Engineering

[Gauden44]

Hey all, I had a question. If you get a BS in a field of engineering, do admissions people take into account that you might have a little bit lower GPA?

I'm planning on getting a BS in mechanical engineering (Ohio State requires a BS, lol) while fulfilling the prepharmacy requirements, but I'm not sure if this will hurt me.

Thanks!

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[UVaWahoo]

I think they do. I graduated in engineering (avg GPA was about 2.7..hah lower if you take out the Systems kids), so i had just under a 3.0 when i started applying...and i got interviews at 3 of 5 schools, didnt get into auburn because i wasnt going to be able to finish their prereqs, got into VCU, South, and alternate listed at Mercer.
big thumbs up to doing engineering

 

[blueclassring]

Engineering is a very difficult subject no matter who you ask and a 3.0 gpa is outstanding. I graduated myself with a bs in chemical engineering with a 3.1 gpa. I received interviews 7 out of 8 schools that i applied to. I beleive that it helps but i also think they look at your entire package. Have you worked? What volunteer activities do you have? How is your personal statement?

 

[Gauden44]

Thanks for the replies! Right now I just finished up my freshman year of engineering so I still have a couple years until I can actually start applying, haha.

But I plan on doing some extracurriculars such as a Formula Car team we have here at Ohio State, as well as doing a Robotics team type of thing. I don't know if this will hurt me, because the admissions people might think I don't really have much interest in pharmacy. Any suggestions as to what I should do?

Also, another question is whether I should go for an engineering internship next summer or try to get a job in a pharmacy. The advantage of the internship would be about 2 to 3 times the pay rate, but again--the admissions people would rather see me working in a pharmacy, right?

Thanks!

 

[starsweet]

I have a BS in Mechanical Engineering. I would do both the Robotics EC and the engineering internship because they will help you decide whether you really want to do engineering or not. At the same time, I would try to either shadow a pharmacist or get a small part time job in a pharmacy. That way, you can still get the higher pay as an engineering intern, but you'll still get experience working in a pharmacy. By the way, I was accepted to 3 programs with just shadowing a pharmacist but I have worked as an engineer for 3 years since graduating. So, they will definitely look at the work experience that you do have, and most schools know how rigorous engineering is.

 

[pharmwannebe2]

my curiousity got the best of me

but i was wonder why all you guys decided to go into pharmacy instead of just doing engineering after you got your degrees. engineer pays just as good? or did you just not like the field?

 

[senzabee]

my curiousity got the best of me

but i was wonder why all you guys decided to go into pharmacy instead of just doing engineering after you got your degrees. engineer pays just as good? or did you just not like the field?

I can't speak for the mechanical engineers because that is quite different, but I got my degree in Biomedical Engineering and we have a lot of pre-health science students. Most of us have an emphasis in biochemical engineering, so we take as many science classes as Biology and Chemistry students, but we also take BME and ChE (Chem Engr) classes that teach the application of the sciences. Personally, I found it more interesting to learn how biology and chemistry are applied to everyday life and in medical products (pharmaceuticals, medical instruments, biomaterials) than to just learn the background knowledge, which was my reason for picking BME. I had every intention of going into pharmacy, or at least going to grad school and doing research in the pharmaceutical industry, and for me at least, BME fit really well and I got my prereqs done with it .

I was worried like the above students whether they would consider the fact that I was an engineering student and see that my GPA was tougher to obtain and that I had a full course load (no electives at all!). I'm not sure about the average GPA at my engineering school (haha, and you definitely can't count those ISE's or System Engineers ), but I was glad to see that there were other engineers out there!

 

[Gauden44]

my curiousity got the best of me

but i was wonder why all you guys decided to go into pharmacy instead of just doing engineering after you got your degrees. engineer pays just as good? or did you just not like the field?

Actually engineering doesn't pay as well. Mechanical and chemical engineers usually start in the $50k to $60k region, whereas pharmacists will start around $85k to $95k. However, an engineer does have a lot more room for advancement and can eventually make more than a pharmacist, but it's not a guarantee.

 

[starsweet]

I'm not sure about the average GPA at my engineering school (haha, and you definitely can't count those ISE's or System Engineers ), but I was glad to see that there were other engineers out there!

The average GPA at my school was a 2.5!

At my school, IEs are known as Imaginary Engineers... The other engineers would make fun of them for taking the "easy" way out.

To answer the above question, engineers can advance a lot more than pharmacists, but it is very difficult to do so, and requires a lot more work and dedication. Even the work you do as an engineer is a lot harder than pharmacy, and you start out at a lower salary. I actually am a career changer, so I worked a few years as an engineer before deciding to go to pharmacy school. The pharmacy field and healthcare in general are a lot more secure in terms of job stability than engineering.

