Hi everyone, I am currently a physics and math major at Georgetown University and its been great. However, when I took my electromagnetic course, I developed a passion for electrical engineering and want to pursue it. Georgetown does not offer a engineering program meaning I would need to transfer. I am wondering if I should just stick out physics at Georgetown or transfer to Case Western where instead of physics and math I could be electrical engineering + physics minor (maybe double major but time would make that unlikely if I still wanted to graduate in 2028) . I just finished my first year and I am calling tomorrow to confirm I can graduate in time, but I believe I can at a normal pace since physics and engineering courses are very similar first year. My main problem is cost. I can pay 2k at Georgetown or pay 11.5 at Case Western. I am happy to answer any questions but I really am not sure if the price difference is worth it. I have heard Case Western is very (unhelpful?) in giving more aid to students after giving their first offer. Or if maybe physics would give me the same job prospects as physics in which it might just be worth it to save my money.
So you’ve been accepted to Case and given that offer ? Can you afford it ?
The other choice is to stay at Gtown and get a Masters. Or pursue your goals with the current degree.
There are costs at Case beyond money - ie starting new.
If you truly want to study engineering and can afford to do so without loans, then I’d lean that way.
But I’m not you. Good luck.
So if you want to be an engineer, you are going to need an engineering degree. As I see it there are four main options:
- Do a Masters in engineering after Physics and Math at Georgetown
- Do the Columbia Combined Plan where in 5 (or 6) years you also get a Bachelors in Engineering from Columbia
- Transfer to Case for a Bachelors in Engineering
- Transfer somewhere else for a Bachelors in Engineering
All of these could potentially cost you more than not getting an Engineering degree at all, although the last option, maybe not? Depends on whether you can find a transfer alternative that will cost as little as Georgetown in whatever time it takes you to get your Engineering degree.
All will also work, but in addition to cost, some people prefer different paths. Like, things like the CCP end up less popular than you might think at first glance, but it is because people don’t necessarily want to mess up their overall undergrad experience, plus since it will take at least a year extra, the alternative of just getting a Masters instead of a Bachelors might be more attractive.
That may or may not be true, but you should ask them to meet what you pay at Georgetown. The worst that can happen is they say no. If the $11.5K at Case is affordable, then you have a decision to make regarding the potential move. If the $11.5K is not affordable then it doesn’t seem transferring makes sense. Is Case the only transfer school option?
Transfer.
Typically, the most compelling reason to transfer is because one’s current school does not offer one’s desired major. This is your situation.
Imagine trying to get a job as an engineer–electrical or other specialty–graduating from a non-engineering school without a degree in engineering.
The only concern seems to be the extra $9,500 COA per year for 3 years at Case Western, but how much do you value the benefits of getting a specialized, highly technical degree in your area of interest that will lead to a job/career in your desired field ?
Additionally, you will learn & benefit professionally by associating with peers who share your enthusiasm for EE. How many Georgetown profs can help you secure an internship or job as an electrical engineer ?
Is this a thing that usually works? How should I go about asking?
It can work, whether or not it works in your case you can’t know unless you ask.
Contact the transfer admissions person and/or financial aid person (is there one listed on your FA offer?) and say that you are seriously considering attending but because it would cost you $10K more each year (at least) that you wanted to see if they could match your FA package at Georgetown. They might say no, or they might ask to see your Gtown FA offer. There is no harm in asking, these staffers have these conversations every day.
If CWRU doesn’t give you more aid, can you afford the extra $10K without taking out loans?
I mean it might be tight, but I think I could avoid taking out loans. There would be 0 chance of me having any money left over when I graduate though.
No loans = great. In theory you’ll make more money out if school. In theory.
Are you 100% sold on this career path ?
If that’s the case and you are reasonably certain you want to be an engineer, then it sounds like the right decision to transfer, no? Are there other factors in play besides the additional 10K?
Personally, I wouldn’t make this decision through a purely ROI lens. One school has the major you want, while the other doesn’t. If you stick with Gtown it seems like you would have to get a masters to do the type of jobs that you are targeting…so CWRU will cost less if you look at it that way.
If CWRU matched Gtown’s net cost to you, would you commit for sure? If so, tell them that when you call to ask for more money.
I was not at first but from what I have looked into, physics and math would require at least a postdoc or phd to even consider getting into the jobs I want. Which actually is to work on semiconductors and optics and avionics/aerospace. I love circuitry too. Electrical engineering could really open my doors to all of these while physics would probably keep me locked into one due to having to specialize. I want my job to be intellectually challenging. I also think due to having a physics minor, I would still be able to go to A grad school for physics if I really wanted to. Though if I am wrong on this please correct me.
It does feel right but I feel I miss out on a lot of the Georgetown perks though such as the alumni network and the prestige of being known throughout the world? I am not sure if these are things that matter though when I graduate and if Case Western could live up to that name in the engineering world, I also see its rank constantly going down (37-51) and that scares me. I do not know if these things will matter in terms of going to grad school or finding a job.
