Top Undergrad Engineering (specifically mechanical, electrical, and chemical)

AI Thread Summary
Top undergraduate engineering programs include MIT, UC Berkeley, and Stanford, with Harvey Mudd also recognized for its strong undergraduate engineering curriculum. Georgia Tech and the University of Texas at Austin are noted for their reputable engineering programs. The discussion highlights personal experiences of individuals who improved their academic performance after struggling in high school, emphasizing the importance of community college as a pathway to transfer into engineering schools. There is debate regarding the ranking and reputation of Harvey Mudd compared to other institutions, particularly those offering PhDs, with some arguing that funding and research opportunities at larger universities provide an advantage. Overall, the conversation underscores the significance of perseverance and strategic academic choices in pursuing engineering degrees.
sadakaa
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The top programs AFTER:

MIT
UC-Berkley
Stanford

i goofed off my freshman and sophmore years of HS, but have picked it up now, so I'm looking for engineering. I know Vanderbilt stacks up in the top 10, but I'm not sure which other programs are good. If you can, post some of your experiences as well!
 
Physics news on Phys.org
Caltech...

I hear GIT is very good.
 
Georgia Tech has a good program
 
Ut at austin is rather good.
 
sadakka, iv got some inside knowledge for you my friend. I basically started out just like you. I was a Ginormous screw up in high school and didnt apply myself WHAT SO EVER. My highest level of math coming out of HS was algebra (didnt touch trig, pre-cal, cal, NOTHING) I enrolled in a local community college where I began to take my life serious. I got all of my basics out of the way like eng, gov, hist, soci, arts, and as much math as I could do. A year and a half later I was accepted to the University of Texas at Austin with a 3.5(I think). However I wasnt accepted to the school of engineering(due to my lack of math) like I wanted but the school of liberal arts. I am now just a few credits short of transferring to Aerospace Engineering with a pretty respectable GPA. As much as I hate the saying "If, I can do it, you can" its so true in this case. Just two years ago I was taking shots of dads vodka in HS biology and coming to school blown out of my mind. Now I am about to be a proud student of the #7(I beleive) Aerospace Engineering school in the nation.

BIG THINGS THAT HELPED ME!
1) I joined student government at my community college (looks great)

2) member of Phi theta kappa which is a junior college honor society (looks better, you need a 3.5)

3) got recommendation letters (using my student government resources) from a number of professors and advisors including UT graduates.

4) applied in the spring (I didnt have to compete with all the highs chool kids applying for fall)

Hope this helps. If you have any questions let me know. Keep those grades up .
 
I think Harvey Mudd has the top ranked engineering program.
 
Wow, that is embarrassing...I COMPLETELY misread your topic. I was under the impression you had screwed up in high school and were trying to get into a 4 years school via a community college.

*note to self* READ TOPICS TWICE FROM NOW ON

proton said:
I think Harvey Mudd has the top ranked engineering program.

Pretty sure MIT's got that spot
 
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nope,
MIT has the top ranked graduate engineering

Mudd's got the top arnked undergraduate engineering.
 
pakmingki said:
Mudd's got the top arnked undergraduate engineering.

It has the highest ranked undergraduate program among schools which do not offer a PhD. There's a tremendous difference.

- Warren
 
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  • #10
UCLA and U Toronto, I believe
 
  • #11
chroot said:
It has the highest ranked undergraduate program among schools which do not offer a PhD. There's a tremendous difference.

- Warren

that is a good point.

but still, you can't go wrong with mudd either way.
 
  • #12
pakmingki said:
that is a good point.

but still, you can't go wrong with mudd either way.

Of course you can. Frankly, there are better schools. Many of them.

- Warren
 
  • #13
chroot said:
Of course you can. Frankly, there are better schools. Many of them.

- Warren

Many? Perhaps a handful, if that.
 
  • #14
Harvey Mudd is a Liberal Arts school... they require 1/3 of your classes to be a liberal art.
 
  • #15
Ki Man said:
Harvey Mudd is a Liberal Arts school... they require 1/3 of your classes to be a liberal art.
yea, but its still a top notch engineering school.
 
  • #16
pakmingki said:
yea, but its still a top notch engineering school.

no, sorry, there are two hierarchies, schools that offer PhDs and schools that don't. you're either in the minors or in the majors, that's the way it is.

I'm sure Austin is better, CalTech, Michigan, Princeton, Carnegie Mellon, Columbia, Cornell...yeah I'm sure Mudd measures up well to these monster schools who get way more funding, have way more research oppurtunities, etc, etc.
 
  • #17
Uh, yeah, it does "measure up."
 
  • #18
you honestly think it measures up to Caltech and Harvard? where groundbreaking research is going on, where the students get top notch internships? i haven't heard anything coming from Mudd, oh yeah, because they don't offer PhD's. sorry, ask anyone who knows anything, Mudd isn't the best, it might be a top 20 program, but those other 19 programs probably offer PhD's and hence get more funding, better instructors, more prestige, more companies recruiting from their campus, etc.

oh, FANTASTIC ARGUMENT you gave. you really came with the goods.
 
  • #19
I don't claim to know anything about Mudd engineering, but I do know that Mudd has hardcore awesome math, physics, and computer science departments. I have no doubt its engineering program is also hardcore awesome.

And we're talking undergrad here. Obviously the kids don't come out with doctorates... Also, I really don't know how the research opportunities of these various schools compare, but you can learn more about Mudd engineering here since it doesn't appear that you really know what you're talking about.
 
  • #20
http://www.sandiego.edu/engineering/news_events/news_details/cbeng06.pdf has a copy of the US News results. It looks like Mudd would be tied for sixth place if you lump the Ph.D. and non-Ph.D. schools together.

I hope it's clear to everyone that there is a *huge* difference between a 4.4 and a 4.5 or a 4.3 here. :smile:
 
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