Masters Degrees (Structural/Geotechnical)

[bandraoi]

Right I've done a four year BE in Civil Engineering in a college in Ireland and I really want to do a taught Masters. I'm currently based in the UK but I'm willing to look at anywhere in the world (though the course itself) would have to be through English. My degree is a 1:1 so I think I can apply to pretty much anywhere without embarrassment (whether they'll have me is another question)

As yet I'm not entirely sure which area I want to go into between Structural and Geotechnical, tunneling is kinda what I'm looking at at the moment but I would like to keep my options open.

So the questions would be:

1: What colleges would you recommend looking into as being particularly good for engineering

2: Can anyone recommend a good website for researching this

3: Can anyone recommend specific courses I should look into

4: How much can I expect to pay for this, does anyone know of good scholarships/bursaries that might help out.

Thank you

 

[NickE]

(I'm an alumni so this is completely biased!)

Michigan Technological University.

http://www.mtu.edu

(The most beautiful place on earth!)

Nick
I love materials science!

 

[JAE]

Actually, the MOST beautiful place to get a great engineering degree is Iowa State University (listed as one of the top 5 most beautiful campuses in the USA and its not only the most wired - vast internet services - it is also the most unwired - vast ethernet). Its also the place where the first digital electronic computer was invented, is in the top 40 of public graduate engineering schools in the US, and has great structural and geotechnical departments)....

http://www.iastate.edu

(I'm also a very biased alum, Nick)

 

[SperlingPE]

If the tunneling/mining is of interest, look at Colorado School of Mines or South Dakota School of Mines. If looking to structural, Iowa State, Notre Dame (I think ND has seismic research center), Stanford, Harvey Mudd in California (small highly rated engineering school).

 

[HgTX]

If you go for structural rather than geotech, these are good in the US (were recommended to me a few years ago as the top in the country, and I don't think their status has shifted dramatically):

U of Texas @ Austin
U of Illinois @ Urbana-Champaign
U of California @ Berkeley (pretty campus, terrible cost of living)
Purdue
U of Michigan
U of Wisconsin
Lehigh
Cornell, depending on what exactly you want to go into (and it's a beautiful campus if you like winter)

MIT has good geotech but bad structural. I don't know how they are on tunnels.

You should probably start by picking what country you want to live in--and consider that it may be easier to get a job in the same country you got the degree in because you might emerge with some good connections (also people are more likely to have heard of your school).

When I was trying to decide where to go to grad school, it was my professors who told me what the good schools were. I don't know if you'd have any luck calling a school in the country of your choice and then asking them who *else* they'd recommend in that country. If you got to chatting with a perfesser, they might be friendly enough to help you out.

Hg

 

[harney]

bandraoi--

Please see my response in the thread in the "Geotechnical Engineering--Other Topics" forum on this subject:

http://www.eng-tips.com/viewthread.cfm?qid=102365

Here are some short answers to your questions:

((1))

There are not many programs in the US currently that are doing specific Tunneling Engr research. However, there are some that emphasize certain aspects of tunneling:

Colorado School of Mines (mentioned above) is one of the only programs doing specific tunnel research. They have an integrated cuuriculum with aspects of civil, mining and geological engineering. Specifically, a contact point would be Dr. Levent Ozdemir:

http://www.mines.edu/Academic/mining/faculty/Ozdemir/ozdemir.htm

University of Colorado has a good program in rock mechanics:

http://bechtel.colorado.edu/web/grad/geotech/index.html

The University of Minnesota has a great mining engineering and rock mechanics program:

http://www.ce.umn.edu/graduate/geome/

Dr. Ray Sterling, at Lousiana Tech, heads the Trenchless Technology Center there:

http://www.coes.latech.edu/ttc/

These should get you started at least. CONTACT some of these people/institutions. Most professors are happy to talk with a prospective student!


((2)) Check the links above. Also, check the USUCGER website, as per my other response:

http://www.usucger.org/members.htm

This lists pretty much all the universities with geotechnical programs in the US--so it's more or less comprehensive.

((3)) If you have a specific interest (sounds like tunnels are your thing to me) look for a program that has a curriculum focusing on that area. Specifically, think about where you may want to be located following your degree: in a hard rock area? or soft ground? This makes a huge difference in the type of tunneling performed. In Seattle, we do quite a bit of this type of work, but 95% (or more) is soft ground--almost no hard rock. If you're interested in a hard rock region, make sure you are able to have some courses in rock mechanics and rock engineering--which are NOT offered at every US program on Geotech.

((4)) My opinion: you should EXPECT to pay $0, if you're a good student. When you talk with prospective institutions, ask about teaching and research assistantships, fellowships and scholarships. As a native English speaker, you've already got a leg up in terms of being awarded a teaching assistantship. If you have a reasonably good record you should not have trouble securing some type of assistance at some institution. Whether the assistance matches with your top pick(s) for institution is another (tricky) matter...

 

[HgTX]

Regarding assistantships, it's harder to get them when applying for MS rather than PhD.

I used to advise people to just lie and say they were going for the PhD and then quit after 2 years with the MS, but when it came down to it, I couldn't do that myself (nor did anyone take my advice). I guess I'm ethical after all.

Not to say that MS funding isn't available; there's just more of it for PhD students--sometimes it's just a funding priority, other times the fellowships are specifically designated for PhD candidates. If you're a good enough student you can get funding as a master's student anyway. I was told in pretty definite terms by five different schools that as a master's candidate and an out-of-state student there was no way I could get funding, and in the end four of those schools offered me not only assistantships but fellowships.

