attend job fairs at UCLA anymore since they have not been too happy with the caliber of applicants they have interviewed recently. Go where you will be happy and have a direct admit into your major. ABET accreditation is important for Civil Engineers.
Engineering geology is an interesting field, and it is related to civil engineering, but it is not the same thing. You would be on track to become a licensed Professional Geologist (PG), rather than a licensed Professional Engineer (PE).
If you want to eventually work as a civil engineer, than you want an ABET engineering degree, preferably in civil engineering specifically – not a geology degree. You will not be hired for civil engineering jobs with an engineering geology degree (although you could, of course, be hired for geologist jobs).
Alternatively, you could get the engineering geology degree, then try to get an MS in a related engineering field, most likely geotechnical or environmental engineering. This would likely be feasible if you have good math skills, although you might have to catch up on some undergraduate engineering coursework. But obviously this route would take longer and be more expensive than simply getting an ABET BS.
What do you prefer :
- being an engineer in your chosen specialty? -> cpp
- being a UCLA grad (regardless of major) -> UCLA.
Since CPP is cheaper and admitted you to your major, I would lean toward CPP but there’s no wrong choice here.
Thank you all for the response. I’m also leaning towards CPP as it seems to give me my ideal career path.