- #1
JD88
- 110
- 0
Hi everyone,
I am currently a junior in mechanical engineering. After I graduate I plan on going to graduate school to obtain my PhD, I hope to eventually get a career in research probably at a university because I also enjoy teaching. As a mechanical engineer my interests have been primarily in fluid mechanics, heat transfer and applied mathematics. However after a lot of time and effort I have been unable to find anything in mechanical engineering that I find truly interesting that I would want to research.
Recently I have been reading about Nuclear engineering and in particular applications of plasmas and fusion power. After reading about it for awhile I find these topics extremely fascinating and I am now considering going to graduate school for NE as opposed to Mech E.
I am just wondering if making the switch from ME to NE is possible for graduate school, and more importantly will I be at a disadvantage since my BS is in something different? If I will be at a disadvantage what could I do in my last year as an undergraduate to make up for this?
I would really like to go to one of the top schools in the country for whatever I decide to do. In mechanical engineering I believe I am capable of this. My GPA is 3.75 and have been involved in multiple research projects, one of which was at NASA, but all of the research I have done so far has been focused on aerospace engineering applications and has involved wind tunnels (so nothing related to NE).
Any advice would be appreciated.
I am currently a junior in mechanical engineering. After I graduate I plan on going to graduate school to obtain my PhD, I hope to eventually get a career in research probably at a university because I also enjoy teaching. As a mechanical engineer my interests have been primarily in fluid mechanics, heat transfer and applied mathematics. However after a lot of time and effort I have been unable to find anything in mechanical engineering that I find truly interesting that I would want to research.
Recently I have been reading about Nuclear engineering and in particular applications of plasmas and fusion power. After reading about it for awhile I find these topics extremely fascinating and I am now considering going to graduate school for NE as opposed to Mech E.
I am just wondering if making the switch from ME to NE is possible for graduate school, and more importantly will I be at a disadvantage since my BS is in something different? If I will be at a disadvantage what could I do in my last year as an undergraduate to make up for this?
I would really like to go to one of the top schools in the country for whatever I decide to do. In mechanical engineering I believe I am capable of this. My GPA is 3.75 and have been involved in multiple research projects, one of which was at NASA, but all of the research I have done so far has been focused on aerospace engineering applications and has involved wind tunnels (so nothing related to NE).
Any advice would be appreciated.