Chemical or Aerospace Engineering

For the past year or so I have had my heart set on doing Aerospace Engineering, but have been put off slightly by the Headstart course in Liverpool and some recent work placements I had with Airbus and Rolls-Royce. Now I am stuck whether to choose between Chemical and Aerospace Engineering, and was wondering which has better career prospects, and gives you more chance of maybe moving abroad?

I would also value the course which would give me a more diverse choice of possible career paths. I would be most grateful if anybody could offer me any advice.

Reply 1

dischord

You can do almost anything with any type of Engineering degree, so you won't be limiting your general employment areas just very specific ones; your unlikely to go into the oil industry with an aerospace degree or plane engine design with a chemical degree. Your also not limiting your career abroad prospects, both types of engineers are highly sort after in various places around the world.

Chemical Engineers are meant to be the highest earners of all the Engineering specialisms. However, you will not be badly paid with an Aerospace degree.

Basically all I can say is go with your heart, there is no point doing a degree for 4 years in a specialism you don't like. Though I am not sure about this, I would not be suprised if you are able to change specialism once you've started a course at university, if you find that you do not like the degree.

Reply 2

lapsaJ

4

dischord

You can do almost anything with any type of Engineering degree, so you won't be limiting your general employment areas just very specific ones; your unlikely to go into the oil industry with an aerospace degree or plane engine design with a chemical degree. Your also not limiting your career abroad prospects, both types of engineers are highly sort after in various places around the world.

Chemical Engineers are meant to be the highest earners of all the Engineering specialisms. However, you will not be badly paid with an Aerospace degree.

Basically all I can say is go with your heart, there is no point doing a degree for 4 years in a specialism you don't like. Though I am not sure about this, I would not be suprised if you are able to change specialism once you've started a course at university, if you find that you do not like the degree.

Just wondering, what other unis did you apply to?

Also, I think you're taking the same A Levels as NedZeppelin. :smile:

Reply 3

CityMonkey

11

dischord

your unlikely to go into the oil industry with an aerospace degree

Not true. I have a friend being sponsored through his aeronautical engineering degree by Noble Denton, who are big sea oil engineering company. He gets £3k a year for every year of his degree, gets flown out to Abu Dhabi every summer for work and, subject to getting a 2.1 overall in his degree, a guranteed grad job in an office of his choice (Middle East, London, US or Singapore).

or plane engine design with a chemical degree.

False again. Alternative fuel technology for plane engines is a big research area right now, not just for fuel efficiency but fuel products that can be used as coolants to sink heat from vital functions of the engine.

Chemical Engineers are meant to be the highest earners of all the Engineering specialisms. However, you will not be badly paid with an Aerospace degree.

Thats true, senior chemical engineers are paid big bucks, I've heard of many on £150k+.

Basically all I can say is go with your heart, there is no point doing a degree for 4 years in a specialism you don't like. Though I am not sure about this, I would not be suprised if you are able to change specialism once you've started a course at university, if you find that you do not like the degree.

Yes, go with what you want to do and are passionate about. However, swapping between engineering disciplines is not unheard of and happens surprisingly often in industry, especially as almost any engineering function now requires knowledge of almost all the main engineering disciplines. Don't think that specialisation at undergrad means you need to stick to it for the rest of your career.

In the end, my personal view is that aerospace/aeronautical engineering is more exciting to learn about, however, I am currently working in the chemical engineering department at Imperial researching for NASA and some of the work going on here is absolutely mind blowing. Lots of people working on fuels, space research, motorsports, nuclear reactors etc etc. I assume the same happens elsewhere also. So I would say: for exciting work at undergrad level: aerospace, for exciting work during employment: chemical engineering (though I don't think that makes your choice anymore easier, sorry! :p:

).

Reply 4

lapsaJ

4

I think he's been put off the aerospace with all these boring work placements (I've been with him).

Also, LBC, there's still quite a few highly paid aerospace engineers right? I mean, the opportunity's are realistically there?

Reply 5

CityMonkey

11

lapsaJ

I think he's been put off the aerospace with all these boring work placements (I've been with him).

Yeh, I can understand that, I know a lot of people having been put off engineering as a whole, let alone their own specialisation, as a result of spending a summer in a company doing work experience.

Also, LBC, there's still quite a few highly paid aerospace engineers right? I mean, the opportunity's are realistically there?

Oh yeh, I've heard of aeronautical engineers getting anything from £35k to as high as $15million a year. I would probably say though that I think the average chemical engineer earns more than your average aero engineer, I have no figures or evidence to back this up however.

Reply 6

NedZeppelin

OP

Thanks for the advice, everyone. :smile:

Reply 7

lapsaJ

4

Made up your mind?

Chemical or Aerospace Engineering

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