Information for 3-2 2021 PDF

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Spring 2021 version

Information for 3/2 Engineering Students This document is provided to help with advising and planning at Kalamazoo College for those students interested in the 3/2 Engineering program and intending to transfer to an engineering school at the end of their junior or beginning of their senior year. Several cautions apply to this planning process and associated documents:  We cannot predict ahead of time what other schools will do or how they might change their policies. We will provide information based on recent experience, and give you advice on what is likely to be possible, but we cannot guarantee your transfer into any particular program, or exactly how your coursework at Kalamazoo will transfer.  The Federal Educational Rights Policy Act (FERPA) restricts actions we might make on your behalf. We cannot file paperwork for you at other schools, act independently to provide transcripts, and in many cases are limited in the type of information we can provide about your academic performance. This means that you will need to accept individual responsibility for the details of the transfer process, and provide application materials and transcripts as dictated by schedule deadlines at other schools. It has been pointed out that the planning and transfer process under the 3/2 program has a lot in common with the project management skills practiced by many engineers. These often have the following features:  Uncertainty and multiple options. If the right way to do it is obvious, and there is no uncertainty, why use expensive professional engineers, when technicians or craftspeople can handle it?  Need to communicate across functional roles and communities of practice. Management, legal, finance, contractors, vendors who provide materials or services, government officials – engineers managing a project may need to communicate with all of them. In your case a first challenge will be learning how the semester hour system works and the conversion (1 K unit = 3.33 semester hours; 1.2 K units = 4 semester hours). Under the 3/2 program it is highly likely that you will finish college on semesters.

Information for 3/2 Engineering Students

Kalamazoo College

 Need for management of a schedule and accurate record-keeping.  Need to prioritize information and identify the details that are mission-critical, as opposed to the details that are less important. What do engineers actually do? How do I know if I really want to do that? What kind of engineering should I study? A good general reference is: https://www.livescience.com/47499-what-is-engineering.html Engineering programs require very good skills in basic science, especially physics, and basic math, including differential equations. If you are uncomfortable with this, or the management challenges listed earlier, and like having other people manage details and information for you, then perhaps engineering is not the right choice for you. Another unusual aspect of engineering is that academic degrees and qualifications are “certified” or accredited differently than other academic degrees. There are similarities to the world of clinical medicine and the AMA, which controls all aspects of who practices medicine in the US. In the case of engineering, most of the 50 states use the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) to accredit academic programs and the National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveyors (NCEES) to give licensure exams for professional engineers (usually put PE after their name) and certain other ratings. NCEES generally enforces ABET standards for new engineers, so you can’t sit for the test unless you have a rated degree or many years (often 20) of experience. When engineers mess up, people die – just like medical practice, except the means of death would usually be different! That is why all 50 states (and Canada, the UK, etc.) license engineers and require certification for certain kinds of work. The Kalamazoo 3/2 requires that you enter an ABET accredited engineering program, so you are assured of a quality education that keeps your various options open. Professional certification is very important for some fields (Civil and Environmental for instance) and not important for others, such as Computer Engineering. For electrical and mechanical engineering, it depends on the type of work and potential employers.

Academic Program Planning

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Information for 3/2 Engineering Students

Kalamazoo College

These are just general guidelines, intended to cover common situations and provide links to useful information. Details of your particular situation may need to be worked out with your academic advisor. First year planning: Hopefully this is in good order by the time you are reading this. Details are included in various first-year planning documents, available online. The first priority is the Calculus sequence – Calc 1,2,3 and then Physics 150 and 152. The next priority is Chem 110 except for possible Chemical Engineers, who should also make that first priority and then also take Chem 120. Next level would be Computer Science 105 or 108, and then CS 110. Good choices for nonscience courses – Econ 101 (Intro Econ) or Pols 105 (U. S. Politics) or Pols 106 (Comparative Politics). The key courses are given in the sequence below:

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Information for 3/2 Engineering Students

Kalamazoo College

Two-Year Intro Course Sequence for Physics and 3/2 Engineering* Course prerequisites are shown with arrows Yellow = Required Math Sequence Math 112 First Year Fall

Blue = Required Physics Sequence

Calculus I**

Chem 110 and a CS course are recommended

Math 113

Phys 150

Calculus II

Intro Physics I

Math 214

Phys 152

Calculus III

Intro Physics II

First Year Winter

First Year Spring

Math 240

Phys 220

Linear Algebra

Special Relativity & Intro to Quantum

Sophomore Fall

Sophomore Winter

Sophomore Spring

*See additional

Phys 370

Math 280

Electronics & Electro-

Differential Equations

magnetism

Choose 1 or 2 of the following: Phys 340, 360, 380

information for 3/2 engineering course recommendation and exceptions for chemical

engineering. **The Math 110/111 sequence dictates some further adjustment in the overall sequence.

