<p>I am helping a student find a college where she can do digital design (which is really what she wants to do) , but at the same time keep her dad happy pursuing a “major where she can get a job”. He wants her to go into engineering, but she hates it. She told me that she likes applied science. Can someone explain what exactly that is? And anyone know of a college with good programs in both?</p>
<p>Sound like an AS degree where they teach you the bare essentials of science you need to be able to work in a lab as a technician. I don’t think it is worth it. There are many medical tech degrees such as radiology that will get you much better careers.</p>
<p>Engineering IS applied science… and math</p>
<p>“Digital design” and “applied science” could mean any number of things. Is there anything in particular that is meant?</p>
<p>redbug119, check out the web page below, if for nothing else but some ideas. I’m pretty sure there are programs at RIT that will make your friend happy, her Dad happy, and also RIT grads do get jobs. Then look for other schools with similar programs.</p>
<p>[RIT</a> Programs of Study](<a href=“http://www.rit.edu/programs/]RIT”>Degree Programs | RIT)</p>
<p>My first intuition, just like yg7s7’s, was that applied science = engineering. Is she aware that “engineering” encompasses much more than electrical and mechanical engineering?</p>
<p>Or maybe she meant experimental science as opposed to theoretical science?</p>
<p>My guess is that it is the experimental stuff. I’ll have to ask her specifically. Thanks for the RIT link, looks cool!</p>
<p>@sschoe2 Yes, radiology used to be a good career. However the market is now so saturated that there are very few jobs for the many people graduating. H has 25 years certified in Ct, X-ray and Nuclear medicine and still can’t get full time job in Florida.</p>
<p>I suppose I should clarify. Engineering is an application of science, but applied science is not engineering. Applied science is something more broad and fundamental. You could say it seeks to connect fundamentals of science and tie them in to solving practical issues, addressing old problems in different ways, developing new techniques or technologies, etc.</p>
<p>[Applied</a> science - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia](<a href=“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Applied_science]Applied”>Applied science - Wikipedia)</p>
<p>I am not sure that Wikipedia is the most reliable source on the definition of “applied sciences” - especially given that the content of the article is contested in the discussion section.</p>
<p>I agree Wikipedia is not a reliable source. I just posted it because it expounded a bit. Is there a better definition of the term?</p>
<p>I am not sure that it’s standard terminology at all. The only places I have heard the term “applied science” before was in college names like Penn’s [School</a> of Engineering and Applied Science](<a href=“http://www.seas.upenn.edu/]School”>http://www.seas.upenn.edu/).</p>
<p>It’s at William and Mary, too. I’ve seen the degree term before. It seems to almost be simply applied physics.</p>
<p>Univeristy of North Carolina - Chapel Hill has a department of Applied Science and Engineering. You can concentrate on Biomedical Engineering, Materials Science, or Computer Engineering. They are working on concentrations in Biological Physics and Energy Sciences.</p>