Does School Matter for ME Majors?

[racolongon]

Hey, guys! I'm a ME major and I am going into my second year (I know, gen. ed and copious amount of math classes lol). Anyway, I am currently attending UNLV and I've heard that it isn't a "good" school for ME. I am very motivated and I strive for a high GPA and I will be looking into projects/internships.
My questions are: Does it really matter where I went to school? Should I try to go to "better" universities (I can go to other states like California, but I don't want to pay for the out of state tuition). Thank you for the time.

 

[psparky]

Here's the short answer.

It's not going to matter to most job interviewers.

It may matter to some interviewers.

Also, are you striving for a high GPA where you won't learn as much? (Easier school)

Or are you striving to learn as much as you can with a somewhat lower GPA? (Tougher school)

Again, your GPA is not going to matter much to most interviewers (assuming it's above 3.0)
Your GPA may matter to some inteviewers.

How you sell yourself and apply what you have learned with be the greatest decider of your future.

Just my opinion from my own personal experiences.

 

[Arsenic&Lace]

So I know a guy with less than a 3.0 GPA who got a job at IBM's quantum computing research center right out of his undergraduate degree. Now, granted, he worked insanely hard in the lab, but he did not attend a prestigous university for his physics degree.

The reality is that if you have real skill, savvy employers will notice. Top companies don't become top companies by willfully ignoring reality. Granted, if you can get into MIT, there's a higher likelyhood that you have real skill than if you only got into Mickey Mouse State University. But if you get the real skills at MMSU, nobody will care... usually. The opportunity delta between MMSU and Fancy Pants University is real but negligible, from what I can tell.

Get an internship, too.