Second year planning: First priority is Physics 220, Math 240 (Linear Algebra), and then Math 280 (Differential Equations). Next priority is anything missed from the first-year list above. Choices within the Physics Dept. are listed below. This can be found at https://reason.kzoo.edu/physics/Program_links/ 4

Information for 3/2 Engineering Students

Kalamazoo College

Students interested in Chemical Engineering should continue through Organic Chem 1 and 2, and then Analytic Chem. Physics 220 is a good idea for these students, but is optional.

Mid-Second Year and Third Year Planning: A suggested course sequence with notes is available at https://reason.kzoo.edu/physics/Program_links/32sequences/ Notice that there are a number of elective slots that must be used according to the student’s particular situation. You must take a sophomore seminar, meet K language requirements, and might be interested in one-term study abroad, as shown on the schedule. There are also a few one-term study abroad opportunities available fall term. Although many 3/2 students take Physics 370 in winter of their second year, postponement of that course until the third year is relatively common. If you are not ready to take Math 280 concurrently, then the Physics 370 must be postponed. Other options are available. Students not taking Physics 370 as a sophomore might consider Physics 215 – Complex Systems, also available winter term. Most sophomores will take one or two physics courses in the spring, chosen from Phys 340 (Dynamics), Phys 360 (Thermal and Statistical Physics) and 380, a course that continues from Phys. 370. Third year planning: You should review the minimum course requirements for program participation and make sure all of these have been met or will be met, including 5 PE courses and the College Language Requirement. Minimum course requirements at K: For all 3/2 students: Math through Calc 3, Linear Algebra and Differential Equations (Math 214, 240 and 280) Introductory Physics I and II (Physics 150 and 152) Intro Chemistry I (Chem 110) Intro to Programming (Comp 110) For Physics 3/2 students (for all branches of Engg except Chemical and Envioronmental Engg): Added to the list above – 3 courses in Physics – 5

Information for 3/2 Engineering Students

Kalamazoo College

Phys 220, Quantum and Relativity, Phys 370, Electronics and Electromagnetism and one additional course, often Phys 380, which continues from 370. For Chem 3/2 students (for Chemical Engg and sometimes Environmental and Biomedical Engg.): Added to the list above – Intro Chem II (Chem 120) and Organic Chem I and II (Chem 210 and 220) and Analytic Chemistry (Chem 240). Physical Chem 1 (Chem 310) is strongly recommended. One Biology class – either Bio 112 (Evolution/Genetics) or 123 (Phys./Ecology) These are minimum requirements – essentially 5 courses in your major (Physics or Chem.) plus courses to meet various ABET requirements. Most 3/2 students will take 6 courses in their major, and additional coursework in math and computer science, as well as Econ 101 and Pols 105 or 106. Students interested in electrical engineering should take Comp 210 (Data Structures) and Comp 230 (Computer Organization). All students should consider Math 310 (Complex and Vector Variables). Planning your third year at K is optimized if you can narrow down to a particular area of engineering (Mechanical and Electrical are the most popular choices) and also begin to identify which engineering schools you might transfer to. Any engineering program that is ABET accredited (must be engineering, not technology) is acceptable for transfer. The most common choices for our students have been the Univ. of Michigan (UM), Michigan Tech (MTU), Washington Univ. St. Louis (WUSL) and Western Michigan (WMU). Each of these programs offer a range of ABET accredited engineering curricula, and have various requirements, advantages and disadvantages. The four schools are actually quite different from each other, but together offer a very wide range of opportunities in engineering. The ABET website offers a search routine for identifying options: http://main.abet.org/aps/Accreditedprogramsearch.aspx Each of the four schools varies in how the transfer application process works, and each has online resources available.

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Information for 3/2 Engineering Students

Kalamazoo College

Univ. of Michigan has a list of ABET accredited programs up: http://www.engin.umich.edu/college/academics/bulletin/ug-ed/degrees and maintains a special transfer office, just for engineering: http://www.engin.umich.edu/college/admissions/undergrad/transfer UM expects you to use that office and NOT the main Univ. transfer office. Washington Univ. St. Louis is the largest recipient of 3/2 transfer students in the MidWest, perhaps in the whole US. Since these transfers represent about 1/3rd of their total engineering students, the process is streamlined with special application materials. As with UM, do NOT use the standard Univ. transfer office and forms. http://engineering.wustl.edu/prospective-students/dualdegree/Pages/default.aspx Notice that WUSL has a recommended list of courses that varies, depending on the type of engineering program. Notice that Chemical Engineering requires two courses in Biology (our 112 and 246) and two courses in Organic Chem, while Biomedical Engineering requires several courses in biology, but doesn’t require Organic. The required sequence for Environmental Engg is Biology 112, 123, and 246, with 224 strongly recommended. Notice that WUSL requires two courses in the humanities and at least one in the social sciences. Michigan Tech uses one transfer office, and has an admissions officer, Mark Provoast, who has been very helpful to our students who transfer there. MTU accepts a number of successful community college students (usually after 2 to 3 years) and accepts 3/2 students in the same way. http://www.mtu.edu/admissions/apply/transfer/

