Hey Randy,Thanks for the informative video Does it affect in any ways in our future jobs/career and specialization routes if we choose not to go for the research/thesis Master's? IS CREDIT HOUR completion equally validated as thesis oriented coursework? Just curious.
Hi Sarthak, This was a question me and my classmates argued about for quite a while. It will depend on what career field you want to go towards. If you want to stay in academia and become a professor, then you will want to gain research experience. Any research scientist position in the private sector will also want research experience. But if you just want to graduate as fast as you can or don't expect a heavy, science-based position as a career, the coursework route will do just as fine. In my opinion, the coursework route is just as good as the Thesis route, because you are not limiting yourself solely on your research project. You may be an expert on your project, for example, but your employer may not care or find that relevant to the responsibilities.
Great explanation coming from Randy. At my school, we have 3 routes: 1. Thesis: 24 credit hours required + thesis defense 2. Project: 27 hrs + project presentation 3. Coursework: 30 hrs + exit exam I did route 2 and it took me longer to find a job than my friends who took route 1. But there may be other factors involved. Knowing what you want to do with the degree will def point you to the right direction. I personally wish I went for the thesis.
@@ThuyLe-xt2np Thank you for such insights and comments. YES,I believe many things are linked to this interplay and thus getting good job or propelling one's career in the fields will surely depend upon many variables. Every route may have its own merits, our career goal will also influence that plot. Thanks fam!
@@ThuyLe-xt2np Thanks for providing your experience Thuy! I'm curious to know the difference between a Thesis and a Project and how much more work was compared to the other.
Hi Randy, i appreciate if you make the video which is what differences between Civil, chemical engineering & Environmental Engineering, because its seem a bit discrepancies..Thanks
Hi again Randy! Thanks for this vid I am a Civil engineer graduate and planning to do masters on Environmental engineering. During my undergraduate studies, our curriculum doesn't have much chemistry subjects. Do you think this will be hard for me in pursuing masters?
Depending on what specialty you go for your Masters. If you focus on water or air, for example, you might be introduced to Water Chemistry or Analytical Chemistry. More than likely, all fields will require some general chemistry knowledge, but won't focus as much as if you were majoring in Chemistry. You should be fine though because my classes slowly introduced the chemistry concepts and didn't expect everyone to just know everything right away.
@@RandyLy thanks for answering! I have another concern, you mentioned you chose coursework Masters rather than thesis based. Is there a big impact/bearing/difference between the two? Like is choosing the thesis based masters will have a higher edge/worth as a masters graduate?
I chose the coursework route because it just saved time. For my specific university (not all universities/programs have this option), it would take 1.5 years (Coursework) vs 2 years (Thesis). The only difference is how much more effort do you want to put into getting your Masters. Some classmates wanted to have that scientific publication, but I didn't care so much about it and didn't want to put in that much work. It could be an ego thing, but I cared more about the financial cost savings. It also depends on which route you want to go after graduating. If you want to have a scientific background or stay in academia, you will want to do the Thesis route. But I knew I'd jump into a private company after graduating, and they don't really care about your Thesis, so long as you have a Masters Degree.
I do not give out recommendations or research universities for individuals because there are many factors involved aside from the degree, such as location, finances, and other personal commitments. In my opinion, any university that offers the environmental engineering major is good enough.
Hi, I’m almost graduated my Master’s degree in Environmental engineering from Thailand, and I plan to go to the States after graduation. Do you have any important information for foreigner to work as environmental engineering? Should I redo my master’s degree there in order to work for a higher salary or just needing a professional training to get the license. I appreciate for your sharing.
Unfortunately, I am not an international student, so I don't have much experience in that. I can only speak for what I saw my international classmates go through. I'll be honest and won't sugar-coat anything. It will be more difficult for you to find a job compared to US citizens and you'll probably have to be VISA sponsored (please do more research on that). Most US employers like to see US universities/degrees unless you know of someone already in the company that can refer you. Some of my international classmates had a Masters Degree in their home country and got another Masters Degree in the US. Just be careful because of the costs. From my work experience, most care more about getting Professional Engineering license rather than a higher educational degree.
Currently, i am doing the bachelor of environmental science. I am planning to do environmental engineering in master. But the problem is, courses like chemistry, biology, calculus, physics, I am actually forgetting all of those after the final exam . I am still in the first year. Did it happened to you too?
Fortunately, I didn't forget all the concepts. Every class I took always reintroduced one of those concepts again, so I was always forced to use or relearn it. That being said, the Masters program isn't going to retest if you know all the concepts. They will assume you already took it, so if you can get by with whatever little information you do remember; you can still pass.
Thank you for making this.
I'm glad it helps
This was so informative Randy! Thank you so much for making this video!!
I'm glad it helps. Thanks for watching
Its me again if you remember, I got in my bachelor and its environmental engineering currently drowning in assessments but at least I am happy
As long as you're happy with the field
Thank you for your explanation.that was very helpful
First comment 🙋🏽
Merry Christmas to all of you 😍
Thanks, Rosy! Have a safe and happy holidays too
Hey Randy,Thanks for the informative video
Does it affect in any ways in our future jobs/career and specialization routes if we choose not to go for the research/thesis Master's?
