Course selections for college

[jellis359]

hey, i'm in my junior year of high school and i'm looking into schools with some sort of a robotics program. there are a ton of posts on this, but......

 I'm beginning to realise that there are many schools that don't necessarily have classes in robotics. My question is what subject: be it mechanical engineering, computer science, electrical engineering, etc....Applies more to studying robotics. I was leaning towards mechanical engineering because i like to design and build. I'm very aware that i could take electives focused on areas that my major lacks, but my initial question still remains. What's your advice.

i was looking at:
Worcester poly
CMU
U. of PA
Cornell
Drexel
Rensselaer

i don't know about my chances but i have a GPA of 3.915 and i've done a few competitions in robotics.(for which this site was very helpful)
 Anyway, any advice?

[little-c]

the main componants of my robotics degree course is,
electrical enginering, computer science(programing and embeded side), cibernetics. oh and maths... lots of math!

mechanical enginering comes into play as well, no good having an uber cool robot arm that can only lift a postage stamp
practical
major in electrical, do a bit of mech, CS and cybernetics.
theory,
major in cybernetics, do a bit of CS, electrical and mech.

[pomprocker]

Well, say you were on a team of engineers that were going to build a robot such as ASIMO....Would you want to be on a programming team, would you want to be on the chassis design team, or would you want to design the circuits??

I just about finished with my BS is computer science...The only thing in this degree related to robotics is really AI classes. If I could do it allover again I would go for electrical engineering because I love circuits and soldering 

[jellis359]

i like to actually design and build the structure itself, so i gues mechanical is my main thing, but i like to dabble in the other areas as well. so i guess i could take electives aimed towards the other areas. the only thing i'm not to keen on is the the actual programming bit. typing on the computer aint really my thing.

so unless i get into the carnegie robotics institute, i've got an idea of what i can do.

[Admin]

Picture yourself in a team of engineers working on a single robot. If you had a choice to be the guy that only programs, the guy that only does the electronics, or the guy that only makes the chassis, which would you prefer?

If you only care about money, electrical engineers and programmers currently make the most, on average.

Oh, and if your university forces you to take 'non-technical' electives to be more 'well-rounded', take psychology. It'll help you understand AI better, so won't be a total waste.
Or business, if you want to start a robot company . . .

[jellis359]

so, my first years of college when i have to take all the required courses, would it be smart to take electives that allow me to try the electrical, programming, or mechanical part of the building so i can better get an idea of what i want to do when i get to choosing a major.

[Admin]

would it be smart to take electives that allow me to try the electrical, programming, or mechanical part

I recommend taking the intro-level courses for all three. And also intermediate if you can fit it in.

Thats what I did

[jellis359]

it seems to  me that it would be a good idea to "get an idea" of which field i want to major in.

[madsci1016]

Also, try to get an internship early on. It's the best exposure to what a career in that area will be like.