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Information for 3/2 Engineering Students

Kalamazoo College

WMU also accepts many community college transfer students and has an office eager to assist you with the process: http://wmich.edu/admissions/transfer It is possible to enroll at courses at WMU (one/term) while still a K student under inter-institutional registration, and students interested in eventually transferring there should discuss that option with their advisor. It is also possible to transfer WMU engineering courses elsewhere, although that adds another level of complexity. WMU’s course offerings are available to the public: http://www.wmich.edu/classlookup/ To understand the information listed you will need: http://wmich.edu/engineer/academics In deciding on which engineering schools might be of interest, you will need to consider GPA requirements: Washington U. St. Louis – 3.25 overall and in required math and science courses. The financial aid there (usually quite generous) will be higher if your GPA is 3.5 or above and higher if you agree to consider also consider receiving a master’s degree after completion of your bachelor’s degree. U Michigan Engineering – varies by program, but at least 3.0. Electrical, computer, chemical and biomedical are highest at about 3.5. Mechanical Civil and Environmental are in the 3.2 to 3.3 range. UM engineering generally does not accept AP credit in physics or math if you received a 4, although there are some exceptions. Detailed information is available online. UM Engg expects some evidence that you have experienced engineering (internships or some type of job experience) and are still highly interested. Simply saying “I like engineering and want to go to UM probably won’t lead to a successful admission, even if your grades are in the right range.” Michigan Tech: 2.75 overall

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Information for 3/2 Engineering Students

Kalamazoo College

Western Michigan – no separate requirement for Engineering, so the university standard of 2.0 applies. The Engineering faculty would prefer a requirement in the 2.5-2.75 range, but the University requires they accept transfer students down to 2.0. Although the math and physics curricula for most engineering programs (except Chemical, Environmental and Bio) are very similar, the school you pick does influence some of your other course choices: University of Michigan writing requirements (two courses for many students) are not satisfied by our first year seminar courses. You need to also take a course from the Reading the World options – all numbered English 15X. You will also need to take Math 310 – Complex and Vector Variables. WMU has an extensive system of general education requirements for all students, including engineering: http://wmich.edu/engineer/advising/generaled http://catalog.wmich.edu/content.php?catoid=20&navoid=793 For WMU, students are advantaged by taking a wide range of non-science courses, usually only one from each department. Although WMU requires at least two gen ed courses at the 300+ level, science courses count as gen ed in their engineering program, so physics courses usually meet this requirement. WUSL requires 2 courses in humanities and 1 in social science, with the humanities courses including at least one higher-level course, as in not 100 level. They have generally been willing to include coursework from study abroad in meeting these requirements. Selection of a Sophomore Seminar in the Humanities is wise. Econ 101, which we recommend for other reasons, is usually the social science course. The best general advice for non-science course selection is to meet K requirements first (Sophomore seminar, Foreign Language) and then start with basic, easily identified introductory courses. Econ 101 and Political Science 105 and 106 are excellent choices. Philosophy 105 and 107 are also good choices, especially if you need to meet a critical thinking requirement (WMU). At K, history is in the humanities division, whereas it 9

Information for 3/2 Engineering Students

Kalamazoo College

might be considered social science at some schools. In general, the more unusual and innovative the course is, the more trouble it might present in transferring. Especially for unusual courses, you should save the syllabus and any easily preserved materials, such as a final exam or final paper you write. In general, it is a good idea to save textbooks, lab reports, papers and syllabi for your courses. Especially if you attempt to transfer to some school not used to our students, you will encounter questions about course transfer. For those interested in environmental engineering, it should be pointed out that at most schools eng engg is connected with either Civil Engg (such as at WMU) or Chemical Engg (WUSL, UM). To sit for the PE exams (required to work in Env Engg in most settings) you need an ABET accredited degree, but it does not need to be separately accredited as environmental engineering. Civil and Chemical Engg are to most common choices within the field. If you become aware of any changes in the information provided above, please report it to Prof. Askew, the Program Director for 3/2 Engineering.

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