Undergrad degree in aerospace engineering

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the experiences and insights of participants regarding undergraduate degrees in aerospace engineering, specifically focusing on admission difficulties, school choices, and the academic requirements for various institutions in North America and Canada.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested
  • Technical explanation
  • Conceptual clarification

Main Points Raised

  • One participant shares their experience of switching from aerospace to mechanical engineering, noting similar difficulty levels and admission criteria based on state rankings.
  • Another participant emphasizes that admission difficulty varies significantly between institutions, suggesting that applying as an "undecided" major could be a strategic approach for those with lower grades.
  • A participant provides insights on specific Canadian universities, highlighting Carleton University and Ryerson University for their aerospace programs and the competitive nature of the University of Toronto's program.
  • Concerns are raised about the impact of lower grades in earlier years on admission prospects, particularly for the University of Toronto, with a participant questioning the weight of grade 11 marks compared to potential improvements in grade 12.
  • Discussion includes the University of Waterloo as a strong alternative for mechanical engineering, with participants noting its high retention rates compared to other programs.
  • Questions arise regarding the implications of pursuing a mechanical engineering degree at Waterloo for future admission into aerospace graduate programs, particularly concerning the lack of specific aerospace courses.
  • Another participant mentions that graduate studies focus more on research topics than the specific undergraduate degree, suggesting flexibility in transitioning from mechanical to aerospace engineering at the graduate level.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express a range of opinions on the best universities for aerospace engineering, the difficulty of admissions, and the relevance of prior academic performance. No consensus is reached on a singular best path or institution.

Contextual Notes

Participants express uncertainty about the accuracy of average grade requirements and the variability of admission standards across different universities. The discussion reflects a range of personal experiences and perspectives without definitive conclusions.

Who May Find This Useful

Prospective students considering undergraduate degrees in aerospace or related engineering fields, particularly those evaluating different universities and admission strategies.

rocketboy
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I was wondering who here went to university to do an undergrad degree in aerospace engineering, where you went and how difficult (ie grades, sat scores etc...) it was to get accepted? I've done my research on the various schools in North America that offer the program and some of them give a general average that is required, however I'm not sure how accurate this is, and I'd be interested in knowing what grades others had to get into various schools in North America.

Thanks.
 
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Well I did a year of aerospace before switching to mechanical. They seem of a similar difficulty. I studied at our military academy in Canberra. I needed to be in the top 13% of the state (We don't have sats or whatever), which was actually pretty low. My current course had a score (percentile) of 92ish.

Sorry I can't help you with the North America bit.
 
I think it is going to depend the most on what school you are talking about, rather than the curriculum. Getting into MIT's aerospace engineering program will be light years tougher than say a state school's. There are other ways to go about it too. For instance, if you want to go to a school but don't have the grades, you could look into applying under an "undecided" major instead of an engineering major. It could be a bit more laxed on the admissions standards and give you the opportunity to get some lower classes under your belt before you apply to the department you want. Just a thought.
 
Thanks for the advice, I never thought about applying 'undecided' before. It's not really that I'm afraid I won't get into an aerospace program somewhere, it's more that I want to know where to apply to without wasting money on applications. I don't want to apply to universities that aren't worth going to, and I also don't want to apply to universities that I have no chance of getting into, so I thought maybe if I heard from others it would give my a better idea of where I could get accepted.

Thanks,
-JB
 
Hi, Rocketboy.

Carleton University(CU) right there in Ottawa has an aerospace engineering program, so it might be the most convenient for you. And it has several ties with the CSA because it is there in Ottawa too. In fact, I know several students from CU who easily got summer jobs, internships, etc. with the CSA through CU.

Ryerson University in Toronto also has an aerospace engineering program. It is intended for people who want to work in the aerospace field, but not necessarily do Research & Development work.

In terms of academic excellence, the University of Toronto is the best in Canada. This program is intended to prepare people to do Research & Development work. I went through the Aerospace Engineering program there (within the division of Engineering Science: http://www.engsci.utoronto.ca/). It is extremely difficult to get in, you need well over a 90% average to get in. Once in, it is still a lot of work to stay there--half the students fail out in the first year. However, if you can make it through, you can go anywhere. The Engineering Science program has an excellent reputation, and MIT and Caltech readily accept Eng Sci grads to their graduate programs. In fact, several of my classmates were accepted to MIT and Caltech with full scholarships. Wherever you ultimately enroll for your undergraduate schooling, make sure you get good marks--then it opens MANY doors that would otherwise be closed to you.

Regards,


DuncanM
http://www.rocketscientists.ca/
 
DuncanM said:
Hi, Rocketboy.

Carleton University(CU) right there in Ottawa has an aerospace engineering program, so it might be the most convenient for you. And it has several ties with the CSA because it is there in Ottawa too. In fact, I know several students from CU who easily got summer jobs, internships, etc. with the CSA through CU.

Ryerson University in Toronto also has an aerospace engineering program. It is intended for people who want to work in the aerospace field, but not necessarily do Research & Development work.

In terms of academic excellence, the University of Toronto is the best in Canada. This program is intended to prepare people to do Research & Development work. I went through the Aerospace Engineering program there (within the division of Engineering Science: http://www.engsci.utoronto.ca/). It is extremely difficult to get in, you need well over a 90% average to get in. Once in, it is still a lot of work to stay there--half the students fail out in the first year. However, if you can make it through, you can go anywhere. The Engineering Science program has an excellent reputation, and MIT and Caltech readily accept Eng Sci grads to their graduate programs. In fact, several of my classmates were accepted to MIT and Caltech with full scholarships. Wherever you ultimately enroll for your undergraduate schooling, make sure you get good marks--then it opens MANY doors that would otherwise be closed to you.

Regards,


DuncanM
http://www.rocketscientists.ca/

Ya, I've been researching a lot on universities in Canada as well, and although many have told me Carleton has a good aerospace program (and is not too difficult to get into) I have been a bit skeptical about it because it's in Ottawa. Hehe, which is somewhat immature but I think it's normal for most high-school grads to want to leave town. I wold LOVE to go to U of T however I didn't do so hot in grade 11 and my average isn't quite 90's.

If I were to do really well in grade 12, say, over 90 average in all terms, would my lack of grade 11 marks prevent me from getting into UofT? This is a question that has been haunting me for some time now.

Thanks for all your help!
-Jon
 
You could always go to the best engineering school in Canada, University of Waterloo. They do not offer Aerospace Engineering, but they have a top notch Mechanical Engineering program which is very similar to aerospace engineering. You will need high marks to get in, but its not as crazy as Engineering Science at U of T. They have a high retension rate for students, unlike U of T.

Regards,

Nenad
 
Nenad said:
You could always go to the best engineering school in Canada, University of Waterloo. They do not offer Aerospace Engineering, but they have a top notch Mechanical Engineering program which is very similar to aerospace engineering. You will need high marks to get in, but its not as crazy as Engineering Science at U of T. They have a high retension rate for students, unlike U of T.

If I were to do a B.S. degree in Mech eng at Waterloo, what would grad schools think about me going into an aerospace grad program? I mean, wouldn't I be lacking some aero eng courses?
 
rocketboy said:
If I were to do a B.S. degree in Mech eng at Waterloo, what would grad schools think about me going into an aerospace grad program? I mean, wouldn't I be lacking some aero eng courses?

Graduate studies are not too much linked with the name of them. For example, one can get enrolled in a Ph.D. Aero eng. and research in materials engineering science with a guy aside who is graduate in mech. engineering. The topic of research is the main purpose of graduate studies, and such topic may be linked with common disciplines.
 

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