University of Toronto - Engineering or Engineering Science?

[bublik13]

I heard a lot about these two programs and I'm quizzical on which one I should apply to. Can someone give me an overview with pros and cons on the two programs?
I heard EngSci is much harder with the same potential benefits as normal Eng.

All help would be appreciated :)

 

[DuncanM]

EngSci puts a lot more emphasis on theory, assuming your interests are going to lie more towards Research and Development. Your coursework includes a lot more homework asking you to prove this or that. Your marks have to be a lot higher to get into EngSci than they have to be for the regular engineering program. If you fail out of EngSci, they let you into a regular engineering program. But it doesn't work the other way around: if you fail out of a regular engineering program, they would not let you into EngSci.

If you have the marks to get into EngSci, go for it. You'll find it challenging and very satisfying.
If you are not too keen on math and physics, but just want to build stuff, go into a regular engineering program.

 

[paul2211]

If you have an interest (and I mean LOTS of interest) in theory and learning, then take Eng Sci.

If you just like math and sciences, and you just wish to just get a job (Eng Sci get same jobs as normal Engineering) after graduation, then take the normal engineering route. You won't be missing anything when competing for jobs.

For example, if you know you want to do ECE, don't do the ECE option from Eng Sci... Apparently, ECEs get more technical electives than Eng Scis doing the ECE option

 

[nicholls]

For example, if you know you want to do ECE, don't do the ECE option from Eng Sci... Apparently, ECEs get more technical electives than Eng Scis doing the ECE option

I would like to expand on this point a little bit further. If you know that you really want to do one stream in particular, be it Civil, ECE, Mechanical, Chemical etc. then definitely go straight into those streams. The problem with Engsci is that it covers a broad range of topics, and because of this you don't get the depth you would in the stream devoted to that topic.

For example, if you go into the ECE option through Engsci, you will spend your entire third year just catching up to the students who are in the ECE stream. It won't be until fourth year that you get to specialize in a particular field of ECE. In fact, a couple friends of mine on facebook who are in the third year ECE option were just cursing at the fact that they still had to learn electrical engineering stuff in third year when all they want to do is computer engineering.

There are upsides though too. In second year engsci you get to build a really cool robot, much cooler than anything the ECE stream gets to make in second year (I think).

The nice thing about getting into Engsci is that if you don't like it you can very easily switch into any of the other streams after first or second semester.

The reason I went into engsci (I'm in third year physics option right now) is because it seemed like the hardest math/physics/engineering program in Canada at the time and I wanted to be challenged as much as possible. I also couldn't decide between pure math/physics and engineering so Engineering Science sounded like a good compromise. Oh yea and my cousin was a graduate from the program so that's how I found out about it. For me engsci was an excellent choice and I do not regret it at all.

That said, engsci isn't for everyone and you'll probably find out pretty quickly if you can handle it or not.