SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING
Engineering or Engineering Technology? Which is right for you?
SELECTING YOUR CAREER PATH
The
Penn State Behrend School of Engineering is unique in its breadth of degree
programs in engineering and engineering technology. This means that our
degree programs accommodate a broad range of student learning styles and
provide a wide range of career choices. We have a collaborative environment
where faculty and students from different programs frequently work together
on multi-disciplinary design and research projects. Finally, graduate of all
of our programs have excellent career opportunities.
Students ultimately need to select a major field
of study. When selecting your academic major, please consider three
important facets:
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Your interests. What do you like to do and find interesting?
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Your skills. What are you good at doing?
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The career opportunities. Are there interesting job opportunities available to you that match your skills and interests?
If you can find a good intersection of these three facets, it will increase the likelihood of your long-term success. The following information provides a general overview of the distinctions between the engineering and engineering technology degrees at Penn State Behrend.
ENGINEERING PROGRAMS:
Student Profile
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Students tend to consider themselves as problem-solving innovators who like to design and develop new products and systems. Appeals to students who like to deal with the theoretical and abstract issues necessary for planning, designing, and creating new products and systems.
Classroom and Laboratory Experience
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Engineering courses occur throughout the curriculum, but are concentrated later in the curriculum. These courses build on the base of mathematics and science. Design and applications are integrated into lecture and laboratory course work. The curriculum has an emphasis on engineering design and theoretical issues that are applicable to a broad range of problems. The programs culminate in a senior design experience.
Mathematics Component of the Curriculum
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Students typically start in a traditional calculus course, culminating in vector calculus and differential equations. Other courses may include matrices, probability and statistics, and discrete mathematics, depending upon the major selected.
Science Component of the Curriculum
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Requires two or three physics courses (8-10 credits) that are calculus-based and four credits of college chemistry.
Career Paths
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Engineers and engineering technologists often work side-by-side to develop new products, processes, services, and systems. Their career paths can overlap as there are a wide variety of opportunities available in business and industry for both. Please visit our home page to obtain more information on success stories of Behrend alumni and their careers.
Examples of career paths include, but are not limited to: -
Complex technical analyses
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Design and development
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Research
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Test and evaluation
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Manufacturing
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Management and supervision
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Graduate School Opportunities
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Graduate school opportunities include science-based programs such as Master of Science (M.S.) and doctoral (Ph.D.) degree programs. Graduates also pursue professional graduate program opportunities such as Master's of Engineering and Master's of Business Administration (MBA) programs.
Professional Registration
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Graduates are eligible for registration in all states. The process typically requires successful completion of the Fundamentals of Engineering and the Professional Engineers examination. A certain number of years of professional experience are required before taking the Professional Engineers exam.
ENGINEERING TECHNOLOGY PROGRAMS:
Student Profile
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Students tend to consider themselves as problem-solvers and implementers who would like to be involved in product design and the application of new technologies. appeals to students who like to deal with the practical issues necessary for implementing, producing, and realizing new products and systems.
Classroom and Laboratory Experience
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Engineering technology courses occur in every semester of the program with a higher concentration of technical courses in the first two years than in an engineering program. There is an intensive laboratory and application focus, with moderate emphasis on theory and design process. The design focus is on complex problems utilizing state-of-the-art technologies and solution methods. The programs culminate in a research, senior design, or industrial project experience.
Mathematics Component of the Curriculum
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Students typically start in algebra- and trigonometry-based technical mathematics. The math sequence takes students through intermediate calculus and differential equations with an emphasis on engineering technology applications.
Science Component of the Curriculum
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Requires one or two physics courses (4-8 credits) that are algebra- and trigonometry-based and four credits of college chemistry.
Career Paths
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Engineers and engineering technologists often work side-by-side to develop new products, processes, services, and systems. Their career paths can overlap as there are a wide variety of opportunities available in business and industry for both. Please visit our home page to obtain more information on success stories of Behrend alumni and their careers.
Examples of career paths include, but are not limited to: -
Design and development
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Manufacturing
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Test and evaluation
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Field service engineering
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Technical sales
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Management and supervision
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Graduate School Opportunities
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Graduate school opportunities include professional graduate program opportunities such as Master's of Engineering and Master's of Business Administration (MBA) programs. Science-based programs, such as Master of Science (M.S.) and doctoral (Ph.D.) degree, are possible, but students may need to take additional courses depending on the graduate school and program they anticipate entering.
Professional Registration
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Graduates are eligible for registration in many states, including Pennsylvania. The process typically requires successful completion of the Fundamentals of Engineering and the Professional Engineers examination. A certain number of years of professional experience are required before taking the Professional Engineers exam.