ChemEng Where?

[Tasslehoff]

Ok... I'm in a limbo..

where should I pursue my Chem Eng degree? I'll probably branch out to Environment/research later..

Right now, I've the option to go US or to go Cambrige/Imperial..

I know about reviewing each college and checking the lifestyle and all.. but honestly I'ld like to hear your opinions... esp regarding the Education curriculum..

Please do give your opinions below and your reasons ^_^


p/s if I do reject Cam, how would I go about doing it? (since Downing required me to send in the accept/decline thing before 1st Feb)

[eslite]

Which environmental specialisation are you looking at? Water management? Waste management? Climate change/Atmospheric? Alternative energy?

[weich]

well, i studied in imperial, visited cambridge a few times, but honestly i can't say i know all about cambridge's educational curriculum.

But for cambridge, the thing that stands out is that you get 1-to-1 tutoring and at the end of your studies, you leave with a very prestigious degree, where you'll be exposed to more opportunities in jobs with the higher salary bracket. This include alot of consulting firms, hedge funds and investment banks - all those high paying ones. E.g. I was in a by-invitation-only recruiting event of a consulting firm and 95% of those there are from Oxbridge. Me and another guy are the only ones from Imperial.

For imperial, the plus point is that it's in london & its reputation in engineering's really good, esp. ChemEng. Oil companies will be v. interested in hiring Imperial grads and in recent days, lotsa ChemEng alumni have gone into IBanking. In fact, I think about 40% of all Imperial engineering grads go into IBanking/Finance role! As for the curriculum, you can choose a few humanities subjects along with the core subjects.

So, which unis did you get into in the US?

[Tasslehoff]

Originally Posted by eslite

Which environmental specialisation are you looking at? Water management? Waste management? Climate change/Atmospheric? Alternative energy?

No specifics yet.. all seem interesting to me at this point.. i'll prolly find time to intern at one place or another then choose from there ^_^

[Catch-22]

Well... I have rejected Imperial and chose Cambridge as my firm and LSE as my insurance choice. Imperial does have very good reputation for engineering. However, accomodation wise, I heard that you have to take tubes to lectures and after 1st year, your accomodations won't be guaranteed? Downing quite close to engineering lectures, you can get up at 9:45 and still make it to 10am lectures (heard this from Downing Natscis). Who can afford to live in London anyway.

But the most important point is, if you declined Cambridge (which sounds cool), we won't be college mates! Now you wouldn't want that, would you?

[Tasslehoff]

Originally Posted by Catch-22

Well... I have rejected Imperial and chose Cambridge as my firm and LSE as my insurance choice. Imperial does have very good reputation for engineering. However, accomodation wise, I heard that you have to take tubes to lectures and after 1st year, your accomodations won't be guaranteed? Downing quite close to engineering lectures, you can get up at 9:45 and still make it to 10am lectures (heard this from Downing Natscis). Who can afford to live in London anyway.

But the most important point is, if you declined Cambridge (which sounds cool), we won't be college mates! Now you wouldn't want that, would you?

I almost made a closed application to downing because it was close ot the engin lectures... but last minute decided to put in an open application.. hahaha

and... on that thought... college mates with you.. now i've really gotta decline cambridge!! haahaha just kidding...

I'm still sorta clueless now... I'm doing my own research while asing others of thier opinions and stuff ^_^ thanks for placing in yours!

[Tasslehoff]

Bump

[Tasslehoff]

bump

Pros & Cons I've gathered so far:
UC Berkeley:
-Not sure how Cal works, plus I don't know anyone doing ChemEng there.
-A relatively flexible course structure, hence I can take other subjects that may/may not pretain to my major.
-Ranked quite highly for thier ChemEng Dept, but not sure where Cam stands in that list
-Many opportunities to do research (which I'm passionate about)
-Huge undergrad population (College of Chemistry), large classes, possibly impersonal
-Hearsay: Housing is not good
-some policy of keeping BS students from reapplying for PhD at Berkeley ( I'ld like to keep my options open, but if its worth it, then I suppose its alright)
-Ranks #3 in Undergrad ChemEng if I'm not mistaken, but I've no idea where Cam fits into the list

Cambridge:
-rather rigid structure.
-Rare for undergrads to do research
-Small undergrad population, relatively smaller classes, much more personalized
-Relatively much better housing + scenery
-prestige factor (which seems to lean towards Cam) but wouldnt really play an important role in my decision

[JetLee0510]

could I , as a 2006 SPM leaver apply uni like cambridge, oxford, harvard, munich ... etc directly ...? how ?

[Tasslehoff]

@@ tread jacking!!!

lols

SPM leavers can apply to US universities.. Harvard etc..

UK universities, you need at least some form 6 level education.. eg STPM, A levels & IB ... I think that applies for Munich too under the euro federation.