Does anyone have any experience with CAD courses?? My friend's son is graduating homeschool/high school this semester and plans on taking 2 years of study for pre-engineering at the local community college (but not as part of an articulation). The university he wants to transfer to-Western IL University- has told them he needs a CAD course as a prereq to the engineering program, but our local community college doesn't offer one. The university advisor seemed to indicate that most people took this in high school, and he didn't really know where to send him. This program at Western is brand new, so I think that explains some of the confusion. Any pointers or tips? Is this a class that is typically high school and thus if we find one online it doesn't need to be RA? Or is this a class that a person should take f2f? Is this a subject you could self study? I told her I didn't know, but had access to "people" who do Any suggestions that I can forward would be much appreciated!! THANK!
I hired designers who are CAD proficient - they either acquired their skills in a CC or thru company training upgrading from drafting boards. I have never heard of a high school CAD class but that does not mean they do not exist. I took a CAD course (Unigraphics) through my employer to understand my teams issues. My stepson uses CAD in his business (building design) - he bought Autocad and taught himself. I think many CCs offer CAD courses including by distant learning - here are some in California for example: http://www.cvc.edu/students/courses/?q=drafting°ree=ALL&subject=ALL&segment=ALL&school=ALL&delivery=internet&term=ALL&type=search
Somehow my message got cut short. IWU has a class Engr 207 Intro to CAD (maybe they do not teach it themselves and require it be completed elsewhere). The IWU engineering program looks like a good one to me except it is unusual in that they require students to pass the EIT exam as a prerquisite to graduating. In all my years as an aerospace engineer I have only known of maybe five PEs (however this is important for civil and some other engineering disciplines). "it doesn't need to be RA?" Since it is a required course (Engr 207) it needs to be RA.
>> Ok, I'm in way over my head even asking questions about this because I am totally clueless. Can you expand on your concerns for the program? Sorry, I don't know what EIT is, but I am going to forward this entire thread to my friend's son. Also, just so we are both talking about the same program, you mean WIU not IWU? Right? Can you think of a few things that would be important considerations when choosing a program? I know that is terribly off topic, but since you have expertise in this area I would greatly appreciate it. Also, I will get more details specifically about the prereq CAD requirement. Thanks a million!!
Do he have to have a course, or just show that he is proficient? A lot of students at UF who didn't take it a CC learn it on their own with this book: http://www.amazon.com/Beginning-AutoCAD-2009-Exercise-Workbook/dp/0831133597/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1260510017&sr=1-1-spell .
Sorry – I meant Western Illinois University (WIU). Details of their engineering degree program are listed here: http://www.wiu.edu/academics/majors/flatsheets/EngineeringQC.pdf It seems that WIU only offers upper division courses for the degree but the university articulates with pre-engineering transfer programs at other local colleges listed on this site (second paragraph) Core courses include Engr 207 – Introduction to CAD (Computer Aided Drafting). This would need to be an RA course and most likely is offered at one of the colleges mentioned in the preceding paragraph. Otherwise a DL course might work – personally I think face-to-face instruction is best for this class (which is more akin to a lab than a lecture). In order to approve certain engineering projects (civil, structural, chemical engineering, and others – as regulated by the various states) an engineer needs to be a Professional Engineer or PE. General details are here http://www.nspe.org/Licensure/HowtoGetLicensed/index.html The first step to becoming a PE is to pass the Engineer-in-Training (EIT) or Fundamentals of Engineering Exam (FE) Exam which are conducted by each state. The WIU requirement is All students must pass the Fundamentals of Engineering Examination prior to graduation. This is a comprehensive, professional exam that measures basic engineering knowledge. It is also a step toward registration as a professional engineer (PE). Students seeking admission to the Engineering program must have earned 45 semester hours of credit with an overall grade point average of 2.5, and a grade of “C” or better in any Math, Science, or Engineering courses listed below, or the equivalent transfer courses. As I said before this may be a unique requirement for an engineering degree – I understand most engineers who take the EIT/FE exam do so after graduating with an engineering degree. This is what NSPE says: If you're a graduate from an engineering program approved by your state's licensure board, you can become classified as an "engineer intern" or "engineer-in-training" by successfully completing the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) exam. Achieving EI or EIT status signals that you have mastered the fundamental requirements – and taken the first step – toward full PE licensure. As I mentioned in a previous post the structure and content of the WIU engineering degree looks good. I have no knowledge of WIUs reputation as an engineering school so can't comment there.
With a knowledge of CAD students (and others) can often find part time work with a wide variety of organizations who need to have drawings prepared including machine shops, architects, local govt agencies, patent attorneys, other students and many more. A CAD "jockey" can often post his business cards in local blueprint and drafting supply shops.
Many engineering programs require students to take the FE exam (formerly the EIT exam) as a condition of graduation. This is because they use the FE exam as an assessment exam, to assess the strengths and weaknesses of their graduating students (and by extension, the strengths and weaknesses of the engineering program itself). It is much less common for engineering programs to require that students actually pass the FE exam. However, I know of at least one other program that has this requirement. To earn the BS in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Texas at Tyler, a student must "pass the National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying (NCEES) Fundamentals of Engineering examination". Most graduating students in civil engineering and related disciplines will take the FE exam, whether it is required or not. Most graduating students in other branches of engineering will not.
>> Ian, Thank you so much!! WIU's program is new, really new, like within the past year or two. (which explains why they don't have a reputation!) I'm a third party helper here, so I am trying to ask on behalf of my friend, and this is all very new to her- so forgive elements of miscommunication and confusion! LOL Apparently, our local CC does offer CAD, and it has a cal 1 co-requisite. He is intending on enrolling this fall as long as he can test into calc. Thanks again, and really, if you can think of anything that they might find helpful, feel free to forward it to me. I'll be passing it all on to them. Thanks again!!
