A bachelor degree in engineering is not something that is all that easy to get. The sciences are some of the most demanding disciplines of college. So if you’re thinking of getting a bachelor degree in engineering, you better be prepared for what’s ahead. Hopefully, this article will give you a decent idea of what is required to get that very demanding degree.
In many college curriculums, there is a lot of room for what they call “light” electives. In the case of engineering, or for that matter, any science, this is not so. The course outline for a degree in engineering is quite intense. Your electives are not going to be much easier than your required engineering courses.
Your first year will usually start off with basic introductory engineering courses for the first two semesters. These are not too intensive to begin with, which is a good thing, because it’s the rest of your curriculum that is going to kill you. A degree in engineering is a BS degree, which has tougher requirements that a BA degree. The supporting courses are much tougher. In addition to taking your introductory engineering courses in your first two semesters, most colleges will also require you to take two semesters of Calculus or a math equivalent and two semesters of physics. Some colleges will allow you to substitute chemistry for physics. Right there, between just those three courses, is half of your first year in college. You will also be required to take geometry courses as well.
The second year is almost a carbon copy of your first year. You’ll be expected to continue with your engineering courses and take the last two semesters of Calculus and physics or chemistry in order to get your core requirements for your science courses. The remainder of the year is dedicated to your electives. Some colleges however, require that you take some kind of mechanical drawing. Engineering requires a lot of drawing so expect to take a lot of these courses throughout your four years.
Now is when it gets a little complicated. See, there are many different types of engineers, such as civil engineers, electrical engineers, mechanical engineers, etc. By your third year, most colleges require you to declare which engineering degree you are going for. After you declare this, that’s when you get the remainder of your schedule for the last two years. And yes, this schedule will be drastically different based on what type of engineer you want to become because the skill requirements for each type of engineer are quite different. Because of this, to outline exactly what the last two years would be like would be literally impossible as there are just too many choices.
One thing that most people are surprised to hear is that a major requirement of any engineering degree is a basic course in English. Why? Very simple. Engineers do a lot of writing. Not all of it is numbers. Many things need to be communicated in basic English. Because of the advanced nature of this information, or what people call “tech-speak” it is critical that an engineer has a good command of the English language.
