UCLA Engineering Q&A

darwink · August 15, 2008, 2:08am

[CS</a> 31 Fall 2008](<a href=“http://www.cs.ucla.edu/classes/fall08/cs31/]CS”>http://www.cs.ucla.edu/classes/fall08/cs31/) seems to answer most CS 31 enrollment questions more authoritatively than anything posted here.

solace2718 · August 15, 2008, 10:39pm

How is the mechanical engineering program at UCLA?

brunelicsb0018 · August 24, 2008, 8:01pm

where did UCLA place on the 2009 best undegraduate engineering schools, anybody know? anybody have the complete list for aerospace?

flopsy · August 25, 2008, 1:13am

I’ll post the US News Undergraduate Engineering Rankings 2009 as soon as I find them. :rolleyes:

flopsy · August 26, 2008, 12:04am

GRE Analytical Writing: 5.5 :rolleyes:

eyesackforsure · August 26, 2008, 2:44pm

flopsy can you help me with makin a schedule for freshman year for chem engineering? i looked at the site you gave me
[Chemical</a> Engineering Curriculum](<a href=“http://www.seasoasa.ucla.edu/curric07_08.html/chemengcurric.html]Chemical”>http://www.seasoasa.ucla.edu/curric07_08.html/chemengcurric.html)
but it kinda confuses me.
im actually goin to the orientation tomorrow, but i wanted to know some basic information about making a schedule.
what classes do you recommend for a freshman year?
it looks complicated compared to highschool
i have ap scores of

Biology 3
Chemistry 4
Math: Calculus AB 5
Physics C - Mechanics 3
Statistics 3

if that helps at all

thanks

toxic_waste · August 26, 2008, 8:33pm

it’s not any more complicated, except naming conventions i guess… what confuses you on the site?

going by the dept. recommendations, you would take Ch Engr 10, Chem 20A, EngComp 3, and math. since a 5 in AB gives you credit for Math 31A, you would take 31B instead (unless you really wanna do derivatives again). you might be hearing about taking 3 classes instead of 4, but Ch Engr 10 is just a one-unit seminar so it doesn’t make a difference.

just so you know, you don’t need to take English this quarter. you have until the end of sophomore year. you can substitute a GE in its place.

liyana179 · August 26, 2008, 9:01pm

5 in AP does NOT give credit for 31A. he’s engineering. unless the website for AP credit HSSEAS is wrong, but that’s what i’m referring to.

grapesoda · August 26, 2008, 10:43pm

A 5 in AP Calc AB is enough to petition out of 31A. It’s not automatic credit since you can actually choose between 31A and 31B, but it definitely can get you out of the class.

Edit: See page 20 here: <a href=“http://www.seasoasa.ucla.edu/Announce.pdf[/url]”>http://www.seasoasa.ucla.edu/Announce.pdf</a>

toxic_waste · August 26, 2008, 11:28pm

liyana: i’m in engineering too, thanks. the AP credit site is completely useless, you have to dig around the engineering site, look at the Announcement, or get a sheet in orientation.

assuming nothing’s changed since last year, you get credit for 31A if you get a 5 (unless you want to take 31A again), and you can petition out with a 4 (according to the general catalog, if i’m not mistaken).

[UCLA</a> Department of Mathematics](<a href=“Undergraduate Program | UCLA Department of Mathematics”>http://www.math.ucla.edu/ugrad/new-apccredit.shtml)

grapesoda · August 27, 2008, 12:07am

Actually, 5 is the only score that will get you 31A credit from AB. BC will give you the option to skip 31A with a 4, and an option to skip 31B with a 5.

liyana179 · August 27, 2008, 1:32am

^ lol, where were you guys a month or so ago, when everyone was freaking out about AP scores and credit.

i now consider myself properly enlightened, thank you :)

eyesackforsure · August 28, 2008, 6:45pm

thank you guys, i think i got it now lol im at the orientation right now.

flopsy · August 29, 2008, 2:34am

US News Undergraduate Engineering Rankings 2009

From the Engineering forum:

Aerospace / Aeronautical / Astronautical:

