You’ve grown up working on your own vehicle and wouldn’t think of taking it to a mechanic for repairs. Your neighbors come to you first when there’s something wrong with their car. When people come to visit you they don’t go to the front door but instead head straight to the garage to save time. If any of these situations sound familiar then a career in automotive engineering just might be in your future. When you’re choosing how to get started in the field how do you choose where to start? What degree will prepare you best for your future? When you have grown up under the hood of a vehicle there are two degrees that will be obvious choices to match with your interests: Automotive Engineering and Mechanical Engineering. These two degrees have many similarities but provide many different options that must be considered when selecting the degree path that is right for you.
Mechanical Engineering Degree
A Mechanical Engineering Degree is the engineering discipline that focuses on the physical interactions and relationships of materials and their material properties. The core mechanical engineering classes including: statics, solids, thermodynamics, kinematics, materials science, physics and structural analysis. Even though, it is not specialized to automotive, some of the most important classes for automotive engineers are included in this major. This path provides a very detailed theoretical knowledge of these subjects and the basics to apply them in a variety of engineering fields. The Mechanical Engineering Degree is one of the most popular engineering degrees and is offered by almost every school that has an engineering program.
Automotive Engineering Degree
An automotive engineering degree, or sometimes called a automotive mechanical engineering degree, is a highly specialized degree that teaches many of the same concepts as mechanical engineering but focuses specifically on automotive applications. When you earn an Automotive Engineering Degree you will study topics such as powertrain and chassis design, electronic components, aerodynamics and safety components. This highly specialized degree is intended to prepare students for the specific needs of the automotive industry and help them be better prepared to begin work in their specialized field. The Automotive Engineering major is a highly specialized degree that is only offered by select schools so it may be difficult to find a university that offers this degree. Most automotive engineering degrees are actually offered as masters programs.
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