That is in fact a very important note. My understanding is people who apply for that program and are not accepted may just continue on and get a Masters somewhere else. But I would not make this decision assuming it will definitely work out at Columbia specifically.
Oh woah, I honestly have been assuming that would work but then this year I saw someone not get into it and he is now just finishing his degree, is not getting in more common?
I donât know any stats, but I believe they used to have a path where if you met certain requirements you were basically guaranteed admissions, and then they removed that so there is no guaranteed path anymore.
My son is a physics major at another university that has a 3 2 program with Columbia. I have never seen anything published about the admission statistics, but virtually no one does the program for a number of reasons. There are a few things you need to be aware of. First, there are minimum GPA requirements. You need to have a 3.3 both overall and in your engineering pre requisites. Ok, so I know you are thinking thatâs a fairly low bar. The kicker is that you also can not have below a 3.0 on the first try in any of your pre req classes.That means you could have all As but if you get a B- in in a tough physics or math class, you would be automatically disqualified. You can not take the prerequisites pass/fail or at a university other than Georgetown. The second big issue is that you are not guaranteed to get the same financial aid at Columbia. The two years at Columbia could be much more expensive than either Georgetown or Case. I believe Columbia only guarantees housing for the first year which can be another issue.
If you are certain you want engineering, my vote would be to transfer to Case provided you can make the finances work. If you do decide to stay at Georgetown, I just want to reassure that many physics majors end up working in engineering or engineering adjacent fields. My rising senior physics major is currently in Greenville,SC doing an engineering internship with a foreign automotive company. He knows several other physics majors who are working for NASA and Space X. The physics degree will not preclude you from working in the field you want. It just may be a more circuitous route than the engineering degree
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While Georgetown is affiliated with Columbia - other schools like Case, RPI, and WashU and Iâm guessing more also offer but I know of only those four. Youâd have to check with each. RPI lists certain schools as does Columbia but Columbia is open to any. RPI doesnât show that but you can ask if theyâd consider GTâŠsame as Case and WashU.
But youâre in at Case - why would you do a 3/2??
What Columbia says-
Guaranteed admission is not available for candidates who began college, whether at an affiliate school or not, in Fall 2019 or later . All applicants who began college in Fall 2019 or later will be considered under the competitive review process. Applicants who attend an affiliate institution will be prioritized in the admissions process. This is a holistic process that evaluates a candidateâs preparation for Columbia Engineeringâs curriculum, fit for the university, character and recommendations, among other factors.
We strongly recommend that candidates review the following guidelines:
- Full-time enrollment at an accredited college or university for at least the past three years
- An overall GPA in accordance with the agreement that your institution has reached with Columbia. An overall GPA of 3.30 or higher is highly recommended.
- A pre-engineering GPA of 3.30 or higher, as calculated by Columbia. Additionally, the minimum grade for each pre-engineering science or math course must be a B (3.0) or better on the first attempt.
- Three favorable recommendations: one each from your institutionâs Combined Plan liaison, math instructor and science instructor
- Successful completion, by the end of the spring semester in which you are applying, of the specific prerequisitecourses for your intended major as listed in the Pre-Combined Plan Curriculum Guide
- Completion (before entering Columbia) of the major and degree requirements prescribed by your home institution for graduation
- Demonstration of English language proficiency as listed above
- Confirmation of good standing at the member institution
In order to be competitive for admission, applicants should meet or exceed the recommendations outlined in the Curriculum Guide that was issued in the fall semester they began college
Very very important.
Itâs not black and white like so many want to think.
And funny, not every engineering student gets engineering internships. I asked my son as one of his wasnât and he says - they wanted someone who thinks like an engineer even though the role wasnât.
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Hey guys figured I would send a update, I am still thinking, but I am going to try and get my financial aid appealed and see if I can even transfer my credits, when I have those updates I will come back and let you know! Honestly I am a little scared to do engineering, is it THAT difficult? I am especially nervous because I heard case western has grade deflation while Georgetown has grade inflation.
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You want an engineering degree. What does grade deflation or inflation have anything to do with it? If you are concerned, find another school.
Why would you be afraid ? Yes, itâs the major with the highest drop rate but you are excelling in physics at Georgetown.
Seems to me you are ready. Itâs a question of if you really want it.
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Most of my scholarships are contingent on me keeping above a 2.8 GPA in college. I am worried if I can do this. Sure I did great at Georgetown, but those are the intro courses and those wont be able to boost my GPA at Case Western. These higher level classes will have more impact.
If you donât keep a 3. Companies wonât consider you. Guess what - kids are doing it.
You got into a school most kids would dream of.
I wouldnât let that be a concern.
Besides itâs need aid - so that shouldnât be a thing. Usually minimums are for merit aid.
I think most people would agree any ABET-accredited undergraduate engineering program is going to be an INTENSE program, at least if you try to do it in four years total. ABET de facto requires such programs to in turn require a lot out of the students in terms of the total number of classes/credits it will take to complete the program. And these are almost all going to be classes that require significant work in terms of studying, problem sets, labs, and so on.
On top of that, engineering kids are usually also doing related internships, related student activities, and so on.
And some kids love it. They love learning these things, and they love doing engineering activities, and so for them the intensity is not a fundamental issue because it just means doing a lot of something they donât mind doing a lot of.
And other kids do not. They may like the idea of engineering as a profession, but they do not like what it takes to be a successful engineering student. And a lot of those kids end up choosing a different path in college.
