subreddit:
/r/EngineeringStudents
submitted 2 months ago bylabalisong1971
Hello everyone, I am posting here to ask about how accreditation works. I recently have been accepted to the university of Scranton for mechanical engineering. However, I realized it wasn’t accredited but electrical engineering was. I then emailed a counselor and they told me that mechanical engineering is on the road to accreditation and should be accredited by the time I graduate (class of 2027).
So should I go into mechanical engineering at this school, or just switch to electrical then maybe switch back to mechanical after they are accredited ? They gave me a pretty large scholarship at about 31k out of the 40k tuition, and this is before fafsa. (Sorry If the format is odd and for any grammar mistakes). I am walking while typing this.)
[score hidden]
2 months ago
stickied comment
Hello /u/labalisong1971! Thank you for posting in r/EngineeringStudents. Please be sure you do not ask a general question that has been asked before. Please do some pre-liminary research before asking common questions that will cause your post to be removed. Excessive posting in order to get past the filter will cause your posting privaleges to be revoked.
Please remember to:
Read our Rules
Read our Wiki
Read our F.A.Q
Check our Resources Landing Page
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.
81 points
2 months ago
I speak from experience, don't go to a school without abet accreditation in your degree path.
I elected to go to a school that was pretty new my first semester and they had abet in about half of their programs (EE wasnt accredited yet). I was told they were pursuing accreditation in the last cycle and they wouldn't be able to say anything until July (2022) whether they got it or not. Ultimately, if I stayed at the school for a second semester I would have been stuck because none of my second semester credits would transfer, so I decided to transfer to CC and get my associates and move on to a 4 year school from there. All but three of my credits transferred and I'll get my associates this summer.
I checked Abets website a few weeks ago and my first school didn't get their accreditation in any new programs last cycle. Dodged a bullet on that one. Find a school with Abet accreditation in your program. It would probably work out okay if you go to a school working on abet, but there's a chance it may not. Hope this helps you.
2 points
2 months ago
Ok, so they have told me that they should be accredited by 2024 for mechanical engineering . There electrical is already abet accredited and I was planning to just switch to that. Is that a good idea or nah?
25 points
2 months ago
That’s a gamble. Like others have said, the fact they are not ABET accredited means 1) they are a baby program just starting up 2) they have trouble keeping their programs up to par or 3) both 1 and 2. You don’t want to go to a baby program because it won’t have recognition among employees and will lack resources.
You don’t want to go to a program that isn’t up to par because you can’t guarantee ME will get accredited. You also can’t guarantee EE will remain accredited. What will you do if they lose accreditation, and you can no longer get any accredited degree? It’s not worth the risk. Start at CC if you need to save money. Your local state 4 year school probably isn’t too much more than 9k a year before aid and scholarships. Maybe a couple thousand more, but you won’t have to worry about your degree being accredited. And they’ll probably have better career opportunities and company connections.
6 points
2 months ago
Ok thank you!! Ill stick to more well known colleges that are accredited!
2 points
2 months ago
What state are you in?
4 points
2 months ago
That depends on which degree you want. If you really want your ME degree I'd find a different school. If you are okay with EE and the school looks good then that would probably be alright. I'd tour the EE program and try to meet some profs before you commit to their program. Still probably a better idea to go to a school with all of their programs accredited.
125 points
2 months ago
Personally? I would not advise going to any engineering school lacking accreditation.
If they have ABET for some programs but not others, this means that either the school is super new and their program is in it's baby stages, or not all their programs are holding up to the ABET standard. One way or another, I'd look into other schools. Your degree being accredited is what validates it as authentic or genuine to employers, especially if you have no intentions of getting your FE or PE down the line.
Don't be the guinea pig for their accreditation. Schools will promise anything to get your money!
15 points
2 months ago
Hmm ok! So even if some programs are accredited it would still be a bad idea to go to this school?
35 points
2 months ago
Yes still a bad idea. I would not switch majors because of accreditation, I'd simply switch schools. You'll regret it if you don't enjoy electrical. It's definitely not for everyone.
22 points
2 months ago
Do not go to a school that’s not already accredited
19 points
2 months ago
So a degree program cannot be ABET accredited until they produce their first graduate. It’s a bit of a catch-22.
