<p>You ask many questions that cannot be answered absolutely. Mostof your questions require subjective and relative answers. Below are some subjective/relative answers?</p>
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<li><p>Michigan’s IOE department is ranked between #2 and #3 in the US. That makes it one of the very best. Only Georgia Tech is considered better in IOE.</p></li>
<li><p>Relative to other Engineering disciplines, IOE is one of the easier ones. Chemical and Electrical Engineering are considered the toughest, followed by Materials and Mechanical. Nevertheless, IOE is still a tough major that requires strong quantitative skills and serious commitment on part of the student.</p></li>
<li><p>Michigan’s CoE is highly recruited by all sorts of companies. To put it bluntly, Michigan Engineers are in high demand. EECS majors are typically recruited by the likes of Cisco, Google, Intel and Microsoft. Chemical Engineering majors are typically recruited by the likes of BASF, BP, Dow, Dupont, Exxon Mobil and Shell. Mechanical and IOE are generally recruited by a very broad range of companies, mostly manufacturing, such as Ford, GM etc… The only IOE student I knew landed a job with BCG in Washington DC upon graduation, worked for them for 3 years and then went on to Harvard Business School. That is not to say that all IOE majors at Michigan follow a similar path, but it certainly happens.</p></li>
<li><p>The 5th year graduate program is excellent, but only if necessary and affordable. In other words, should your finances be in order (parents have the money), and should you have tried hard to find a job and not found one by late August after graduation, pursuing a 5th year graduate degree cannot hurt. I recommend students intensely look for summer internships starting in the fall of their Sophomore year (ideally, all students should complete two summer internships before starting their senior year). At the same time, students lose nothing by speaking to their academic advisor in the CoE to know what steps need to be followed to qualify for a 5th year graduate program. As of the first week of senior year, students should be involved with the career office in revising and updating their resume and should aggressible look for full time work while at the same time, apply for the 5th year graduate program. Usually, most Engineers with 2.7+ GPAs will find work within three months of having graduated from Michigan. If that is not the case and the student is admitted into the 5th year graduate program, staying on for a fifth year may be worth it…assuming such a degree is not too financially draining.</p></li>
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