IS CREDIT HOUR completion equally validated as thesis oriented coursework?
Just curious.
Hi Sarthak,
This was a question me and my classmates argued about for quite a while. It will depend on what career field you want to go towards. If you want to stay in academia and become a professor, then you will want to gain research experience. Any research scientist position in the private sector will also want research experience.
But if you just want to graduate as fast as you can or don't expect a heavy, science-based position as a career, the coursework route will do just as fine. In my opinion, the coursework route is just as good as the Thesis route, because you are not limiting yourself solely on your research project. You may be an expert on your project, for example, but your employer may not care or find that relevant to the responsibilities.
@@RandyLy Thanks Legend, Appreciate your efforts
Great explanation coming from Randy. At my school, we have 3 routes:
1. Thesis: 24 credit hours required + thesis defense
2. Project: 27 hrs + project presentation
3. Coursework: 30 hrs + exit exam
I did route 2 and it took me longer to find a job than my friends who took route 1. But there may be other factors involved. Knowing what you want to do with the degree will def point you to the right direction. I personally wish I went for the thesis.
@@ThuyLe-xt2np Thank you for such insights and comments.
YES,I believe many things are linked to this interplay and thus getting good job or propelling one's career in the fields will surely depend upon many variables.
Every route may have its own merits, our career goal will also influence that plot.
Thanks fam!
@@ThuyLe-xt2np Thanks for providing your experience Thuy! I'm curious to know the difference between a Thesis and a Project and how much more work was compared to the other.
Hi Randy, i appreciate if you make the video which is what differences between Civil, chemical engineering & Environmental Engineering, because its seem a bit discrepancies..Thanks
Hi again Randy! Thanks for this vid
I am a Civil engineer graduate and planning to do masters on Environmental engineering. During my undergraduate studies, our curriculum doesn't have much chemistry subjects. Do you think this will be hard for me in pursuing masters?
Depending on what specialty you go for your Masters. If you focus on water or air, for example, you might be introduced to Water Chemistry or Analytical Chemistry. More than likely, all fields will require some general chemistry knowledge, but won't focus as much as if you were majoring in Chemistry. You should be fine though because my classes slowly introduced the chemistry concepts and didn't expect everyone to just know everything right away.
@@RandyLy thanks for answering!
I have another concern, you mentioned you chose coursework Masters rather than thesis based. Is there a big impact/bearing/difference between the two? Like is choosing the thesis based masters will have a higher edge/worth as a masters graduate?
I chose the coursework route because it just saved time. For my specific university (not all universities/programs have this option), it would take 1.5 years (Coursework) vs 2 years (Thesis). The only difference is how much more effort do you want to put into getting your Masters. Some classmates wanted to have that scientific publication, but I didn't care so much about it and didn't want to put in that much work. It could be an ego thing, but I cared more about the financial cost savings. It also depends on which route you want to go after graduating. If you want to have a scientific background or stay in academia, you will want to do the Thesis route. But I knew I'd jump into a private company after graduating, and they don't really care about your Thesis, so long as you have a Masters Degree.
@@RandyLy Wow thanks for bringing a crystal clear answer! Thank you very much Randy! Hope you for the best 👌
What about doing a bachelor's degree in environmental engineering.
Which are the best universities for doing it.
I do not give out recommendations or research universities for individuals because there are many factors involved aside from the degree, such as location, finances, and other personal commitments.
In my opinion, any university that offers the environmental engineering major is good enough.
Hi, I’m almost graduated my Master’s degree in Environmental engineering from Thailand, and I plan to go to the States after graduation. Do you have any important information for foreigner to work as environmental engineering? Should I redo my master’s degree there in order to work for a higher salary or just needing a professional training to get the license. I appreciate for your sharing.
Unfortunately, I am not an international student, so I don't have much experience in that. I can only speak for what I saw my international classmates go through. I'll be honest and won't sugar-coat anything. It will be more difficult for you to find a job compared to US citizens and you'll probably have to be VISA sponsored (please do more research on that). Most US employers like to see US universities/degrees unless you know of someone already in the company that can refer you. Some of my international classmates had a Masters Degree in their home country and got another Masters Degree in the US. Just be careful because of the costs.
From my work experience, most care more about getting Professional Engineering license rather than a higher educational degree.
Currently, i am doing the bachelor of environmental science. I am planning to do environmental engineering in master. But the problem is, courses like chemistry, biology, calculus, physics, I am actually forgetting all of those after the final exam . I am still in the first year. Did it happened to you too?
Fortunately, I didn't forget all the concepts. Every class I took always reintroduced one of those concepts again, so I was always forced to use or relearn it.
That being said, the Masters program isn't going to retest if you know all the concepts. They will assume you already took it, so if you can get by with whatever little information you do remember; you can still pass.
Do you think the classes were difficult because you were new to engineering, or were they hard for your classmates too?
Probably a combination of both. A majority of my classmates didn't come from an engineering background either, so we all struggled.
✔🙋♂