Mechanical Engineering degree being shut down

Edwards Finance > Mechanical Engineering

Q. Just trying to gauge engineer's opinion of a Mechanical Engineering degree pending closure... I am a mechanical engineering student at the University of Reading and it has recently come to our attention, and a complete surprise at that, that the mech eng degree is to be closed down, and the department will no longer accept any more students onto the course. The fact that the standard of the degree is, according to major educational supplements of the British press, in the top 5 in the country appears to have somewhat escaped the Vice Chancellor of the University. The decision for closure was due to have gone to the vote yesterday in a meeting with the University senate, instead the Vice Chancellor has made a surprising U-turn - this could be due to the fact that there was no adequate reason provided by him for the closure, and the fact that the Vice Chancellor could not get enough support for his decision at this stage. A meeting today with the Vice Chancellor, the Pro Vice Chancellor and the Faculty of Science Dean resulted in the excuse that the engineering department was not profitable for the University, and was apparently being subsidised heavily by other courses. All three made it quite clear that closure will occur, although unfortunately not as soon as they'd hoped. As such we have only been granted a "stay of execution" - the degree is to be reviewed again in two months with the aim of closure of the Engineering department. Any support would be very much appreciated by not only the students undertaking the course but also the engineering staff.

A. -Reading, Berkshire rather than Penn, I guess. You are in good company - West Point no longer offers engineering, nor Harvard?? More profitable to shop around in Taiwan or India, and China is quite a steal too. How about financial analysis? - I hear there are job opportunities in that field, presently. -Sure; much better to promote careers in how economies are declining because nobody has a clue any more on how to _make_ things well that are actully useful to society. -It's yer basic "Tragedy of the commons" thingy, innit? It is in the interests of society that there be engineers, it is in no-one's interest to _be_ an engineer. I applaud the University of Reading for their perspicacity on this regard.

Ask Edwards a Finance Question

Other Questions:

berkeley or stanford, or even USC? advice request

I'm trying to decide between berkeley and stanford. and maybe USC, come to think of it. I don't know what I want to do in life but I'm sure computers will be an integral part. at berkeley, I've been accepted as a Chancellor's Scholar to Electri...

I guess the most obvioius question is how much does a biomedical engineer make? Is he treated more as a doctor, or as an engineer? using the sterotype that engineers are paid low while doctors are paid more. Also, how hard would it be to doub...

THE BEVERLY COMPANY, Houston, Texas Mechanical Design and Analysis Services The Beverly Company offers services structured suitably for smaller companies which may not be able to justify internal support for such mechanical services. As a...

Dear everybody; Nowadays, I have worked on the paper about the future of Mechanical Engineering. I need your opinions.-It is my opinion there will always be a need for ME's but to be a ME who is in high demand and gets paid well you will have t...

It looks like no one is interested in engineering salaries and the decline in real earning power over the last 10-15 years. Is there any thing that can be done to boost salaries and make engineering a more respected profession? Is anyone out...

Edwards Finance Menu

Ask a Question
About Us / Me
Contact Me
Privacy Policy

Sitemap

My Favorite Sites

PFBlog
Google Finance
Yahoo Finance
Motley Fool
Nveille's Financial Blog
AllFinanceMatters
Free Money Finance
2MillionBlog
The Terror Finance blog

Q&A Subjects