1 Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, MA
2 Georgia Institute of Technology Atlanta, GA
3 University of Michigan–Ann Arbor Ann Arbor, MI
4 Purdue University–West Lafayette West Lafayette, IN
5 California Institute of Technology Pasadena, CA
6 University of Illinois–Urbana-Champaign Champaign, IL
7 Stanford University Stanford, CA
8 University of Texas–Austin Austin, TX
9 University of Maryland–College Park College Park, MD
10 Virginia Tech Blacksburg, VA
11 Cornell University Ithaca, NY
11 Princeton University Princeton, NJ
11 Texas A&M University–College Station College Station, TX
14 Pennsylvania State University–University Park University Park, PA
15 University of Florida Gainesville, FL
16 University of Colorado–Boulder Boulder, CO
**17 University of California–Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA **
17 University of Southern California Los Angeles, CA
19 University of Washington Seattle, WA 

Biomedical: 

1 Johns Hopkins University Baltimore, MD
2 Duke University Durham, NC
3 Georgia Institute of Technology Atlanta, GA
4 University of California–San Diego La Jolla, CA
5 Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, MA
6 Case Western Reserve University Cleveland, OH
7 University of Michigan–Ann Arbor Ann Arbor, MI
7 University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA
9 Boston University Boston, MA
10 Rice University Houston, TX
11 Northwestern University Evanston, IL
12 University of Washington Seattle, WA
13 University of California–Berkeley Berkeley, CA
14 Stanford University Stanford, CA
15 University of Virginia Charlottesville, VA
16 Washington University in St. Louis St. Louis, MO
17 University of Wisconsin–Madison Madison, WI
17 Vanderbilt University Nashville, TN
19 Cornell University Ithaca, NY
19 Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Troy, NY
19 University of Texas–Austin Austin, TX
22 Tulane University New Orleans, LA
22 University of Illinois–Urbana-Champaign Champaign, IL
24 University of Pittsburgh Pittsburgh, PA 

Chemical:

1 Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, MA
2 University of California–Berkeley Berkeley, CA
3 University of Wisconsin–Madison Madison, WI
4 University of Minnesota–Twin Cities Minneapolis, MN
5 Stanford University Stanford, CA
6 California Institute of Technology Pasadena, CA
7 University of Texas–Austin Austin, TX
8 University of Illinois–Urbana-Champaign Champaign, IL
9 University of Delaware Newark, DE
10 University of Michigan–Ann Arbor Ann Arbor, MI
11 Princeton University Princeton, NJ
12 Georgia Institute of Technology Atlanta, GA
13 Purdue University–West Lafayette West Lafayette, IN
14 Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh, PA
15 Cornell University Ithaca, NY
16 Pennsylvania State University–University Park University Park, PA
17 University of California–Santa Barbara Santa Barbara, CA
18 Northwestern University Evanston, IL
19 University of Virginia Charlottesville, VA
20 Johns Hopkins University Baltimore, MD
20 North Carolina State University–Raleigh Raleigh, NC
20 University of Florida Gainesville, FL
20 University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA
24 Texas A&M University–College Station College Station, TX
24 Virginia Tech Blacksburg, VA 

Civil: 

1 University of Illinois–Urbana-Champaign Champaign, IL
2 University of California–Berkeley Berkeley, CA
3 Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, MA
4 University of Texas–Austin Austin, TX
5 Georgia Institute of Technology Atlanta, GA
6 Stanford University Stanford, CA
7 Purdue University–West Lafayette West Lafayette, IN
7 University of Michigan–Ann Arbor Ann Arbor, MI
9 Cornell University Ithaca, NY
10 Texas A&M University–College Station College Station, TX
11 Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh, PA
12 Virginia Tech Blacksburg, VA
13 University of Wisconsin–Madison Madison, WI
14 Pennsylvania State University–University Park University Park, PA
15 California Institute of Technology Pasadena, CA
15 University of Florida Gainesville, FL
17 Princeton University Princeton, NJ
18 Northwestern University Evanston, IL
18 University of Southern California Los Angeles, CA
20 University of Washington Seattle, WA 

Computer:

1 Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, MA
2 Stanford University Stanford, CA
3 Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh, PA
4 University of California–Berkeley Berkeley, CA
5 University of Illinois–Urbana-Champaign Champaign, IL
6 Georgia Institute of Technology Atlanta, GA
7 University of Michigan–Ann Arbor Ann Arbor, MI
8 California Institute of Technology Pasadena, CA
8 Cornell University Ithaca, NY
8 University of Texas–Austin Austin, TX
11 Purdue University–West Lafayette West Lafayette, IN
12 University of Washington Seattle, WA
12 University of Wisconsin–Madison Madison, WI
14 Princeton University Princeton, NJ
15 Rice University Houston, TX
**16 University of California–Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA **
16 University of California–San Diego La Jolla, CA 

