Are 4 courses doable in a non-thesis M.S. Mechanical Engineering Program?+

TroyMcClain
Thu, 06 Aug 2020 16:11:12 +0000

Hi all! I will be starting my journey as a master’s student in Mechanical Engineering this fall and I have a few questions. My largest concern at the moment is that I am blissfully unaware of how much of a workload graduate courses will require. I am currently signed up for three 500 level courses consisting of 2 dynamics courses and a heat transfer course. I am currently leaning on doing a non-thesis since I have no intention of staying in education or R&D. I have a ton of internship and co-op experience but decided to further my understanding of engineering concepts for work in the automotive industry in particular.

To cut to the chase my questions are:

1. Is taking 4 hours of courses too much? I know this will vary from student to student and from school to school but I won’t be working this semester and will have most all of my time dedicated to classwork.

2. Will going the non-thesis route give me any disadvantages in finding a job in the automotive industry? I am particularly interested in Automotive design and have no intention of staying in education. My school offers an M.S. in Mechanical Engineering both with and without a thesis.

I know grad school is a whole different world from undergrad. I appreciate any help!