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Columbia 3+2 Program Benefits?
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29516 replies2985 threadsAdministrator Senior Member
This discussion was created from comments split from: Engineering as Undergrad major versus Grad degree?.
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Replies to: Columbia 3+2 Program Benefits?
Note that there is no longer a guaranteed admission option for students starting college in fall 2019 or later; all 3+2 transfer admission is competitive.
Also, Columbia says that "We do not guarantee that we can meet 100% of demonstrated financial need for all admitted students" (emphasis added) in the 3+2 program, unlike for frosh and other transfers. In addition, a 3+2 program has an extra year of costs to begin with.
There may be other restrictions based on the "3" school, since some "3" schools restrict the major there, while others allow any major as long as the pre-engineering requirements are completed.
@Happy4u - the comparison of two bachelor's degrees (in a 3-2) program as opposed to an undergraduate and MA degree is somewhat of an apples to oranges comparison. If one wants to be an engineer, one really needs an undergraduate engineering degree. A liberal arts undergraduate and a liberal arts or non-engineering graduate (if that's what you had in mind with regard to the MA) isn't going to qualify one as an engineer. If your intent is to go to graduate school for engineering, many engineering schools require applicants to have an undergraduate degree in engineering. If one desires to enter an engineering field (such as civil or environmental engineering for example) in which PE licensure is required, most state engineering boards require holding an ABET accredited undergraduate engineering degree to sit for the exam (some states will accept an ABET accredited master's degree - but few are ABET accredited since ABET mostly is concerned with undergraduate accreditation - to sit for the exam). A master's degree in engineering however isn't a substitute for a bachelor's degree in engineering, since it is usually specialized in a particular engineering subspecialty and doesn't contain the fundamental science, non-discipline specific foundational engineering coursework, and capstone design courses that an undergraduate program would provide.
I think about 15 credits are required, with 2 courses in writing and one in humanities. I think a lot of students get at least some of the requirements met with AP classes. Substantial?