Electrical / Electronic / Communications:

1 Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, MA
2 Stanford University Stanford, CA
3 University of Illinois–Urbana-Champaign Champaign, IL
4 University of California–Berkeley Berkeley, CA
5 Georgia Institute of Technology Atlanta, GA
6 University of Michigan–Ann Arbor Ann Arbor, MI
7 California Institute of Technology Pasadena, CA
8 Cornell University Ithaca, NY
9 Purdue University–West Lafayette West Lafayette, IN
10 Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh, PA
11 University of Texas–Austin Austin, TX
12 Princeton University Princeton, NJ
13 University of California–San Diego La Jolla, CA
13 University of Wisconsin–Madison Madison, WI
**15 University of California–Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA **
16 University of Washington Seattle, WA
17 Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Troy, NY
17 Virginia Tech Blacksburg, VA
19 University of Southern California Los Angeles, CA
19 University of Virginia Charlottesville, VA 

Environmental / Environmental health:

1 Stanford University Stanford, CA
2 University of Illinois–Urbana-Champaign Champaign, IL
3 University of California–Berkeley Berkeley, CA
4 Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, MA
5 Johns Hopkins University Baltimore, MD
6 Georgia Institute of Technology Atlanta, GA
7 University of Texas–Austin Austin, TX
8 University of Michigan–Ann Arbor Ann Arbor, MI
9 Cornell University Ithaca, NY
10 Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh, PA
11 University of Florida Gainesville, FL
12 California Institute of Technology Pasadena, CA
13 Michigan Technological University Houghton, MI
14 Northwestern University Evanston, IL
15 Purdue University–West Lafayette West Lafayette, IN
15 Virginia Tech Blacksburg, VA
**17 University of California–Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA **
17 University of Washington Seattle, WA
17 University of Wisconsin–Madison Madison, WI
20 Duke University Durham, NC
20 North Carolina State University–Raleigh Raleigh, NC
20 Pennsylvania State University–University Park University Park, PA
20 University of Iowa Iowa City, IA 

Industrial / Manufacturing:

1 Georgia Institute of Technology Atlanta, GA
2 University of Michigan–Ann Arbor Ann Arbor, MI
3 Purdue University–West Lafayette West Lafayette, IN
4 Pennsylvania State University–University Park University Park, PA
5 University of California–Berkeley Berkeley, CA
6 Stanford University Stanford, CA
6 Virginia Tech Blacksburg, VA
8 Texas A&M University–College Station College Station, TX
9 Northwestern University Evanston, IL
10 University of Wisconsin–Madison Madison, WI
11 Cornell University Ithaca, NY
11 Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, MA
11 University of Illinois–Urbana-Champaign Champaign, IL
14 Ohio State University–Columbus Columbus, OH
15 North Carolina State University–Raleigh Raleigh, NC
16 University of Florida Gainesville, FL
17 Columbia University New York, NY
18 Arizona State University Tempe, AZ 

Materials:

1 University of Illinois–Urbana-Champaign Champaign, IL
2 University of Michigan–Ann Arbor Ann Arbor, MI
3 University of California–Berkeley Berkeley, CA
4 Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, MA
4 Northwestern University Evanston, IL
6 Stanford University Stanford, CA
7 Cornell University Ithaca, NY
8 University of Florida Gainesville, FL
9 Georgia Institute of Technology Atlanta, GA
10 Pennsylvania State University–University Park University Park, PA
11 Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh, PA
12 University of Wisconsin–Madison Madison, WI
13 Ohio State University–Columbus Columbus, OH
13 Purdue University–West Lafayette West Lafayette, IN
15 Iowa State University Ames, IA
15 University of Minnesota–Twin Cities Minneapolis, MN
15 University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA
18 University of Texas–Austin Austin, TX 

Mechanical:

