online Engineering Degree

Discussion in 'General Distance Learning Discussions' started by evoamac, Oct 9, 2012.

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  1. evoamac

    evoamac New Member

    I wanted to get an online BS degree in Engineering. computer engineering or elec engineering. only excelsior has such major but they are very expensive consider the fact I'm a working adult with 2 kids and a full time student wife. I'm planning to have most of the credit by CLEP or DSST. is there any other online school that has such major and will accept a good amount test as credit. thanks very much.
     
  2. AV8R

    AV8R Active Member

    Compared to most schools Excelsior is very cheap. But the engineering programs offered by Excelsior are really engineering technology degrees...not true engineering.

    The University of North Dakota is the only university in the US that offers undergrad engineering degrees that I know of but it is very, very expensive.
     
  3. pfelectronicstech

    pfelectronicstech New Member

    Check out Thomas Edison state college, they have all kinds of Engineering degrees online. They 2 and 4 year degrees.
     
  4. RKanarek

    RKanarek Member

    Dear evoamac,

    I do not know whether the inaccuracies in your post are due to faulty research or faulty exposition, but you did something wrong somewhere.

    As far as I know -- and feel free to correct me if I’m wrong -- there are no distance BSEE’s available from US institutions. This includes Excelsior College, which offers no engineering degrees whatsoever. There is one mostly distance BSEE available from the University of North Dakota (Online & Distance Education), however it requires trips to North Dakota for lab exercises. It is also obscenely expensive (though the price varies depending upon where one lives) and it completely ignores the needs of a distance or adult learner. SUNY (State University of NY) was attempting to develop a completely distance, equally distance-learner-unfriendly offering of its own, however all mention of it seems to have disappeared. California National University (CNU - California National University) sub-optimally accreditation BSEE seems to have gone, too.

    In your post, you are clearly confusing BSEE and other ENGINEERING degrees with BSEET and other engineering TECHNOLOGY degrees. This is akin to confusing a DVM degree with a Butchery Training certificate: sure, they both may operate on cows, but not in the same way!

    You are also failing to observe that Excelsior is one of the USA’s three “Assessment Colleges.” This means that you can obtain a degree from Excelsior college without ever actually taking a class from them: you can transfer in all the credits a degree requires. It is, therefore, rather unfair to criticize Excelsior as being expensive when, in fact, you actually need to purchase very little from them.

    Revision:
    The three Assessment Colleges:
    Charter Oak State College (CT): Charter Oak State College - Finish your Degree Online (Offers a woolly BSGS degree with an "Engineering Studies" concentration).
    Excelsior College (NY): Excelsior College - excelsior.edu
    Thomas Edison State College (NJ): College Education for Adults at Thomas Edison State College

    To the extent that you want an engineering degree, your first choice should be your local B&M college. Failing that, you may or may not want to consider a foreign institution or a different degree.

    Good luck!

    Kindest regards,
    Richard Kanarek
     
  5. jaer57

    jaer57 New Member

    Evoamac,

    Like the previous posters have said, engineering undergraduate degrees are almost non-existent. Also, there is a difference between engineering degrees and engineering technology degrees. I suggest researching more into the differences and carefully consider your options. One other big question is where you are located. In the USA, ABET is the engineering accreditation authority, and while you can get engineering degrees that are not accredited by ABET, you may find some resistance out there in hiring and engineering circles (full disclosure: my BS is not ABET accredited, and I work as an engineer). It would also be much more difficult to get an engineering license, if you choose a path that requires it.

    Anyways, you should read about the differences starting here:

    ABET - Engineering vs. Engineering Technology

    And here's the very few 100% online ABET accredited BS programs out there:

    ABET - Online Programs

    You'll note that none of them are pure engineering. So if you truly want an engineering degree, you should come to terms with the fact that you will not be able to do it 100% online, and will probably have to take night and/or weekend classes at a local university, or go to a school like UND and make trips to attend labs in person. In any case, you should carefully weigh your options and decide where your passions lie. Good luck!
     
  6. -kevin-

    -kevin- Resident Redneck

    SUNY Stony Brook has the last two years available online:

    Stony Brook University - Electrical Engineering Online

    Not ABET yet but state the following:

    Stony Brook University - Undergraduate Biology

    "Will this degree be accredited by ABET?

    The universal accreditor of engineering programs in the U.S. is ABET -- Accreditation Board of Engineering and Technology. ABET accreditation is only granted after the first class of students graduates from the program. Therefore, this online degree is not yet an ABET accredited program. We plan to seek ABET accreditation upon the graduation of the first class of students. At present time (Fall 2012) we expect the first group of students to graduate in Spring 2014. It may take another year to apply for and obtain ABET accreditation.

    In designing our program we have been in close contact with and are following the strict advice and guidelines of ABET to help ensure eventual accreditation.

    The online courses are taught by the same faculty who offer these courses on campus, so you are assured of a high-quality and challenging engineering education."

    Not inexpensive, but then one pays for convenience.

    California National has a BSE: http://www.cnuas.edu/Online-Programs/Degree-Programs/Engineering/bs-engineering.aspx
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Oct 10, 2012
  7. BobbyJim

    BobbyJim New Member

    -kevin-, that's a good find. It will be even better if/when ABET approved! :hail:
     
  8. Ian Anderson

    Ian Anderson Active Member

    The comments prior to this post are valid.

    However whether you pursue a BS Eng/B.Eng or a BSET depends on what you kind of engineering career you are planning.

    A BSET (or sometimes an AA/AS in ET) degree will get you an engineering job such as making computer assisted drawings, liaison engineering, or test technician. In many companies it is possible to move into more challenging engineering positions without a B. Eng degree.

    Let me suggest another option. Earn a BSQA from CSUDH
    Bachelor of Science Quality Assurance
    There is a severe shortage of quality assurance people.

    Then obtain ASQ certification as a quality engineer, a certified software quality engineer, or (if you have reasonable math skills) a certified reliability engineer.
    Find the Certification That's Right for You

    Finally some employers pay tuition for their employees to advance the skills; my employer paid about 30% of my BS and 100% of my two masters degrees (including tuition, books and parking). If you can land a job with such an employer then you cost issues dissipate to some extent.
     
  9. Jonathan Whatley

    Jonathan Whatley Well-Known Member

    Non-ABET, RA, not "engineering technology," but:

    Bachelor of Applied Science in Applied Engineering. From Bemidji State University. It's designed as an upper-level bachelor's completion program for people with a related associate's, diploma or certificate. Lower-level prerequisite courses may require labs.
     
  10. BobbyJim

    BobbyJim New Member

    This Bemidji State program is similar to the BAS degree I earned. Charter Oak also has the engineering studies emphasis (non-ABET) others have mentioned.

    Charter Oak State College - Engineering Studies

     
  11. -kevin-

    -kevin- Resident Redneck

  12. Jhall

    Jhall New Member

    On Line Engineering

    I received my degree from Purdue University. <a href="http://purdueonlineengineering.com">On line engineering degree</a> I was a non-traditional student and on-line seemed to be the best solution with kids. It was a great experience for me.
     

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