How Can I Enhance My Profile for Graduate Admission in Mechanical Engineering?

[collegeomega]

Hello guys,

Recently, I checked university sites, especially US universities, for graduate admission in Mechanical Engineering. I am interested in doing a program at a reputed university for good career prospects. I have a GPA of 2.87 /4.30 for the first two years cumulative at good Canadian university. I don't have any research experience or engineering work experience.

All the requirements and stuff are given on university websites but what I am looking for is a plan for next two years that would help me enter into a reputable college. I tried finding one online, but they are too general. I emailed our guidance counselor and she takes weeks if not months to reply to one single email.

I am quite concerned about my admission in graduate schools so please help.

 

[astor]

what do you hope to get out of graduate school?

i'm not familiar with the Canadian system, but i would assume that your current GPA translates to less than a 3.0/4.0, which might indicate that you have some trouble with undergraduate classes? do you have any ideas why and if you can improve on how you have handled your classes thus far?

graduate school will be more in-depth and specialized than your undergraduate, which can be good or bad. good if you found yourself ace'ing a particular area, but bad as a competent understanding of the general breadth of the field is expected once you hit graduate school.

are you looking for a professional degree (Master of Engineering) or are you looking for an academic degree (Master of Science in Engineering)? if the first, having no research experience won't affect you as much as the second. MS in Engineering is the research-based route, while M.Eng is the professional route that prepares you with coursework-only for industry.

 

[collegeomega]

what do you hope to get out of graduate school?

I want to do masters in fields like mechatronics or aerospace that would provide me with indepth knowledge in related topics. I want to work in latest engineering technologies or industry led research. I think university research experience would be very useful if I want to get into industry led research.

i'm not familiar with the Canadian system, but i would assume that your current GPA translates to less than a 3.0/4.0, which might indicate that you have some trouble with undergraduate classes? do you have any ideas why and if you can improve on how you have handled your classes thus far?

You are right. I had problem in my second year first semester when I was introduced to hardcore engineering topics like Thermodynamics, Fluid Mechanics, and Dynamics. I am comfortable doing Physics but engineering approach is different. I don't like to blame my professors, but I had trouble understanding a few of them. Also, I slacked off a bit without knowing. All my friends were doing bad, I thought it was common and I didnt put in as much effort. My GPA in first year was good; it even put my name on Dean's list.
I think I can improve. I can bring up my GPA but not significantly because it already went so much down. I am afraid because when I look at sites or forums for graduate admission, high GPA is common among all of them.

are you looking for a professional degree (Master of Engineering) or are you looking for an academic degree (Master of Science in Engineering)? if the first, having no research experience won't affect you as much as the second. MS in Engineering is the research-based route, while M.Eng is the professional route that prepares you with coursework-only for industry.

I want to prepare for Master of Science in Engineering because it will not be difficult to change to Master of Engineering if I change my mind. However, it will be hard to do the other way around because I am lacking research experience or due to low GPA.

I hope you got a good understanding where I am. I tried to get some advise from my guidance counsellor but he takes forever to reply to my emails and has very little idea about American graduate admissions.
I need guidance, a plan for my next two years in engineering that contains admission tests, research experience, internship, and letters of recommendation. Also anything else I might be missing on the list. I am basically looking for advise on when and how to do all this stuff.