Has he met with the ME department at the schools on the top of his list? That was a parental requirement for our CBE and ME. ME in particular is a very broad field, so he should pick a school that peaks his interest in their current research or industry partnerships. ME curriculum all vary greatly in the amount of flexibility specifically with the amount of major and engineering elective spaces available in their curriculum map. Son chose a school where most ME courses have a project component (very important to him after years of robotics, Destination Imagination and other projects), and he has space to add EE and CS coursework.
Yes, all ABET certified engineering programs have the same baseline requirements, but student populations by school have different starting and ending expectations. Use the schools Common Data Set to get a feel for where your child falls in the enrolled class. Will his problem set study partners be at a similar academic level? Advertised accepted student data can be misleading. AP credit policies and practices vary. They are an indicator of how prepared the class in for the beginning of the core (Calculus, Physics, Chemistry).
Some highly ranked state schools asses students using multiple choice exams. It is a tough environment to learn, get constructive feedback and remain high enough on the grading curve. There can be lots of attrition in engineering. Find out about tests and final exams.
Some schools are co-op, some like a 4 year graduation rate, some encourage summer school and a semester internship, some encourage a semester abroad.
Make sure he loves the environment to stay happy and socially healthy because it will be a grind with ups and downs.
Any ABET accredited engineering program will prepare you to be an Engineer.
I would go on cost and where you want to end up after you graduate. Companies are more likely to recruit around where they are located.
Also, some schools require co-op programs…is that something you would be interested in definitely? or would you just like the option?
The quality of fellow students, student projects, co-op, recruiting, entrepreneurial support and internship opportunities, student support, and research separates engineering programs. I would look at those first, and prioritize what is important to you. The curriculum is essentially identical, and most universities have good teaching staff too.
Some things you might hear:
“No student can expect to complete projects on their own. They are simply too large to complete in the time allotted. Our program is designed for students to work in teams”
“50% of our engineering students go on to graduate school”
“We placed (1,2,3) in (10+) (inter)national student engineering competitions”
“Our new XXXX labs are available 24/7 for student projects”
“20% of our graduates are hired by famous companies XX,YY,ZZ , 10% work on wall street, etc…”
“The average high school GPA for our students is 3.9 and ACT is 34”
“Departmental lounges are staffed by TA’s 9 hours per weekday, and students can drop in when they need help with their homework or projects”
Thanks to everyone for your input. I know nothing about helping him with Engineering. My undergrad was in literature. Ha. @Much2learn We are going back to each of the schools on our short list (Rutgers, FSU, UF- God willing). I’ll be sure to ask those questions as only Rutgers admitted him the the major of his choice (and UDel- but we crossed that off). @KLSD I know about the attrition. I didn’t know about the MC assessments, but if anything, they’re far easier and much less reflective of student learning (I’m in education). Idk how to even find out how they assess. I guess we could ask. Thanks1
@danielle6849 Ask students about their assessments. I learned about Purdue from my nephew 2019 and from my daughter’s in state friends 2020. I asked about Georgia Tech on CC and the answer was the traditional graded blue books (often graded by TA). I was concerned that my current HS senior would get frustrated by taking math, chemistry and physics exams, all multiple choice. Exams were described as 10 questions, each with 10 multiple choice options.
Also, visit lab spaces. You son will likely spend many hours machining, 3d printing, assembling, doing fluids experiments, materials testing…
@KLSD --very good point. I’ve been surprised to hear that about the core engineering classes at some schools. Ds exams are all problem sets with free responses (Calc, Chem, Physics and Engineering Analysis). At other schools it’s all multiple choice.