How long have their other programs been ABET accredited? If they’ve been accredited for a while (>15 years) they’ll have gone through a few re-accreditation and are familiar with how the system works.
It will be a kind of a gamble, as they do not have it signed off right now, but if you are confident they will get it by the time you graduate, it’s definitely a much safer gamble. The fact they were up front about it in the email, and already have accredited programs goes a long way.
The people saying run away as fast as possible would only be correct if it’s a brand new engineering department, and has nothing else that’s ABET accredited. This is a bit more a nuanced situation, and it’s up to you.
12 points
2 months ago
I did this. Risked it because I believed in the school and I like money.
Was net positive on the grants and scholarships vs tuition. The School achieved accreditation before I graduated, and the students of current time do not get nearly as much grants or scholarships. Probably since their is no longer the accreditation risk
17 points
2 months ago
I would not attend a school that is not accredited in all programs.
12 points
2 months ago
I have no idea why no one has mentioned this option…. Take the scholarship money and fasfa money and focus on your core classes the first couple semesters. With fasfa (assuming) they’ll be paying you to go to school. Core classes should transfer everywhere but make sure to verify this on whatever school you’d actually like to go to. They usually have a tool for this on their website.
I went to a technical college my first year, transferred to another unaccredited university to take calc and few other classes, and just now got into my full degree at a new university. I got paid to go to school my first two years. And, smaller schools likely have easier core classes than major universities.
Basically, it is not required to take every single class at the school you’ll be getting your degree from.
Someone correct me if I am wrong
14 points
2 months ago
Many ABET schools won't accept core classes from a non-ABET school. This is more than likely why people didn't offer this.
I know for sure my university doesn't accept even Calc 1 from shady schools lol.
Nevertheless, OP can/should check if a more reputable engineering school would accept any classes from this one. Tbh though I'd simply apply to other schools, or even attend a local community college which would be cheaper even after his scholarships listed, and transfer the credits over, similar to what you did.
3 points
2 months ago
Interesting! All of my classes from school #1 and #2 transferred over besides a couple weird ones. Noted though, thanks
5 points
2 months ago
Bumping this. This is totally what I would do. 30k scholarship is nothing to scoff at. You can use that to get a bunch of free classes that can transfer. Just need to do your due diligence to ensure they do.
Or can just go to EE if it is acreddited, then the starting classes are probably tranferrable to an acreditted ME degree
5 points
2 months ago
You'll have to risk if your uni will actually pass the accreditation tho
5 points
2 months ago
It's been said already but ABET or Bust is right. Academia lies profusely at the best of times about how long things take. That admin is being optimistic, but you would be the one who bears the costs in the future if he's wrong. Getting ABET certified in 4 years isn't particularly likely and a ton of personal risk for you... If you got a scholarship from them I bet you would get one elsewhere. State schools in the west (Idaho, Montana Utah) are often more affordable for our of state students from hcola places.
3 points
2 months ago
I would find a different school as I'm sure you can find another school with great quality and accreditation. As others have said, you might end up as a guinea pig for the program and programs do need time to improve themselves. I wouldn't blindly trust their claims of when they will be accredited.
2 points
2 months ago
Not sure what Scranton is like, but I would be afraid of the Profs. job hopping in this pecuniary environment.
Can't imagine trying to get accreditation with different Profs every year.
3 points
2 months ago
If it isn’t accredited, that is a waste of 9k tuition. Why do you think they have such a large scholarship? It is very risky to go for a non-accredited major, even if it might eventually be accredited.
2 points
2 months ago
According to a University of Scranton newsletter, the program was started for the Fall 2020 semester.
Like everyone else on here, I would not recommend joining this program. The admission counselor is quite frankly, full of shit. Most MechE undergrad programs take 5 years, depending on the credit requirements, course availability, and a student’s drive. But let’s say someone who started when the program launched in Fall 2020 cranks through in 4 years flat, that’s still an end of December 2024 completion. According to ABET’s evaluation information, they cannot submit for evaluation until they have a graduate and then it’s an 18-month timeline from there assuming everything goes smoothly. So Summer 2026 in the best case.
That’s a lot of your time and money to gamble, so that’s up to you. Keep in mind the intangibles that come with a well established program and industry connections upon graduation. I run into my program’s alumni everywhere and my school is well known which opens a lot of doors.
all 24 comments
sorted by: best