What is the Best Major(s) to prepare me for nanotechnology in grad school?

egregious1

Since I am about to start college, and I already know I want to go to grad school for nanotechnology, and I was wondering which major(s) I should take in college. I want to use nanoscience to fight diseases and cancers, and hopefully to stop genetic disorders. Initially I wanted to go into mechanical engineering/robotics because I love technology and robots, but then I have always had a love for science as well, and trying to cure diseases, succeeding where others have failed, at least that I know of. I feel that nanotechnology is a happy medium of science and engineering. I want that balance. But since we have no nanobots, is nanotech more science right now? I originally was planning on double majoring in biochem and ME, or biophysics and CE, because I wanted to be able to look at problems in the future with more than just one perspective. Instead of just a bio major, or chem major, I thought biochem would be a good major, and also a second major in engineering. Biomolecular nanotechnology is what I was looking at, but I just have no idea on how much of nanotechnology is science, and how much is engineering right now, and which majors would give me a solid foundation for grad school nanoscience. Any ideas or suggestions?

Hippo

You need to be really good in Chemistry in order for you to get into the field of Nanotechnology.

egregious1

Is that it? Is it mostly chemistry based?

Hippo

You can find more information here.

http://www.nanohub.org

BoundByAxioms

Some knowledge of physics certainly wouldn't hurt either. Also, it's best to start broad and then concentrate later when you really know that nanotechnology is what you want to do. So yes, broad degrees like chemistry and physics or perhaps math would be good places to start.

ohadohad2

You can enter nanotechnology from electrical or materials engineering too.

Topher925

Most nano classes at my school are offered under the chemistry and material science departments. Given that, I would assume you need a lot of chemistry and material science.

egregious1

Can you tell me about materials science? And how it applies to chem/nanotech?

aliaze1

I have met people who have the following backgrounds in the nanotechnology field:

Physics
Material Science
Electrical Engineering
Mechanical Engineering
Nuclear Engineering
Chemistry

and I assume from the above, Chemical Engineering and Bioengineering (due to similarities with the above fields)

aliaze1

My thermodynamics professor actually studies nanomaterials, and he is actually not a mechanical engineer, he is a physicist. The other fields mentioned above are the backgrounds of other professors at my school who are studying nanotechnology/nanomaterials