<p>Hello,</p>
<p>Is it possible to get into master’s program for electrical engineering (in North America) after completing a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering? The reason being is that I plan to pursue a bachelor’s in mechanical engineering because that’s the ‘safe’ degree for where I live (Calgary, AB - it’s all about oil & gas), but mechanical engineering is my second preference next to electrical engineering. </p>
<p>I know that out of pure interest, I would prefer EE (but that’s not to say that I dislike ME, just not as much as EE), but the fields that I am interested in (high technology and communications) are very dead in Calgary. I have absolutely no interest to work in power. I just want to know that if I were to take some EE-like technical electives with my ME degree (ie. mechatronics), would I be able to get into a master’s program for EE? I would most likely specialize in something like photonics for my masters, or anything related to high technology.</p>
<p>Thank you!</p>
<p>Here’s a thought: you don’t have to live in Calgary your whole life. Major in EE, it’s what you like more and it pays somewhat better and has somewhat better job security.</p>
<p>I don’t understand why anybody would limit themselves geographically to one region so they can practice a discipline they aren’t as into when they could move elsewhere and do what they really love.</p>
<p>Are you worried that all of the good EE jobs are in the US and you want to stay in Canada?</p>
<p>Hey fellow Calgarian!</p>
<p>First of all, I am in Calgary and a EE. What makes you think that EE does not havr much jobs here? Though i ended up choosing power, I have worked in several other companies within Calgary including Oil and Gas sector, software and communication. (dont like o&g because they send me to somewhere in northern alberta once per month, but good money and perks!)</p>
<p>Only less than 2% ended up in power during my year and most of them are working in high tech related industry. I just want to say that although it might not be as good as other places, jobs are still there for ee in calgary.</p>
<p>Without commenting on Calgary business conditions (of which I know absolutely nothing), going from ME undergrad to EE grad is going to be very difficult, and will depend highly on the EE specialization you intend to pursue and the applicability of your undergrad coursework to that area. With ME you will get a good mathematic base and engineering rigor, but you will not receive the preparatory coursework that EE masters programs are looking for. You MIGHT be able to add some of those courses as electives or acquire them as a nondegree student after graduation, but it is likely that doing so would in some way delay your graduation - there just is not enough overlap in the fields to make this an easy path.</p>
<p>My suggestion - do EE as an undergrad if that is the area in which you truly want to work. You can always attend a non-Calgary school, or move out of Calgary after graduation. If there is a reason you cannot or will not leave Calgary, then you are going to have to make some hard decisions which I suspect no one here can help you with.</p>
<p>As an addendum - if you feel you must do ME but want to do EE, you might want to consider a double major. I would not normally recommend this, but it would at least give you the EE courses you would need to get into grad school and would push the decision down the line. I graduated with an EE/ME double major, and while I do not think it was worth it, it was at least possible.</p>
<p>@TomServo;
You bring up good points, but the thought of moving to a difference country for a job elsewhere is intimidating. You’re leaving your friends and family, and the city that you love behind for a job where you know no one. I would like to have options, as in I don’t necessarily have to move cities to find employment. I’m living in a different city right now as a first year university student (at McGill University), and it’s pretty tough to be away from everyone. I just don’t want to have to sacrifice everything to find employment. Though, my dream jobs and fields are mostly located in California (tech) and Ottawa (Canada’s only decent tech city).</p>
<p>@BEngineer;
Which year did you graduate in and at which university? Seniors at U of Calgary told me that students for the last few years in EE/SE have had the hardest time finding an internship while their Mech/Chem/O&G counterparts easily found internships. That being said, power is definitely my least favourite field in EE. Is there many EE jobs in O&G in Calgary? People have been telling me that at a typical EPC firm in Calgary, for every ~30 Mech/Civil/Chem/O&G engineers, there’s only one EE.</p>
<p>By the way, thanks for the responses everyone!</p>
<p>UofC 2010, And For one I do not know where do you get those ratios from… In my year the software engineers got hired the fastest (mostly into O&G) and the geomatics the slowest. Most of the EE that I know ( around 60-70 % of the class) got hired by the 6th month except for those that have failed courses multiple times. I got an interview with one of the O&G giants in downtown within the third week and started working there within a month and a half (working on instrumentation and protection control on their pipelines). Many EE grads ended up working in the EPC companies in dtown (they told me during lunch that they dont really like it though) or tech companies ( such as Shaw and Smart etc)</p>
<p>I still know some of my chem engg friends in 2010 that are still looking for work because they never took internship…</p>
<p>Hope this helps…</p>
<p>Hi guys</p>
<p>I have a similar question to the OP, but it’s in reverse. I am doing an electrical engineering bachelors right now(finishing 1st year in a UK uni) and I just recently discovered that mechanical engineering is something I might like more. I don’t hate the course I am doing right now, so I asked for a transfer into the mech eng course next year, but the spaces are filled so there’s a chance I might/might not get in. If I don’t I’ll finish the 2 years remaining and get my BEng in electrical…and after that I want to do something I like more and that is Mechanical engineering, so is it possible for me to do a masters in mechanical engineering with a BEng in electrical? I checked on university of waterloo’s website (I am planning on getting my masters in Canada) and their graduate program says it allows applicants with a bachelors honors degree from an acceptable discipline…but then would it be really difficult for me considering I haven’t learned the undergrad stuff from Mech Eng?</p>
<p>thanks</p>
<p>dwarfwarri - same answers, just different subjects. As an EE you may be qualified in a few specialties in ME, and if you happen to be interested in one of those areas you may still be in luck. But as an EE you will not normally have the exposure to thermodynamics, structures, mechanics, and fluid mechanics that most ME masters programs will want to see. Just remember that “from an acceptable discipline” does not avoid “best qualified applicants” - your degree will be acceptable even if you are not considered competitive.</p>
<p>Out of curiousity, what is it about ME that makes you want to switch? If it is just the items being designed, bear in mind that EE’s and ME’s often work hand in hand on many projects - you may be able to get your current dream job even with that EE degree.</p>
<p>Well I don’t really know much about ME so I am actually not really entirely certain I may like it, but what caught my attention was that it seemed like they were doing a much wider variety of things (welding, stress analysis, CAD, mechanics, computing) compared to the stuff I’m doing, which is mostly about circuits and the materials we use to build the circuits on. What made me switch was that I realized EE was more concerned about how to distribute the electricity in a smart way whereas ME is more involved in building machines…like building wind turbines.</p>
<p>EE always starts with circuits, later you will get electromagnetics, control systems, programming, singal processing, possibly a bunch of other stuff. At least one area is guaranteed to suck, but the practice of engineering is pretty specialized and it is not hard to avoid the stuff you hate. I haven’t worked with low-frequency circuits since my undergrad classes, and I will match building and using lasers against the excitement of a wind turbine any day.</p>
<p>Still, ME can be pretty cool too. It’s really just up to your preferences.</p>