Someone tried to hijack my LJ...password has been changed.
As a follow up to my previous post. After graduating from college, I still don't have a real job; I haven't searched, it's not my intent to have a real job yet. Instead, I plan to spend another 4, 5, or 6 more years in school to pursue a Ph.D or two in mechanical engineering. There are several reasons for me to choose a career track often not chosen by other students in my position. In fact, three years ago I made a promise to my self not to get involved in graduate school, but as I approached my graduation date, I began to realize how much I didn't know about mechanical engineering. As the curious person that I am, I yearn to learn more about the subject that I learned to love. I want to perform research, and "put my self on the map" of mechanical engineering. I wan't to experience science that some only read about, and turn dreams and ideas into reality.
The toughest decision that I have at the moment is deciding which school I would like to attend. After submitting applications to Virginia Tech (
http://www.me.vt.edu), Georgia Tech (
http://www.me.gatech.edu), and The University of Florida (
http://www.mae.ufl.edu), I'm happy to say that I've been accepted to all of them. At the moment, Georgia Tech and The University of Florida, are the two schools that I'm strongly considering. Everyone that I've talked to has suggested Georgia Tech, who could blame them, Georgia Tech is ranked fifth in the nation as an engineering school, while The University of Florida is ranked as 26th according to US News 2005: "America's Best Graduate Schools". But this week, I received an email that is currently swaying me toward what I believe is a pivotal decision in my life. A professor that is deeply involved in research gave me a rather substantial offer to attend University of Florida. The stipend I may receive will involved research as well as a teaching assistant position, in exchange I will receive enough cash to pay for all the essentials in college. Still, some have asked how will my future prospects affected by graduating from a number 26th ranked engineering school whereas graduating from a number 5th ranked engineering school. The way I see it, those are just numbers. A good comparison of this "number ranking phenomenon" would be like car shopping. You can read all about a certain class of cars in a publication, and compare the performance numbers (horsepower, torque, 0-60MPH times, etc). But when the time comes to actually buy the car, it all comes down to the actual test drive. And often, individuals will chose a car that didn't perform all that well on paper, but was right for them; thats the type of car...err school that I'm looking for. The school that I've graduated from looked horrible on paper. I've sometimes thought about whether or not I could get a job after graduating. In the end, it was the student, me, that made the difference. I took every opportunity to set my self apart from the rest of the students, and gave 110% effort to my college career. And, now I wonder if I would have gotten from scoring a 990 on my SAT (no joke) to being accepted to some of the top engineering schools in the nation if it wasn't for the experience I had at Florida Atlantic University.
Before making my final decision, I will pay a visit to Georgia Tech, and give them a test drive.
But for now, Go Gators
..I mean Owls (Florida Atlantic University,
http://www.me.fau.edu , my Al La Mater)
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