Calling all ENGINEERS - Help!

[Ames]

I made the switch from Computer E to MIS and never looked back

You missed a step in the slide. If you can't hack CprE go CS; if that's too much go MIS.

[oldman]

I started out in EE, but quickly realized that I wasn't cut out for it. My buddy convinced me to go into ConE and I never looked back. Lot more business oriented than engineering oriented, but you can still get a professional engineer license if you want to. And lots of construction companies like the fact that you have an engineering background.

[brianhos]

You missed a step in the slide. If you can't hack CprE go CS; if that's too much go MIS.

I don't think that CPRE is all that much harder than CS.

[azn4cy]

You missed a step in the slide. If you can't hack CprE go CS; if that's too much go MIS.

I like to make jokes about it too, but in reality, they're just all different. If you like pure coding, go Com Sci, if you like processor and circuit design along with some coding, go CprE. If you don't like to code and want to make the Asian guy in your group do most of the coding for group projects, but you sorta like computers and database, go MIS.

[CloneIce]

Is the reason he wants to switch because he thinks his classes will be too hard or that he really doesn't like engineering? At least in the civil program, I thought classes actually got easier than the general chemistry/calculus/physics/etc. They weren't easy but usually the subject material interested me enough that it made it much more "enjoyable" (I found it impossible to enjoy classes) that the core crap.

But if he doesn't think he will enjoy engineering, then he should swich.

Yeah I'd definitely agree with that. Classes almost got easier as you got older, other than a couple structures and steel classes. Calculus and physics are basically weed-out courses, they don't just keep getting harder as you got older.

[agrabes]

Thanks for the heads up! I'm currently thrilled about not having to take Physics 222

A little advice: Take 222! Chemistry sucks much more than Phsy 222, so I took that instead of having to do 2 semesters of chemistry. Most of my other CE friends did the same.

Unless you are going the environmental route, then you have to take Chem 177 & 178 anyway.

[isucy1234]

A little advice: Take 222! Chemistry sucks much more than Phsy 222, so I took that instead of having to do 2 semesters of chemistry. Most of my other CE friends did the same.

Unless you are going the environmental route, then you have to take Chem 177 & 178 anyway.

A little advice: Disregard the advice above haha. I hated physics 221 and 222 with a PASSION! Hardest classes I've ever taken...

[Cyched]

A little advice: Take 222! Chemistry sucks much more than Phsy 222, so I took that instead of having to do 2 semesters of chemistry. Most of my other CE friends did the same.

Unless you are going the environmental route, then you have to take Chem 177 & 178 anyway.

I hear you...but I got credit for Chem 178 from AP Chem in high school so I'm home free

[ISUser]

A little background...I started at ISU in engineering and stuck with it for 2 years (4 semesters) before changing majors to business.

My son is a freshman and to this point has gotten all A's in his classes with the exception of Chemistry. He has put himself on the track to become an electrical engineer.

At any rate, he has informed us that he now wants to switch to business because he "doesn't really like his classes that much" and that he is concerned that his classes are going to be "too hard" going forward. He also cannot visualize what kind of career he might be engaged in as an EE and is concerned that he might get "stuck in a cubicle in the office all the time".

We know he can do the work. We have encouraged him to get a more 'technical' undergraduate degree like engineering and then go on to get an MBA after that. We think that would really give him a lot of opportunities.

At any rate, I would greatly appreciate it if any of you that are engineering graduates (especially EEs) could give me some idea of the kinds of careers you have had or currently have and the kinds of work you are doing.

Thanks in advance for your help!

I'm a EE in the power engineering field. I graduated about 2 years ago and work for a large utility company in Kansas. While I do work in a cubicle, I do spend a fair amount of time out in the field meeting with large customers and inspecting equipment and jobs. I know several other engineers as well, and I can tell you that while most of them have an office in a cubicle, they do spend a fair amount of time out of the office doing other work.

As for the class work, I can't say it gets easier as you move forward, but a lot of people (myself included) find the work to be more interesting. The freshman level difficulty courses are similar for all engineers , and it's typically not until the third year when you start getting into the specifics of the field you want to go into. But if your son doesn't like the class material for reasons other than it's difficulty, then maybe engineering just isn't right for him. I wouldn't encourage him to be an engineer if he's never going to enjoy being an engineer. Being good at it doesn't necessarily mean you enjoy it.

It's not an easy decision, and the best advice I can give is to encourage him to sit down and take the time to really think things over before making a decision. If he really enjoys math and science, but is worried about working in a cubicle or harder classes I'd encourage him to stick with it since it'll get more interesting.

What I would be worried about is if he wants to switch to an easier business major to give himself more time to party. I see that happen all the time and I would discourage switching majors for that reason.

[mramseyISU]

Thanks for the heads up! I'm currently thrilled about not having to take Physics 222

If you were looking forward to that I'd suggest lots and lots of appointments with a shrink.

[Ames]

I don't think that CPRE is all that much harder than CS.

They are pretty similar, but I think it's the additional math, physics, chem, and EE classes. I know a lot of guys that did that slide and we used to joke about it all the time.

Had I known that once you graduate and get some experience under you belt none of it matters I would have done the MIS. Definitely some business classes as electives.

[Alswelk]

A little advice: Disregard the advice above haha. I hated physics 221 and 222 with a PASSION! Hardest classes I've ever taken...

You clearly never took Chem 331 and 332. Physics is a dream compared to the awful that is O-chem.

I will admit though, 221 is awful. But then I had it with Atwood the semester before the infamous "dance" semester. I thought 222 was significantly easier, but that may have just been me.

[Warder60]

With several ME's chiming in to switch to ME to get away from a cube farm... I'll have to counter that.
I'm an EE. My first 1.5 yrs I was admittedly "based" out of a cube farm, but I worked on a lab management team, and spent almost my entire time in the labs on my hands and knees half the time too. Routing cables, setting up circuit boards...
I moved on to where I'm at now. I support a missile production team. Don't even have a cube. Have a desk, with a pc, in a room with other engineers that have a desk and a pc. As an EE I get the specialized role of supporting testing (as a result electrical troubleshooting), but it only takes up about a day per week. The rest of the time I'm out on the bay picking up the slack from the MEs .

[Trainer]

I am not a engineer, and I am not saying that you did this, but the hardest thing I had to deal with while in college was my parents asking me if I will make any money with my current major. The best advice I was ever given was that I am the only person that I have to satisfy at the end of the day.

[Bader]

I like to make jokes about it too, but in reality, they're just all different. If you like pure coding, go Com Sci, if you like processor and circuit design along with some coding, go CprE. If you don't like to code and want to make the Asian guy in your group do most of the coding for group projects, but you sorta like computers and database, go MIS.

Pure coding? Mer?

At a high level, a Computer Science major wants to be a scientist, focused on doing abstract research in software development. In short a mathematician that wants to focus themselves in a particular area (Algorithm and regression analysis). A Computer Engineer wants to use programming to solve real world applicable problems. It's just a historical artifact of the industry that CprE's learn more about hardware, they actually used the stuff so they had to know how it worked under the hood.

Oh, and an MIS looked at an iMac, liked the pretty colors and decided a technology degree was the way to go