Hg

 

[bandraoi]

Thanks so much for all the help guys!

 

[mabn]

If Canada is of interest to you, the University of Alberta has a world-renowned geo-technical engineering research department... not as hot on the structural side though.

Also, there is currently a huge tunneling project going on right on campus. The city's underground transit train ends on campus, and they are in the process of extending it beyond.

 

[Tunalover]

It's tough to get an unbiased answer to your question. US Colleges and universities are rated by the academic community, not the student or alumni community. Since the academics do their ratings based almost entirely on the quality of research, faculty, and facilities, a "good" school by these ratings may not provide the best education for the student. Where I went to school in my last two years it was a "sink or swim" environment where the professors (with a few notable exceptions) were mostly annoyed at having to teach classes. I did my first two years of college at a community college. In retrospect, I received my best education at that community college where the faculty are rewarded for being good educators. Now this was 20yrs ago. Maybe schools have evolved since then to emphasize education.

Perhaps you could get ahold of a master list of National Science Foundation (US) grants and do a key word search on "tunneling" to see what institution has the most research grants on the subject.

Tunalover



Tunalover

 

[bandraoi]

Right so, lads I've decided on the Structural Option and it's between Imperial College London and Cornell University, New York.

Which would you choose and why?

 

[PSE]

bandraoi,

It would depend on where you want to continue your career, in the US or the UK. Once that decision is made, the school choice should be considerably easier. Cornell is a good school, and the Finger Lakes Region of NY is beautiful (speaking as a native of the area), but it is a bit isolated (not as bad as Michigan Tech), which could affect your ability to network.

Regards,

 

[GregLocock]

and IC has the highest suicide rate in the UK (urban legend).

Actually, since you would have to be borderline insane to do engineering in the UK, maybe that figures.



Cheers

Greg Locock

Please see FAQ731-376 for tips on how to make the best use of Eng-Tips.

 

[SacreBleu]

Greg-
What is the problem with engineering in the UK? What country are you in, and what is the advantage there?
<curious>

 

[GregLocock]

Well, this may sound like a rant, but I believe there is a kernel of truth:

The Establishment (politicians, academia, government) in the UK despises most forms of engineering, and manufacturing.

There is virtually no effective recognition of the profession, as a profession.

The Institutes are in bed with the employers and the academics, and are far more concerned with their nice head offices and libraries in London (which are very nice) where, incidentally, hardly any engineers work, than in improving the lot of their members.

Consequently:

I now live and work in Australia. Engineering in Australia is a respected profession, reasonably well paid, and manufacturing industry is recognised as a net contributor to the social and economic success of the country.


Cheers

Greg Locock

Please see FAQ731-376 for tips on how to make the best use of Eng-Tips.

 

[SacreBleu]

Greg,
I am not sure (not having any conversations with anyone from the UK) if you are exaggerating your claims.
However, I live in the USA, and I am actually considering emigrating to Australia. I am a licensed structural engineer, with a lot of residential and commercial building experience.
Is Australia having an over-supply of my specialty?

 

[GregLocock]

You are coming in on the back of a building boom, (the Australian economy is small, and hence more cyclic that you are used to), have a look at

http://www.dimia.gov.au/skills/index.htm

and look at the skill matching database there -
Here's the first 20 hits for engineers, so I'd say the answer is yes.

ASCO code
Nominated Occupation
Added Date
Action
212411 CIVIL ENGINEER 2005-04-28 View
122111 ENGINEERING MANAGER 2005-04-27 View
431111 GENERAL ELECTRICIAN 2005-04-27 View
212917 CHEMICAL ENGINEER 2005-04-27 View
212811 CIVIL ENGINEERING TECHNOLOGIST 2005-04-27 View
212917 CHEMICAL ENGINEER 2005-04-27 View
212411 CIVIL ENGINEER 2005-04-27 View
223119 SYSTEMS PROGRAMMER 2005-04-27 View
212979 BUILDING AND ENGINEERING PROFESSIONALS NEC 2005-04-27 View
411213 METAL MACHINIST (FIRST CLASS) 2005-04-27 View
431411 GENERAL ELECTRONIC INSTRUMENT TRADESPERSON 2005-04-27 View
212979 BUILDING AND ENGINEERING PROFESSIONALS NEC 2005-04-27 View
212979 BUILDING AND ENGINEERING PROFESSIONALS NEC 2005-04-27 View
412111 GENERAL FABRICATION ENGINEERING TRADESPERSON 2005-04-27 View
412111 GENERAL FABRICATION ENGINEERING TRADESPERSON 2005-04-27 View
223111 SYSTEMS MANAGER 2005-04-27 View
223111 SYSTEMS MANAGER 2005-04-27 View
411411 AIRCRAFT MAINTENANCE ENGINEER (MECHANICAL) 2005-04-26 View
223179 COMPUTING PROFESSIONALS NEC 2005-04-26 View
491111 GRAPHIC PRE-PRESS TRADESPERSON 2005-04-26 View


Displaying 1 to 20 of 1849 results





Cheers

Greg Locock

Please see FAQ731-376 for tips on how to make the best use of Eng-Tips.

 

[SacreBleu]

Thanks Greg-
It looks like Australia doesn't want me, because I am over 45 years old. Was just a thought.