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10-22-2012, 09:34 PM
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#1 | | Junior Member
Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: Long Island
Posts: 219
| The difference between Engineering Physics and Mechanical Engineering?
They seem like pretty much the same thing. Can anyone shed a little light on the difference?
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10-22-2012, 10:12 PM
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#2 | | Junior Member
Join Date: Apr 2012
Posts: 125
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They are not at all the same. Engineering Physics is generally a path to engineering research and is recommended for students that plan to go to grad school to become researchers.
Look at the program listing for any school that offers both and you'll see a lot of differences between the programs, especially after the first two years. Course Information Suite, Course Catalog, Class Schedule, Programs of Study, General Education Requirements, GenEd Course Information Suite, Course Catalog, Class Schedule, Programs of Study, General Education Requirements, GenEd
Engineering Mechanics close to Mechanical Engineering.
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10-22-2012, 10:56 PM
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#3 | | Junior Member
Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: Storrs, CT
Posts: 207
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I feel like someone needs to make a PSA about this. Over the couple engineering forums I browse, I see it at least once a week. You can get more in depth information about it if you use the search bar, but eclark hit most of it.
It's not an ABET accredited major because accreditation implies a uniform professional objective, which is inherently against the focus of engineering physics/science. That's not to say you can't have a successful professional career with an EP degree, but if that's what you want, it's not your best choice. The fact is, the additional physics and math that you normally take in EP really isn't seen in most industrial engineering disciplines. In addition, you normally skip a few of the more economically-related engineering courses to promote your understanding of the science behind it. If you go to work after getting a BS, you'd probably find yourself best fit into R&D or high-tech areas that require advanced scientific knowledge and application of that knowledge to a practical product.
Its focus is still of course largely on graduate school and engineering research.
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10-22-2012, 11:49 PM
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#4 | | Junior Member
Join Date: Feb 2012
Posts: 160
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Interesting.
Is this something that's a reasonable transition to PhD program with a different engineering or physics degree? Not a lot of places seem to offer it.
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10-23-2012, 12:27 AM
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#5 | | Junior Member
Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: Storrs, CT
Posts: 207
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Do you mean study engineering physics at the graduate level? It's only offered as an MS at a few universities, and I don't believe anyone offers it as a PhD. Cornell, which has one of the strongest Applied/Engineering Physics programs (they actually have separate courses for it) only offers a PhD in Applied Physics.
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10-23-2012, 12:57 AM
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#6 | | Senior Member
Join Date: Dec 2010
Posts: 20,132
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Actually, there is ABET accreditation for engineering science / engineering physics, but it is sometimes used by small colleges with a single general engineering degree program (with options to concentrate in areas like chemical, electrical, mechanical, etc.), such as Dartmouth, Harvard, Harvey Mudd, and Southern Utah.
However, some colleges do have engineering science / engineering physics as a distinct major from the usual types of engineering majors, sometimes with ABET accreditation, sometimes not. Such a degree program may resemble a physics major, with engineering courses in addition to physics courses, or sometimes substituting for similar physics courses.
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10-23-2012, 07:06 AM
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#7 | | Junior Member
Join Date: Feb 2012
Posts: 160
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Hmm, thanks Taciturn. For some reason I assumed it was a common PhD thing.
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