Master's in Engineering

Graduate School
1

Unfortunately a little under a year after graduating with a degree in mathematics with a 4.0, I’m having a little bit of buyer’s remorse over my degree. Currently I’m getting my master’s in mathematics, and I’ve got maybe a year and a half left. Perhaps I’m just in the midst of a bipolar mood swing, but I’m just not loving the advanced material. I think what I particularly enjoyed about mathematics in undergrad was just the quest for the ever-so-coveted 4.0. I liked the game of chasing after it, and how mathematical logic made it possible for someone with my brain to follow. Sadly, I wound up in a class I didn’t meet the prereqs for last semester and didn’t continue the 4.0 into grad school.

I know I’m in the middle of an advanced degree, but I’m thinking maybe a change of face might be good? It probably means more school, but just the other day I experienced the naive 17-year old in me calling out in wonder: Once upon a time, I wanted to do revolutionary research in the sciences. There definitely is groundbreaking research in the field of mathematics, but it just isn’t the kind of research that the teenager so many years ago yearned to do. Research and development in engineering seems a lot more interesting to pursue.

Right now, I kind of have no more money. [url=<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/graduate-school/1912600-last-minute-change-of-plans-for-grad-school.html#latest%5DI”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/graduate-school/1912600-last-minute-change-of-plans-for-grad-school.html#latest]I blew it all on an unfunded year of grad school by choice/url. The only thing I see being plausible at all is to try and apply for a master’s degree in engineering and hope for some kind of Research Assistantship funding. But it might be kind of a stretch. Since I have almost no engineering background except for a few freshman level classes, I’d probably have to take a year of catch-up classes.

I have actually investigated some schools regarding engineering, and they all take me out to California in regards to what I find interesting.

Any insights or advice?

2

Sure. My bits of advice:

Don’t obsess about a 4.0.

Engineering graduate programs generally will accept other STEM majors into their programs. There may be some make-up coursework to do, however.

If you want a better shot at funding, you may have to consider a PhD. Funded master’s degrees are not uncommon, but they also aren’t the norm. You will need to find a professor willing to hire you as a master’s student, and usually professors prefer PhD students when doling out their grant money.

You’d do well to forget about geography. Go where the research is a fit.