 

[Krismeese]

I was always interested in the chemical and biological sciences, so I decided to go for a degree in Chemical Engineering. The subject matter was very interesting, but I really did not find myself interested in the jobs available even after two years of working full time. So, hence the career change

I think they will take into account the rigorous nature of your Undergrad program, but do not take that for granted. Be sure to talk about and mention in your interviews all of things/intangibles that you learned/gained by doing engineering, Spin it to your advantage. I graduated with a 3.6, but schools like engineers with work/internship experience. 4 Apps, 4 interviews, 4 acceptances.

Get other experience, the internship and formula programs will help you immensely. Yea, its not pharmacy related, but it shows you are willing to challenge yourself, wanting to learn how to apply the knowledge you are studying. In general schools like to see initiative.

Good luck and enjoy school!. I am impressed, After Freshman year, I still had no idea what I wanted to do lol

PS: I don't know about those opinions about Systems Engineers though hehe. Systems engineering seemed like it was inclusive of a lot of hardcore mathematics. I don't think I would have done as well in Systems mostly due to boredom , and since higher mathmatics was my weak point (read partial differential equations, yuck!)

 

[starsweet]

My school is ranked #1 in Industrial/Systems Engineering yet IE students still get a lot of flack for majoring in it. In terms of math though, pretty much every engineering major at my school took the same math classes. I kinda wished I had done it though because I would have had an easier time and it seemed a lot more fun.

 

[UVaWahoo]

Personally, I found it more interesting to learn how biology and chemistry are applied to everyday life and in medical products (pharmaceuticals, medical instruments, biomaterials) than to just learn the background knowledge, which was my reason for picking BME.

thats EXACTLY why i did BME. i was pre-med, and changed my mind to pharmacy mid-3rd year. either way, thats absolutely why i did BME over bio or whatever else........and uh, i didnt want to take the random elective-ish requirements for non-engineers, but that was very secondary.

but i'm 100% happy that i did engineering and would recommend it to anyone with any sort of math/science interest.

 

[ashin]

thats EXACTLY why i did BME. i was pre-med, and changed my mind to pharmacy mid-3rd year. either way, thats absolutely why i did BME over bio or whatever else........and uh, i didnt want to take the random elective-ish requirements for non-engineers, but that was very secondary.

but i'm 100% happy that i did engineering and would recommend it to anyone with any sort of math/science interest.

ditto!.. i am very happy that i did BME. It was really interesting but not something i could picture myself doing for the rest of my life. =)... and to answer to the topic.. yes they do take the engineering major into consideration.. i know michigan did =D

 

[Krismeese]

My school is ranked #1 in Industrial/Systems Engineering yet IE students still get a lot of flack for majoring in it. In terms of math though, pretty much every engineering major at my school took the same math classes. I kinda wished I had done it though because I would have had an easier time and it seemed a lot more fun.

Yea, we all took the same courses as well. Although we didnt even have Industrial, ours was Systems Engineering and Mathmatics I guess the focus was different. In seemed like they were the people who liked to work mathmatics problems just to work them. I only would work them if it would solve a scientific problem for me.

Come to think of it though, they always did have the higher GPAs

But definitely ditto to the poster above. I would totally recommend engineering to anyone good in math/science, especially those working towards professional programs. It gives you something that stands out, something different to talk about rather than being yet another Biology major. (There is nothing wrong with being a biology major though, many of my friends were )

 

[tdkneo]

my whole background is electrical engineering, computer science and computer engineering.... just went back to school recently to take all the prereqs for pharmacy.......yeah i agree, the engineering classes are kind of a pain, my overall gpa is not that good as a result...... if anyone planning to go for pharmacy or care about the gpa, Engineering majors are the way to go......

 

[pharmwannebe2]

I can't speak for the mechanical engineers because that is quite different, but I got my degree in Biomedical Engineering and we have a lot of pre-health science students. Most of us have an emphasis in biochemical engineering, so we take as many science classes as Biology and Chemistry students, but we also take BME and ChE (Chem Engr) classes that teach the application of the sciences. Personally, I found it more interesting to learn how biology and chemistry are applied to everyday life and in medical products (pharmaceuticals, medical instruments, biomaterials) than to just learn the background knowledge, which was my reason for picking BME. I had every intention of going into pharmacy, or at least going to grad school and doing research in the pharmaceutical industry, and for me at least, BME fit really well and I got my prereqs done with it .

I was worried like the above students whether they would consider the fact that I was an engineering student and see that my GPA was tougher to obtain and that I had a full course load (no electives at all!). I'm not sure about the average GPA at my engineering school (haha, and you definitely can't count those ISE's or System Engineers ), but I was glad to see that there were other engineers out there!

oh ok. that makes sense.