- #1
nautikal
- 20
- 0
I'm currently a freshman engineering student in my second semester and am currently in materials science engineering. So far I've just taken the core engineering courses such as general chemistry, organic chemistry, calculus (up to multivariable), and physics (mechanics, waves, thermodynamics, electricity, and magnetism). I took AP chemistry and AP physics C in high school and really enjoyed those topics which is why I came in declared as materials science engineering. MSE seems like it uses concepts from these two areas extensively. When I learned about MSE, I thought it sounded really cool... designing and testing new materials such as polymers, alloys, and semiconductors.
However, I've learned that's not even close to what you do on a day to day basis. It's more like what you over a decade. Most of the jobs are either working in labs or in the manufacturing process of materials and generally involve doing mundane tasks. I've met with a MSE professor several times this year and have toured his lab and learned about his research, and it's definitely not something I could do on a day to day basis. I think the work his graduate students do are comparable to what I might do in a research position, and it just seemed so mundane to me. I don't really remember the specifics, but one of the students was just adding stuff to a petri dish and trying to make certain nanoparticles for hours at a time.
I need to do something that's more applicable and more interactive (ie not being in a lab by myself all day). When I first imagined what I might do with a degree in MSE, I thought there would be more macroscopic connections so I could get something out of my work. Doing things like making cube-shaped nanoparticles doesn't really seem interesting to me unless I spend the majority of my time actually doing something with the nanoparticles on a macroscopic level. I don't know, maybe there is some sort of job in materials science I would like and I just have a misconception of the field (wouldn't surprise me).
I've been leaning more and more towards civil engineering lately as I think that's more what I would enjoy. It seems like jobs in civil engineering involve solving problems on a day to day basis, working with people, and doing work outdoors. When I think about engineering based things that I enjoy the do most, two things stand out to me. Bridge design is one of those things. Back in elementary school we had a group project where we were given string, glue, and toothpicks and were instructed to build the strongest bridge possible within a certain "budget" (ie a toothpick cost $5,000). That was probably my favorite assignment of all my schooling. I really enjoyed the aspects competition and trying to be as efficient as possible. In the summer when my family and I go to the beach, my favorite thing to do is build a wall of sand around our chairs and try to outlast the tide as long as possible, trying to find the best designs. Both these things seem to point me to civil engineering, but I want to be sure before I switch (I will lose a MSE scholarship ).
And then what about other areas such as mechanical engineering? I've looked into what jobs are common with each degree, but it's not really that helpful because most sites just give general information such as companies you would get jobs with and general titles. I need to know more of what you would actually do on a day to day basis with a degree in civil engineering, mechanical engineering, materials engineering, etc. Can anyone help?
Sorry... this is kind of long - it's basically a summary of my thoughts for the past week - but thanks for reading.
However, I've learned that's not even close to what you do on a day to day basis. It's more like what you over a decade. Most of the jobs are either working in labs or in the manufacturing process of materials and generally involve doing mundane tasks. I've met with a MSE professor several times this year and have toured his lab and learned about his research, and it's definitely not something I could do on a day to day basis. I think the work his graduate students do are comparable to what I might do in a research position, and it just seemed so mundane to me. I don't really remember the specifics, but one of the students was just adding stuff to a petri dish and trying to make certain nanoparticles for hours at a time.
I need to do something that's more applicable and more interactive (ie not being in a lab by myself all day). When I first imagined what I might do with a degree in MSE, I thought there would be more macroscopic connections so I could get something out of my work. Doing things like making cube-shaped nanoparticles doesn't really seem interesting to me unless I spend the majority of my time actually doing something with the nanoparticles on a macroscopic level. I don't know, maybe there is some sort of job in materials science I would like and I just have a misconception of the field (wouldn't surprise me).
I've been leaning more and more towards civil engineering lately as I think that's more what I would enjoy. It seems like jobs in civil engineering involve solving problems on a day to day basis, working with people, and doing work outdoors. When I think about engineering based things that I enjoy the do most, two things stand out to me. Bridge design is one of those things. Back in elementary school we had a group project where we were given string, glue, and toothpicks and were instructed to build the strongest bridge possible within a certain "budget" (ie a toothpick cost $5,000). That was probably my favorite assignment of all my schooling. I really enjoyed the aspects competition and trying to be as efficient as possible. In the summer when my family and I go to the beach, my favorite thing to do is build a wall of sand around our chairs and try to outlast the tide as long as possible, trying to find the best designs. Both these things seem to point me to civil engineering, but I want to be sure before I switch (I will lose a MSE scholarship ).
And then what about other areas such as mechanical engineering? I've looked into what jobs are common with each degree, but it's not really that helpful because most sites just give general information such as companies you would get jobs with and general titles. I need to know more of what you would actually do on a day to day basis with a degree in civil engineering, mechanical engineering, materials engineering, etc. Can anyone help?
Sorry... this is kind of long - it's basically a summary of my thoughts for the past week - but thanks for reading.