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Medicine or Chemical Engineering?

That is quite unbelievable to be honest. Your sibling must be terrible. With a 1st, 2:1 or 2:2 in engineering from Oxford and similar unis, there is no way a graduate should be struggling to find work, no matter what the economy is doing.

the job situation is annoying here :frown:

ill admit my sib has a bit of an attitude problem & may have had to resit a few exams in year 2, however my sibling did get some work in some firm in mumbai , although its a 3 month internship :frown:

:

(edited 12 years ago)

Reply 21

Lucas Dee

3

I think paperstars has a point there. They are very different courses leading to very different lifestyles. Don't be put off by some this "my friends has a 2.1 from .... and can't get a job", I graduated this year with a 1st Class MEng but I was offered a graduate job 2 years ago after completing my placement. I have friends that got a 2.1 and 2.2 and they also have god Chem Eng grad jobs. It is important that you pick what you're interested in as it is you that will have to attend the lectures and sit the exams. I can tell you first hand that it is not easy and it will challenge even the most intelligent, as will medicine.

One of the main differences is biology. You must be very good at it to be a Doctor but it's not the main focus of the Chemical Engineer, although you must have an understanding of it in the context of biomaterials and energy and products from biomass etc. Other than that, you must be able to deal with blood, open wounds and the like to be a Doctor. Sounds silly but you'd be surprised at the number of people that turn up without first considering that.

In summary, both are good in my opinion so long as you're good at them. If you don't think analytically and enjoy problem solving then Engineering (of any sort) is not going to be your best choice, if you don't like medicine and all that goes with it (including public service) then you won't make a good Doctor. People tend to enjoy what they are good at and tend not to enjoy what they are not good at, worth keeping in mind when considering peoples opinions (including mine). Good luck

Reply 22

4RealBlud

19

Original post by Lucas Dee

I think paperstars has a point there. They are very different courses leading to very different lifestyles. Don't be put off by some this "my friends has a 2.1 from .... and can't get a job", I graduated this year with a 1st Class MEng but I was offered a graduate job 2 years ago after completing my placement. I have friends that got a 2.1 and 2.2 and they also have god Chem Eng grad jobs. It is important that you pick what you're interested in as it is you that will have to attend the lectures and sit the exams. I can tell you first hand that it is not easy and it will challenge even the most intelligent, as will medicine.

One of the main differences is biology. You must be very good at it to be a Doctor but it's not the main focus of the Chemical Engineer, although you must have an understanding of it in the context of biomaterials and energy and products from biomass etc. Other than that, you must be able to deal with blood, open wounds and the like to be a Doctor. Sounds silly but you'd be surprised at the number of people that turn up without first considering that.

In summary, both are good in my opinion so long as you're good at them. If you don't think analytically and enjoy problem solving then Engineering (of any sort) is not going to be your best choice, if you don't like medicine and all that goes with it (including public service) then you won't make a good Doctor. People tend to enjoy what they are good at and tend not to enjoy what they are not good at, worth keeping in mind when considering peoples opinions (including mine). Good luck

"If you don't think analytically and enjoy problem solving then Engineering (of any sort) is not going to be your best choice"? isnt most engineering courses based on problem solving along with applying knowledge to deal with real life problems?

Chem eng is definitely a good course, but what it involves is working and travelling in dirty plants, even though you'll be in the clean offices. Consider the fact that some people actually have to BASE themselves AT the plant!!! chemical plants are normally in the middle of nowhere too, although in today's modern world more and more settled office vocations in chem eng are emerging. Consider how the course will impact your life in terms of where you'll live too. It's good to have a job you enjoy, but what if you dont enjoy what kind of lifestyle it brings, ie a lot travelling away from home for days and days on end.

Medicine will bring you an exhausting yet exciting life in a city (at least untill your training is complete). Then you'll have the liberty of where you'll live. Unless your a GP..(boring)..you'll have to do on calls every now and then and the job will sometimes include 1 am night shifts, hours on end standing if your a surgeon and working with sick and wounded people. If your ok with these, medicine could appeal to you. Consider how the career will impact your life outside work. good luck

Reply 23

forceps

imo any form of engineering is hard. I do pharmacy & have a big bro who is a final year dentistry student, yet the stuff we need to revise is far less than how often my flatmate who is a year 1 mecheng student does

Reply 24

innerhollow

18

Interestingly enough a friend of mine on my course is a Medicine reject. Anyway, I hope you realise that the two courses are VASTLY different. Medicine is a combination of rote-learning life science topics (i.e. immunology, anatomy, biochemistry etc.) and dealing with clinical practice and patient care. Naturally the chances of you not becoming a doctor after doing a medicine degree are tiny.

You mentioned that you like Maths, Biology and Chemistry. Chemical Engineering, despite its name, is pretty much just lots and lots of Maths; Maths which you use to solve design problems. Therefore, your enjoyment of Maths would make you suited to studying ChemEng; but Biology is virtually non-existent in the course and Chemistry only plays a small part. You don't need to love Maths to do a ChemEng course but you need to be capable with it and willing to sift through pages and pages of equations without switching off. Other important skills for Engineering are creativity and the motivation to do craploads of work of your own accord. And Engineering students can go off and do all sorts of things when they graduate, many choose not to go into an engineering career for one reason or another.