I agree it is promising you are doing well in Physics, because it can have a similar intensity. But I also agree you are not necessarily going to love Engineering, and if not you may also end up deciding to do something different.
But is that possibility reason enough not to try? Up to you, but if it is something you reasonably think you might love, then it might be worth the risk to find out.
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Could you explain this? Do you have outside scholarships or did Case Western award a merit scholarship that requires maintaining a 2.8? Either way, I donât think itâs that big of a problem for a student of your calibre. My older sonâs merit scholarship for engineering school required maintaining a 3.0. He would usually take one easy/fun class every semester to pad his GPA a little. Itâs important to understand the conditions of the scholarship. For my son, GPA was reviewed at the end of each spring semester - so theoretically if the cumulative GPA dipped below 3.0 after the fall semester, there was time to remedy that in the Spring. In my sonâs case, there was no way to earn back the scholarship once it was lost. Be sure to understand whether yours can be earned back if you dip below a 2.8.
As far as whether engineering is âharderâ than a physics major - this really depends on the individual. At many engineering schools, the physics classes are considered to be weed outs for the engineers. My perspective from having one kid in engineering (he did what was essentially a combined EE/CompE program) and another kid in physics, is that engineering is more work intensive while physics is more conceptually difficult but requires less studying. If you have been finding physics easy,I am assuming thatâs either because you are brilliant or because you havenât taken many upper level classes yet (or quite possibly both 
) I havenât heard many physics students say that QM is a breeze. Nonetheless, I think you will do just fine in engineering school. Just to point out the obvious, if you transfer to Case and find that engineering isnât right for you, physics is still an option. If you stay at Georgetown, you do not have the opportunity to try out engineering. Best of luck with your decision.
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If the matter of cost is sorted out (ie., your family can pay out of pocket/without parental loans) then I see Case as a no-risk option: you can pursue Engineering and if it doesnât work out you can return to Physics and have a respected STEM degree from a highly respected STEM School.
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I agree that the cost needs to work. One thing I havenât seen mentioned on this thread is the co-op program. My engineering kid participated in that at his university. He ended up graduating a semester late, but had a full year of work experience and a job in hand. He is still working for his co-op company 4 years post graduation. I have seen some folks argue that co ops arenât worth it because of opportunity costs - but in my kids case his company considers his hire date to be when started his co op. This means in terms of salary, raises, accrued vacation time and promotions he is considered a 7th year employee. He also had a company 401k as a college student. In Ops case, the money earned could make a significant dent in the cost differential between Case and Georgetown.
Edited to add: Of course the OP should check with both the co-op program and the financial aid office about how it would impact his need based aid. But itâs a program that may be worth exploring.
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Is Case more highly regarded in STEM than Georgetown? I know Georgetown is big on business/law but I always heard at least from my professors that we are still elite for our physics program?
I have never heard of this, how did your son like it? Did he still have to pay for college while did the COOP? Was the salary good? Woah thats a lot of questions, sorry. This sounds very interesting especially since I see NASA as a potential COOP which would be my dream place to work.
It is still sort of a problem with money, I have technically enough, however I would be draining ever last dollar in my savings every year. This is versus just keeping my (almost) full ride at Georgetown where I would be able to build around another 10k in savings. Would people consider that worth it?
This is irrelevant to the discussion.
I would argue itâs more known for STEM than Gtown but pedigree, rank, reputation, etc is all subjective.
My kid went to an SEC public ranked 90th or so in engineering, had 5 offers and 19 interviews by Xmas, interned with Ga Tech kids, etc. Met someone from Columbia at trivia night and somehow found out he makes more.
Where you go for engineering, in most cases, short of a few schools, matters little.
You should not go - because you are afraid.
If you really wanted to be an engineer - youâd have pulled the trigger or at least pushed hard on Case money wise.
This isnât about pedigree or whatâs the better brand school - yes itâs Gtown in my opinion. Itâs just more well known - in part because of basketball in the 80s.
This is about - do I want the cleanest path to an engineering career. If yes, you go. If maybe or no, you stay.
You donât seem as decisive about this after your first post.
As for the money, only you can answer that but $10k over four years and you said nothing out of pocket - is a small cost for the job market advantages youâd have - in my opinion. At least you wonât need loans. Youâre getting a great education on the cheap.
I have outside scholarships that are based on that rule. From what I remember from the paper/contract I signed ( I would never be able to find it in a million years) If I ever drop below it, the scholarship goes away with no chance of returning.
It worked out great for my son and he really loved his co-op experience. In general, the biggest difference between co-ops and internships is that the company treats you as real employee and tends to give you more substantive work. You do not pay for tuition or housing while you are on a co op semester. Most co ops provide housing. It seems to be less common for internships - at least in my part of the country. However. I donât believe NASA ever provides housing.
As a general premise, I think it is way easier to land a co-op than an internship. This is probably because there are fewer students willing to take a semester or two away from school vs. working over summer break. At my sonâs school all the co-op hiring was done through on campus hiring. As a freshman with no engineering work experience, he dropped off 5 resumes that yielded 4 interviews and three job offers. Compared to some of the stories Iâve heard about students applying for hundreds of internships, itâs a much easier way to go.
You would have to check with Case Western about salary information. I believe my son started out at $24 an hour as a Freshman and ended up at about $30 an hour as a senior - but that was starting in 2018 and ending in 2021. (and in the Southeast where both salaries and cost of living are lower than in other parts of the country).
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