Wanted - Automotive Engineers

I am not an engineer, automotive or other wise. If you son is mechanical and loves math and science it could be a great career. Generally this falls under the general category of Mechanical Engineering with a specialization in automotive.

He might look at Kettering University which used to be General Motors Institute (GMI) until the 80s. It has always offered a concentration in automotive.

There are certainly other schools which could attend, however ensure he attends one that does actually offer a concentration in automotive. It is an area of engineering that is quite specific and if he doesn't receive instruction in that area it may be quite difficult to gain entry into the field.

I originally was going down that path but instead chose to follow the path of industrial design, specifically automotive design which is a very different path. Some might say the antithesis of engineering

I believe we have a fair number of automotive engineers on the forum, Paul Valente I believe is one and there are a few others from the Detroit area as I recall.

An article on Edmunds that gives some good suggestions for schools he might consider.
http://www.edmunds.com/car-reviews/top-10/top-10-automotive-colleges-and-universities-in-the-us.html

I'm not an engineer, at least not professionally but if you haven't already, make sure to take a look at the Vehicle Research Institute at my alma mater Western Washington University. Some very cool things have come out of this place.

http://www.wwu.edu/vri/

Thanks guys!
That's some great information.

Lawrence technological university

I am an engineer....undergrad and masters from Larry tech.

A school with intern program. Formally Henry ford trade school.

A degree from here, although it costs a small fortune, is worth it's weight in gold.

Will

Need to be really good at Math, Science (Physics), English and related Liberal Arts subjects.

If your son's HS offers AP classes, taking and passing AP Calculus or AP Physics and a good SAT score will go a long ways towards admission to the Uni of his choice.

Purdue School of Engineering offers a program in Motorsports Engineering. This is new, no idea what it is like or the goals of this program would be like.
http://engr.iupui.edu/departments/ent/about/programs/mste.php

My take on Uni education, Get a really, really good Liberal Arts under graduate education, then use grad school to focus on the students specific passions and where they might be in the future. Specialty Uni programs can become a career trap as a highly specialized skill can and usually does become obsolete leaving that individual with few options for where they could end up. Don't allow college to become, "trade school with beer."


One of my previous rants about Uni education:

College rankings depend on publications and work done by professors and staff. It is not about undergrad education. It is much about professors pet projects, getting grants and winning academic awards. This is how colleges and uni's gain school status. Consider for a moment under grad classes held in a large auditorium filled with hundreds of students. How well might each student learn?

Keep in mind, these Status College ranking are more significant for grad students that know where they are headed in their specialty.
IMO, a Liberal Arts education comes first, then graduate work becomes the specialty.

Due to a host of factors, the majority of college students are profession/job/making money focused and less interested in being broadly educated in many topics ... Traditional Liberal Arts Education...

Yet, these young adults will be the future and the leaders of humanity and society, their education, life experiences will affect how they behave and what the contribute to society and humanity.


Bernice

Excellent advice, Bernice. Thanks.

You are a dying breed, Bernice...

The unabashed proponent of a liberal arts education: :shock:
So much talk these days about the price of education and about the debt getting racked up by students that the value of the experience is starting to get drowned out..
Most of the best things that happened to me in my five years at Cal were off label. Just the exposure to so many people so passionate about their chosen fields. It made me a lifelong student, it really did. :nod:

One thing I completely agree with...

When Bernice said, 'Specialty Uni programs can become a career trap as a highly specialized skill can and usually does become obsolete leaving that individual with few options for where they could end up', she wasn't joking, I experienced this. This is very important to maintaining a lifetime of good, sustainable employment. While my background in applied physics is quite broad, my initial employment focus of 12 years wasn't. I did have a hard, worrisome time for a period in my life. So I second that advice.

There are two automotive engineers that I know of on this site - Both nice guys and both live in Michigan. I had a chance to hang out with them a few summers ago while working in MI. I'm sure they could give you a little more information - I'll PM you with the info.

I guess I got lucky. I'm an electronics engineering technician, and found myself working in automotive engineering at an R&D facility here in Canada. It's been 9 years and I still love it!

Future for Automotive Engineering... and...

Have a very close look at any modern car today. It is very much a product of intense regulations, safety mandates (even if these specifications/requirements do not relate to real world crashes), strict cost constraints, market demands for zero failures on nil maintenance, total reliability with nil maintenance while delivering extreme fuel economy, nil emissions and more all driven by bean counting managers who may not care about anything other than producing a product that meets marketing study and focus group results.

Things to seriously consider for the modern era of automotive design.

When Saab deigned the radio for the NG900 during the mid-1990's there was a government regulation dictating the maximum diameter of the volume knob.. This was only the beginning of what cast the design of many cars designed today.

Beyond this, know the extreme proliferation electronics and electro/mechanical systems will continue to grow in future automobiles. The driver-less car is not far away..
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YxHcJTs2Sxk"]Shelley, Stanford's Robotic Car, Hits the Track - YouTube[/ame]

I have spoken to Chris about "Shelley" and where this is all headed.


Then we have the issue/problem of managers making technical decisions in areas they have zero expertise in. This most always results in a serious disaster. This is a common occurrence in large corporations, government agencies or where ever large group-think can occur. Engineers do have social responsibilities and need to be aware of how their work and choices can and does alter the course of human culture and society. The Challenger explosion is just one graphic example of how management ignored engineering personnel, science and facts in the game of politics and blindly following the process.

The results resulted in a great cost to humanity with deep ramifications to all involved:
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UCLgRyKvfp0"]Richard Feynman - Space Shuttle Challenger Investigation - YouTube[/ame]


It happened again when with Columbia when Engineers could not believe or accept falling foam impacting a composite panel can rupture a hole into the composite panel resulting in a total loss of the space craft.
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=suniiico7z4"]Shuttle Debris Impact Testing - YouTube[/ame]

Engineers, scientist and other technical folks must be completely honest with themselves and not be blinded by their individual expectations or theoretical design data. Or, really bad things can and do happen.

I'm writing this with the hope that anyone interested in engineering or related technical professions understand their work can have deep social and cultural ramifications for humanity. This is another reason why humanities matters for all who endeavors into the world of engineering, science and technology. As none of these specialties live alone in a vacuum, they are all completely inter-connected and inter-active. Notable human achievement requires a broad and deep understanding of the many facets of humanity, nature and much more. If this broad understanding and wisdom is applied to the target endeavor, greatness can be achieved in any human endeavor.


Bernice

PM sent

Better late than never....and thanks for the compliment, Myron!

Not sure you ever got the response you were looking for, Don. In any event, I'd be happy to talk to your son about a career as an automotive engineer and give him a view from the inside. PM sent with my contact information.

I will also give you some feedback

Hey Don,

I will PM as well on the subject.

Thanks guys

Thanks everyone for the replies.

Things have changed and my son has decided on a different career direction. But if he does drift back towards the automotive field I might just need to seek out your expertise again.

The members of this forum never cease to amaze me with their willingness to offer help and advice. It's really great to have such a diverse group of professionals here who are also X1/9 lovers.

job

what part of the industry??
design, concept, building from the ground up? hot rods
the best work I ever had was in a parts department . to help people and help them understand the what and why of what they need is instant gratification. and when they shake your hand and smile, you feel that you have to raise the bar, so to speak, to make the next customer as glad as the last, knowing they will be back to see you. not that other guy standing next to you...but you.
design is fine, being in the source for the building the vehicle, and when you see it on the road you will smile, but you can't talk to the person who bought it. pity.
more fun making people happy face to face.
mikemo90*aol.com