S28 (Twin2 if you read my recent thread about his brother) thinks he might be interested in studying in another country, so he’s wondering what schools he should look at. He’s interested in schools that teach in English or Spanish, and schools where he’d need to do some intensive language study before beginning.
He’d like to be an engineer, and right now he thinks he wants to apply engineering to medical problems, but he isn’t sure if that means a degree in biomedical engineering, or something like chemical engineering or mechanical engineering with medical applications.
He’s a strong student. 4.0 UW, tons of rigor, several years of math beyond calculus, high test scores and a ton of AP’s. He has good EC’s. I’m sorry to be vague, but I worry about confidentiality.
Anyway, any suggestions for schools that are worth looking at?
Can’t speak about that (obviously studying in countries like that) but just to make you aware, UCONN, URI have dual language/engineering programs with a year abroad. Not sure if there’s more. I know @momofboiler1 has posted about a Purdue program but I can’t find one that’d be a match.
It’s not what you’re asking about (fully abroad) but just to show you some US programs that might pique his interest. I’m sure others will be able to answer your actual question. If you study engineering abroad, make sure the school has ABET certification - which you can find on abet.org by major - search, put in your discipline and if there’s a school in a country, it will list. For example, I see accredited MechE programs in Chile, Colombia, the Dominican Republic and Ecuador and I’m just up to the Es. Of course, you’d have to meet those schools language requirements for both curriculum and language (if taught in Spanish).
I would strongly suggest only looking at schools where your child already has fluency in the language. Engineering is hard enough without adding a language barrier.
I’d also be concerned about doing due diligence about what an international degree would mean for getting internships and coops (which are more important than ever right now) and eventually full time work. Most US based employers are familiar with ABET accreditation and are comfortable with knowing that their new hires have a common foundation. I’m not sure how that would read with studying abroad.
Canada would be the exception.
If this were my student, I’d be nudging them to US based schools with a strong study abroad program for engineering. As an example, Purdue has GEARE -
My D26 was very interested in going overseas for college.
Her top choice was University of Limerick in Ireland. This was her absolutely top choice starting at the beginning of her Junior year.
(she ended up at RIT… )
Many engineering programs are taught in English regardless of country (obviously not all) so that can open up a lot of locations for the more adventurous student willing to learn new languages. (though still can be very challenging for all other aspects of life/community during a time that is already full of new challenges)
D26 wanted an English speaking country (she has a hearing disorder and would struggle with a new language) so that narrowed down her choices.
My D26 is a Computer Engineering student so not familiar with the track your S28 is looking at.
UL would be a great choice- may not be what your S28 is wanting- but worth a look.
They also have a co-op program (with many US based companies on that co-op list) and can even qualify federal student loans (FAFSA has a list of international schools so if that is something you need- then make sure y’all look at that)
Many international school will also require payment up front before they will let you in the country for purposes of ‘education’. (some only require proof of the ability to pay along with a sizable down payment for that 1st school year)
Look into this aspect so there are no surprises.
If you have the means- a camp/program in the country they are leaning towards would be great for this upcoming summer. We were able to send D26 to an art program in Ireland for the Summer before her senior year and I think that helped her decide if she really wanted to live abroad. Though she absolutely loved Ireland, UL went from the absolutely for sure top choice to a 3-way tie with some other US schools.
UL and RIT were tied for 1st place at the end and she choose RIT.
This will take some time to sort through. Start with understanding the various accords for accreditation, which ucb posted above…my understanding is that it’s only the 4 year bachelor’s or master’s that are covered. The 3 year bachelor’s aren’t covered, they are considered more engineering tech degrees. But I’m sure the devil is in the details.
Looking at U Limerick, suggested by co2mom, they have a 4-year engineering degree. Tuition is about $43K USD for internationals, and they estimate another $18K per year in living expenses.
We have a friend with a child studying in Scotland (not engineering) and the COA for the school was lower than their instate publics but housing has been a big challenge. Not just in finding it, but if you are not a citizen, you need to pay the whole year of housing up front (unless you find a roommate that is a resident and will sign the lease). Housing was a lot more than here. Just something to consider.
I know Canada may not be on the list, but take a look at UBC which offers a biomedical engineering degree and also a biomedical option in the Departments of Electrical & Computer Engineering and Mechanical Engineering. Vancouver is a biotech hub and is a great place for young people.
Waterloo (co-op program), Toronto, UBC maybe? not sure about biomedical but I know kids who have gone for technical degrees of various sorts! My 27 almost applied to 2 of those for mech-e but changed their mine last minute…
Hmmmmm - then he’s likely not going to be an engineer.
When I asked my son what it’s like - all these different classes with fancy names - he said, we did math, then more math, and then even more math.
No matter the class name or perceived content - he said - it was math.
50% of kids who start in engineering drop out - so if your son doesn’t love math, he’s likely not going to be on the right side of the 50% because it’s not going to be a match.
Why do something for four years - that you know up front you won’t love? You will be working one math problem for hours.
There’s a difference, in my experience, between a kid who loves math for the sake of math, and might want a major in pure mathematics, and a kid who is good at math, and likes to use math to solve problems, like an engineer does, but who doesn’t love math for math’s sake.
If this is wrt Polytechnique’s Bachelor, the degree is Math+Physics, Math+CS, Math+Economics. First year they study all these subjects as well as humanities, social sciences and science. Then second year is dedicated to their joint degree. But it’s Polytechnique so it emphasizes abstraction, modelling, etc.
All other suggestions are more traditional Engineering programs.
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