Hello! I got accepted into IU Bloomington’s Kelley School of Business via Direct Admit and I also got admitted into Purdue University at Indianapolis’ Integrated Business and Engineering program. It has come down to these two school about where I am going to be attending college and I could really use some help about the pros and cons of these two majors and schools. Something that the people over at Purdue told me was that after two years I would automatically be transferred to West Lafayette to take the upperclassmen work since PUI is a very new campus.
One other thing I’d like to mention is that I want to become an entrepreneur working in the transportation industry and that’s why making the choice between business and engineering vs. just business is kinda hard for me. Any input is welcome!
I don’t know if the IBE includes a design course or not - but you might look to see if you can transfer into full time engineering with a business minor…but again, you won’t learn to be an entrepreneur.
On the website it states that all IBE students are required to take EPICS or VIP classes with EPICS being about working with real companies in creating solutions to social, environmental, and other problems in the real world while “The Vertically Integrated Projects (VIP) Program provides an opportunity for undergraduate students to earn academic credit while engaging in authentic and extended research and design projects related to active research areas of Purdue faculty members and national, international, and industry-sponsored design challenges. Students can participate on interdisciplinary and vertically-integrated teams (first-year through seniors) with faculty and graduate student mentors for multiple semesters to address these real-world research and design challenges.” (Directly from Purdue’s website) Thanks again for your insight!
My understanding is IBE has general engineering curriculum and that might not be enough for what you want to do. It is more suited to product/project management roles and possibly consulting/analyst roles.
Might be better off picking Mechanical Engineering, get some design experience and then pursue a MBA if desired.
Here is the 4 year plan. Because there are trying to squeeze both business and engineering in 4 years there is limited flexibility to minor in other fields of interest.
Or even do Industrial Design, given the stated interest in “designing things such as cars and airplanes.”
It looks like Purdue’s BFA in Industrial Design is easier to switch into than engineering; the CODO Requirements page says the “major is open with no anticipated space restrictions.” However, “Due to the sequence of this major’s coursework, changing to this major may delay graduation. The initial courses for the sequence typically begin in the fall and require 4 years to complete.” And I believe it’s offered only on the West Lafayette campus. If you wanted this path plus business, and were willing to do five years, you might be able to emphasize business/econ classes in the first year, earn a business minor, and then start the BFA in your second year. But the IBE curriculum seems to frontload the STEM classes, so you’d have to deviate from that roadmap right away.
if purdue is your top choice then another path you can take is adding industrial engg. Please do due diligence as purdue engg is a rigorous program. I have not looked at the course plan but think more design courses can be added if you have enough AP or DE credits.