There's a lot of negativity about ChemEng on this thread. Of course people have their own experiences of anything, and my experience is that I have no regrets choosing this course. I wouldn't say that the material is anything particularly fascinating or gripping, but the course is challenging and stimulating, particularly from a problem-solving aspect, and I'm happy to be a ChemEnger =]

Original post by forceps

medicine is definately better than chem eng. the engineering scene in the UK as a whole doesnt offer many employment opportunities & everyone i know who is doing it or who have done it dont like it. my sibling graduated from oxford with a 2.1 in chemeng in 2008 & still cant find a job

There is statistical data for graduate employment rates easily available so anecdotes like "my brother/aunt/dog's sister's owner can't find a job" are extremely unhelpful.

Just sayin'... :erm:

(edited 12 years ago)

Reply 25

Tench

OP

10

Thank you everyone who posted upon this thread and gave me advice,

I hope you'll all be happy to know that I picked Medicine, and that I just had an interview from Barts last Thursday.

Again, Many thanks all for the advice :smile:

Reply 26

HiBear

4

Original post by Dreizhen

Chemical Engineering is very difficult and...not very interesting, hence why most graduates wind up in finance.

do you go to cambridge/ucl/imperial by any chance..??

oh ucl. no wonder.

Reply 27

Dreizhen

13

Original post by HiBear

do you go to cambridge/ucl/imperial by any chance..??

oh ucl. no wonder.

I went to Imperial. Incidentally, what does the university have to do with it?

Reply 28

HiBear

4

Original post by Dreizhen

I went to Imperial. Incidentally, what does the university have to do with it?

i've heard stats (cant confirm sources pretty much word of mouth and might be just full of ****) and those three are the most likely to not go into chem eng after they graduate.....

i just think it's the atmosphere in it, and about the attention given by the lecturers to the individual. :dontknow:

i do know a lot of people wanting to become engineers where i am. ofc there are a fair few who dont and want to go into finance/whatever i suppose.

Reply 29

innerhollow

18

Original post by HiBear

i've heard stats (cant confirm sources pretty much word of mouth and might be just full of ****) and those three are the most likely to not go into chem eng after they graduate.....

i just think it's the atmosphere in it, and about the attention given by the lecturers to the individual. :dontknow:

i do know a lot of people wanting to become engineers where i am. ofc there are a fair few who dont and want to go into finance/whatever i suppose.

Out of the unis offering Chemical Engineering, the most well-paying firms (i.e. Investment Banks) recruit most heavily from Cambridge, Imperial and UCL. A very common reason for Engineering graduates to leave engineering sector upon graduation is to try and get better salaries.

(edited 12 years ago)

Reply 30

roflcopter123

Original post by forceps

medicine is definately better than chem eng. the engineering scene in the UK as a whole doesnt offer many employment opportunities & everyone i know who is doing it or who have done it dont like it. my sibling graduated from oxford with a 2.1 in chemeng in 2008 & still cant find a job

This guy doesn't know what he's talking about because oxford dont do chem ENG LOL dont listen to him

Reply 31

TheFoxBlip

9

Original post by roflcopter123

This guy doesn't know what he's talking about because oxford dont do chem ENG LOL dont listen to him

They do, but it's a general engineering course for the first 2 or 3 years and then specialisation. I suspect an unemployed Oxford graduate with a 2.1 in chemical engineering is a rarity and is a reflection on the graduate, not on the relevance of the degree.

Reply 32

star10159

13

Guys, im in the same dilemma as the OP. My parents are doctors and want me to take medicine.
I personally like all sciences but am a bit more on the physics side rather than biology.
I dont know weather to be a doctor or an engineer so I was just wondering,
What do Mechanical or aeronautical engineers actually do? Do they just sit around in an office all day making CAD models or paperwork etc.. or do they actually make planes and stuff ie. more practical work.

Original post by star10159

Guys, im in the same dilemma as the OP. My parents are doctors and want me to take medicine.
I personally like all sciences but am a bit more on the physics side rather than biology.
I dont know weather to be a doctor or an engineer so I was just wondering,
What do Mechanical or aeronautical engineers actually do? Do they just sit around in an office all day making CAD models or paperwork etc.. or do they actually make planes and stuff ie. more practical work.

They do all different jobs depending on, well, what their job is. You can be sitting in an office all day making CAD models, or doing computer simulations, or doing analysis, or paper work. You can also be on site and getting your hands dirty and making/doing stuff.

Reply 34

star10159

13

Original post by Smack

getting your hands dirty and making/doing stuff.

Now that's my kinda job. :wink:

Reply 35

kimmey

7

the fact that you posted this on an engineering forum suggests your mind is already made up :wink:

Reply 36

star10159

13

One of the worst things about engineering is it's view in society. People think that they are just guys who "Fix boilers" and stuff.

Original post by star10159

Now that's my kinda job. :wink:

Well there is plenty of scope for that with a mechanical degree. That's one of the best things about engineering; it doesn't tie you down to any one sort of job. You can be the projects manager in charge of running the whole project. You can do the design of components and make plenty use of CAD software. You can do advanced analysis and use plenty of maths. Or you can go on site and get your hands dirty. :wink:

Reply 38

user1111

2

Original post by star10159

One of the worst things about engineering is it's view in society. People think that they are just guys who "Fix boilers" and stuff.