Plenty with physics and math go into industry. Some into engineering roles even. At the same time 75% of people or so with engineering degrees aren’t engineers. It’d be better to be an engineering major but I don’t think it’s that black and white.
Have you talked to the career center or academic departments to see where past grads have ended up ?
I used this snippet from Kenyon because it’s easy. Did these majors have more education ?
I don’t know but Ive seen many first destination reports with physics as a major in engineering roles.
I do think CWRU is cleaner but I don’t think the door is shut at Gtown and I don’t think either major requires grad school. They are great majors on their own.
Would you rather the worldwide prestige of Georgetown or the worldwide employability of being an electrical engineer from a fully accredited engineering program ?
This seems like a repeat of your earlier thread Case Western vs Georgetown
Do you have any new thoughts since then, or responses to the feedback you already received?
I enjoy aerospace but I am more interested in building the technology for it rather than the actual shape or designing the hull, I also love other fields in electrical engineering rather than only the one in mechanical. I also got the cost, which was not the best. I feel pretty content pursuing a physics minor/BA. But I still feel there are some important topics to discuss like alumni network, grad school outcome for a school like case western vs Georgetown, I also wanted to discuss if anyone had any ideas on how to convince Case Western to appeal my aid, but I got some help on that already. A main thing I am still waiting to hear about is if my credits will transfer which can add a whole other dimension, if it did take five years, would it be better to just spend my time at Georgetown and go for the CCP Program vs go to Case Western.
As I said on your other thread, I would seriously consider doing the BSE in Engineering Physics at Case. You’d get an ABET degree, and the major includes a concentration in an engineering discipline (which could be EE, MechE, Aerospace… you’d be able to decide once there). It would likely dovetail well with your previous physics coursework and prepare you well for the kind of work or graduate study that interests you. If you want engineering, this seems like a good path to me. But if you want to stay at GT and do physics, and you’re okay with not getting an undergrad engineering degree, that’s a reasonable option too.
Many engineers - and math abd physics majors work at all types of companies. Boeing doesn’t have just aero engineers. My son is at an aero company but does a manufacturing engineer role. He’s MechE.
Grad school can be done from any of your degrees. I do know a physics kid who did have to take some engineering pre reqs though as part of his Masters.
I really think you need to talk to your department at Gtown and career center. Where are the majors going ? Surely some alums have made it to your field of interest.
If you can afford CWRU with no loans and you made it seem you could, assuming no more time to graduate, it’s certainly a more assured path.
Don’t assume that just because you go to GTown that alums will open doors. Or that at Case they won’t. My kid went to a middle of the road SEC school and had 19 intvws and 5 offers by xmas. He found them on indeed. At Cornell, a top school, they show kids finding jobs similarly by 10 fold vs on campus interviewing.
No one knows the market when you graduate.
But know you, more than a name, will determine your prospects. Sure a name can help but it’s not a panacea.
Just a couple quick thoughts.
US News rankings are a function of the data they use and the formula they apply. You can look up their methodology and see how much of it, if any, actually means much to you. But it is worth noting that Case was one of many similar colleges that dropped in 2024 due to a methodology change, specifically one designed to incorporate social mobility measures.
This was an unfavorable change for colleges like Case because the truth is they don’t in fact take in as many lower-income students as a typical public, nor the most famous privates (which typically have more generous need aid too). Of course all of these very selective private colleges really mainly take the kids of upper middle class families and turn them into upper middle class professionals, so these are differences in the margins. But the US News methodology was designed to take these differences in the margins and turn them into rankings changes, so it did.
And it appears you are experiencing that a bit yourself, meaning Case is not offering you as generous of a package as Georgetown.
But this leads me to my second point, which is you are an individual, and what matters is what these institutions can do for you. And although I know some people casually talk as if this is true, factors like the strength of alumni networks are not actually a part of the US News rankings methodology.
And part of why is there is no conceivable generic measure of such a thing. Instead, networks are all very specific, defined by things like industry, geography, and so on. So if you are, say, interested in networking in foreign policy in DC, Georgetown would be massively UNDERrated by its US News ranking. But if you are interested in networking in engineering, Georgetown would be massively OVERrated by its US News ranking. And so on. Case, however, is UNDERrated for engineering networking.
OK, so Case may cost you more, but if you are interested in networking in engineering, Case is by far the better choice.
Again, though, you have other options. A good grad program would be networked in valuable ways. As mentioned there is the Columbia 3+2 program (although one of the issues with that sort of approach is the other Columbia engineering students would have a head start on working those networking opportunities). You could see if you can transfer somewhere else besides Case that would cost you less.
But if these are your choices–you are not comprising on networking if you choose Case, it has (much) better networks for the things you are talking about.
Note at Columbia admission is not guaranteed.