Best undergrad field of study for a career in Corrosion engineering

[inkdoggy724]

I am a non-traditional student (36 w/ a business degree after leaving a CHemE program when in school the first time). The last 12 years of my life, I have worked in the application of industrial coatings' to steel . I still work in the field, and will continue to. Now, I work in outside sales and project management.

I find that the one thing that keeps me from the opportunity at the mid to high $100K a year jobs is the lack of a technical degree. My primary goal is to become a "corrosion engineer." Since only the University Of Akron offers that actual degree, what major (CHemistry, ChemE, Material Science E, or other) will give me the best chance to understand what is causing the corrosion, what will remedy the corrosion, and how to keep the corrosion away the longest? The best money is in cathodic protection of steel (pipelines) and concrete (rebar reinforced bridge structures). Individuals who audit facilities for corrosion issues and outline an action plan are also well compensated.

I am not sure that I need to fully understand the science behind the protective coatings themselves. The paint/coating/lining companies have teams of people tasked with specifying coatings for different applications (though as far as I know, maybe I DO need to understand the science).

Any input is greatly appreciated. I have allotted 6 years to finish the B.S.? Now, I need to figure out what I should be taking...

 

[streeters]

Materials science is does this. It also goes into the metallurgy of the steel/aluminium alloys that corrode which is important with regards to things like pitting initiation, stress corrosion cracking, etc, that an electrochemistry degree may not cover.

A friend of mine just got swoop up by a consultancy after finishing his BEng Materials Science, and will be looking at gas pipelines and such.