1 Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, MA
2 University of Michigan–Ann Arbor Ann Arbor, MI
3 University of California–Berkeley Berkeley, CA
4 Georgia Institute of Technology Atlanta, GA
5 Stanford University Stanford, CA
6 University of Illinois–Urbana-Champaign Champaign, IL
7 Purdue University–West Lafayette West Lafayette, IN
8 Cornell University Ithaca, NY
9 California Institute of Technology Pasadena, CA
10 University of Texas–Austin Austin, TX
11 Pennsylvania State University–University Park University Park, PA
12 Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh, PA
13 Virginia Tech Blacksburg, VA
14 University of Minnesota–Twin Cities Minneapolis, MN
14 University of Wisconsin–Madison Madison, WI
16 Princeton University Princeton, NJ
17 University of California–San Diego La Jolla, CA
18 Northwestern University Evanston, IL
19 Texas A&M University–College Station College Station, TX
20 Ohio State University–Columbus Columbus, OH
**20 University of California–Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA **
22 Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Troy, NY

Best Undergraduate Engineering Programs:

1 Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, MA 4.7927
2 Stanford University Stanford, CA 4.651
2 University of California–Berkeley Berkeley, CA 4.6615
4 California Institute of Technology Pasadena, CA 4.5134
4 Georgia Institute of Technology Atlanta, GA 4.5155
4 University of Illinois–Urbana-Champaign Champaign, IL 4.4503
7 University of Michigan–Ann Arbor Ann Arbor, MI 4.4032
8 Cornell University Ithaca, NY 4.2766
9 Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh, PA 4.1905
9 Purdue University–West Lafayette West Lafayette, IN 4.1875
11 Princeton University Princeton, NJ 4.0718
11 University of Texas–Austin Austin, TX 4.1459
13 University of Wisconsin–Madison Madison, WI 3.9663
14 Johns Hopkins University Baltimore, MD 3.8859
14 Northwestern University Evanston, IL 3.9231
14 Virginia Tech Blacksburg, VA 3.8715
17 Pennsylvania State University–University Park University Park, PA 3.828
17 Rice University Houston, TX 3.8047
17 Texas A&M University–College Station College Station, TX 3.8103
17 University of California–San Diego La Jolla, CA 3.7622
21 Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Troy, NY 3.6868
**21 University of California–Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA 3.68 **
21 University of Maryland–College Park College Park, MD 3.6798
21 University of Washington Seattle, WA 3.6784
25 Columbia University New York, NY 3.5833
25 Duke University Durham, NC 3.5866
25 University of Minnesota–Twin Cities Minneapolis, MN 3.6494
28 Harvard University Cambridge, MA 3.5091
28 North Carolina State University–Raleigh Raleigh, NC 3.5322
28 Ohio State University–Columbus Columbus, OH 3.4943
28 University of Florida Gainesville, FL 3.5029
28 University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA 3.5466
28 University of Southern California Los Angeles, CA 3.497
28 University of Virginia Charlottesville, VA 3.4615
35 University of California–Davis Davis, CA 3.3736
35 University of California–Santa Barbara Santa Barbara, CA 3.3648
35 University of Colorado–Boulder Boulder, CO 3.4294
38 Arizona State University Tempe, AZ 3.2514
38 Brown University Providence, RI 3.3291
38 Case Western Reserve University Cleveland, OH 3.2632
38 Iowa State University Ames, IA 3.2781
38 Lehigh University Bethlehem, PA 3.2632
38 Vanderbilt University Nashville, TN 3.3072
38 Washington University in St. Louis St. Louis, MO 3.2516
38 Yale University New Haven, CT 3.2771
46 Dartmouth College Hanover, NH 3.1709
46 Michigan State University East Lansing, MI 3.2118
46 University of Notre Dame Notre Dame, IN 3.1734
49 Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey–New Brunswick Piscataway, NJ 3.131
49 University of Arizona Tucson, AZ 3.1412
51 Auburn University Auburn University, AL 3.0182
51 Clemson University Clemson, SC 3.0244
51 Colorado School of Mines Golden, CO 2.9639
51 Drexel University Philadelphia, PA 3.0225
51 Tufts University Medford, MA 2.9669
51 University of California–Irvine Irvine, CA 3.0126
51 University of Delaware Newark, DE 3.044
51 University of Massachusetts–Amherst Amherst, MA 3.0062
51 University of Pittsburgh Pittsburgh, PA 2.9682
51 Worcester Polytechnic Institute Worcester, MA 3.0248
61 Boston University Boston, MA 2.94
61 Colorado State University Fort Collins, CO 2.8773
61 Illinois Institute of Technology Chicago, IL 2.9182
61 Kansas State University Manhattan, KS 2.8926
61 Northeastern University Boston, MA 2.9349
61 SUNY–Stony Brook Stony Brook, NY 2.9161
61 University at Buffalo–SUNY Buffalo, NY 2.8571
61 University of Illinois–Chicago Chicago, IL 2.9281
61 University of Iowa Iowa City, IA 2.9438
70 Michigan Technological University Houghton, MI 2.8025
70 Oregon State University Corvallis, OR 2.7714
70 Rochester Institute of Technology Rochester, NY 2.7778
70 University of Kansas Lawrence, KS 2.8169
70 University of Rochester Rochester, NY 2.7817
70 University of Tennessee Knoxville, TN 2.7922
70 University of Utah Salt Lake City, UT 2.7778
70 Washington State University Pullman, WA 2.7867
78 Missouri University of Science & Technology Rolla, MO 2.6923
78 Polytechnic University Brooklyn, NY 2.7442
78 Syracuse University Syracuse, NY 2.719
78 Texas Tech University Lubbock, TX 2.6757
78 University of Cincinnati Cincinnati, OH 2.7338
78 University of Connecticut Storrs, CT 2.7315
78 University of Missouri–Columbia Columbia, MO 2.6857
78 University of North Carolina–Charlotte Charlotte, NC 2.6913
86 Brigham Young University–Provo Provo, UT 2.6391
86 Clarkson University Potsdam, NY 2.6338
86 George Washington University Washington, DC 2.5564
86 Louisiana State University–Baton Rouge Baton Rouge, LA 2.5578
86 New Jersey Institute of Technology Newark, NJ 2.6164
86 Oklahoma State University Stillwater, OK 2.6312
86 San Diego State University San Diego, CA 2.551
86 Southern Methodist University Dallas, TX 2.5882
86 Stevens Institute of Technology Hoboken, NJ 2.5705
86 University of Houston Houston, TX 2.5775
86 University of Kentucky Lexington, KY 2.5742
86 University of Nebraska–Lincoln Lincoln, NE 2.6026
86 University of New Mexico Albuquerque, NM 2.6187
86 University of Oklahoma Norman, OK 2.6412
100 University of California–Riverside Riverside, CA 2.5231

