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To: AriOxman
Engineering Physics curriculums are very good. Very similar to Materials Science curriculums, though, in that too many second rate institutions offer the degree and it appears to be a shortcut or mediocre path to become a professional engineer.

Same thing goes for guys with degrees in Physics or Chemistry or Mathematics. I have no doubt that those who matriculate, especially from most competitive institutions with those degrees are far better qualified than many marginal engineers, but unfortunately the people who initially screen resumes rarely comprehend the distinctions or 60%-95% of the screeners of resumes lack the ability to discern your abilities with those degrees.

Contractually and legally, in the practice of engineering one needs the PE. However, there are plenty of niches to perform work where the engineering skills provide an upper edge in contracting.

Much of the electronics and computer industry sidestepped the professions simply because demand exceeded supply of those skill sets, but IMHO, a handful of major computer and electronics firms need to be hauled into court to pay massive fines for avoiding the professions and assisting in their demise economically. Corporations which hired EEs to design their systems under the direction of non-engineering staff, IMHO, have set the industry and profession backwards 20 years. By promoting unqualified personnel into senior level positions they have promoted inefficient design mechanisms and instead have promoted a lower middleclass of technicians from the limited resources the nation had to create professionals. I suspect the next 20 years in the electronics and computer industry is going to weed out the money managers and MBAs, because the EE is in the critical path and the money is going to go elsewhere. Competition will drive the industry back towards professionalism, but not before a handful of tragic episodes I suspect where the guilty are praised and the innocent are blamed.

I digress, though,...Civil Engr, MechE, ElecE, CompSci/MathSci or Architect are the stable undergrad enginering related degrees for future growth. Some multidisciplinary programs exist, but I'd recommend securing one of the basic degrees either at the bachelors or master's level.

69 posted on 12/26/2002 5:06:21 PM PST by Cvengr
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To: Cvengr
At U. of Pitt, E Phys is by far the hardest !Engineering! program offered, even without the Physics. It consists of the core courses of both EE & MSE, with 5 semesters of math and the rest Physics. Do you think 25 credits of EE + 25 credits of MSE is worse than 50 credits of either?
81 posted on 12/26/2002 8:04:02 PM PST by Krafty123
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