Switching from Chemcial Engineering to Materials Science

G.P.Burdell
Tue, 24 Nov 2009 19:59:54 +0000

When I compared the Chemical Engineering track from my school the Materials Science and Engineering track from the school I want to transfer to, the core classes for Freshman and Sophomore year are the same except for the introductory classes. My biggest fear is that because I had trouble with Chemical Engineering, I will have trouble with Materials Science and end up back home



This is where I am confused. You failed your first year as a ChE. According to your post, the first year classes for ChE and MSE are the same. So logically, you would have failed your first year as an MSE student. Why do you expect that the outcome will be different if it’s the same classes for a different major?

The new strategy is to do well in Calc at a community college, then try again? I’m afraid that might not be the best strategy. Math classes in community colleges tend to be watered down. What will probably happen is that you’ll take classes at the CC, perform OK, then transfer back to the engineering college and be overwhelmed when you’re expected to apply that math (since everyone else will have a better grounding after taking more rigorous classes). I’ve seen it dozens of times.

The best bet is to figure out the root cause of the problem. Even with no high school calculus, an engineering student should be able to figure out Calc with some studying - thousands do it every year. You didn’t. Why? Is it because of study habits? Is it because you do not test well? Is it because you couldn’t see the applicability of the field and lost interest? Is it because of a mental health issue (you mentioned depression)? Is it because of a lack of ability? If you want to avoid a repeat, you need to figure out the root cause, devise a plan to address it, then enact that plan before transferring back. Otherwise things will just get worse.