MooseGood · August 29, 2008, 3:24am

most of my peers seem to be taking 4 or even 5 classes the first quarter…and my oc told me to only take 3, so i did. 2 prereq classes and a ge. will i be behind?

and how is linear algebra…im asking cuz i didnt take a math class last year, and im afraid id be behind to begin with.

thanks

DeMoN · August 29, 2008, 4:27am

Why are we ranked so looooow???
MatSci, Civil, Chem, and Bio aren’t even on the lists. 
And a whole point short of Berk? The shame…

@Moose:
Second year? You won’t be behind. From the sounds of it you skipped Math 31A and 31B. And linear algebra seems to be easier than 32A, 32B, or 33B. Heck, my major curriculum says to take only 3 classes for second year, so I’m not gonna complain.

@flopsy, Can you give me a link to the final project of CS31 or at least explain what it is? And how well do you think proficient knowledge of regular C programming prepares for that class?
I heard Smallberg is the best prof though he’s also the hardest, is this true?

Thanks in advance.

toxic_waste · August 29, 2008, 5:12am

it’s quite interesting how high UCSD’s jumped.

people usually find linear algebra really easy or really hard. anyway, it’s got nothing to do with calc.

all CS31 classes are difficult. proficiency of any language would help, since it’s the problem-solving side that is difficult and tedious.

flopsy · August 29, 2008, 12:12pm

Prof. Smallberg’s CS 31 projects from Spring 2008 are available here:
[CS</a> 31: Introduction to Computer Science I - Spring 2008](<a href=“http://www.cs.ucla.edu/classes/spring08/cs31/]CS”>http://www.cs.ucla.edu/classes/spring08/cs31/)

Proficient knowledge of C programming means you’re well-prepared and should have no problem with C++. Prof. Smallberg is the best professor, but not the hardest. All CS 31 professors are equally hard, since they share the same grading curve. :rolleyes:

Fisico · August 29, 2008, 7:20pm

You forgot to list nuclear engineering! :mad:

flopsy · August 29, 2008, 9:12pm

The rankings for Nuclear Engineering weren’t posted. UCLA wouldn’t be ranked in Nuclear Engineering, anyways. :rolleyes:

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