Melbourne vs. Monash

[kimk2kr]

Im thinking to become an Electrical Engineering when i graduate and i was just wondering which uni is preferred and why 


p.s. currently in yr12.

thanks!

[paulsterio]

Well, Monash is 4 years of straight engineering, if that interests you.
Melbourne is a graduate program.

You have to consider other things as well, travel time...etc. If you live 2 hours away from Monash on Melbourne's West/North, UoM will be preferred, but if you live in the South East, then Monash is also good.

There are other things as well, such as course structure, you can browse their websites and have a look.

Also consider other universities, such as RMIT.

[kimk2kr]

yea it takes like 30min longer to get to monash but would it be easier to get a job if i do masters in melbourne?

[Russ]

Nobody knows, but the general understanding is that the new BSc/MEng isn't going to be substantially superior to the old BEng.

[abd123]

Both of them are great Uni's.

Just like coke and pepsi bro.

[paulsterio]

Well, if you wanted an understanding of the Science underpinning the Engineering, you could just do the BEng/BSc at Monash which is 5 years (the same as BSc + MEng at UoM)

There are also other options at Monash as well, you can do Engineering with Commerce, Science, Arts, Law...etc.

[pi]

This is from a friend, who has close family who have a lot of first-hand experience in the engineering sector, hopefully this settles out some of the issues you (and others) may have

So you want to be an Engineer?

Well, firstly, why should you listen to yours truly. There are a few reasons, my father was a consultant engineer at IBM, graduating with a degree in 'Electrical Engineering' in Russia and emigrating to Australia. Both my uncles (his brothers) are also engineers with one being a mechanical engineer at Ford and one being an Aerospace engineer currently employed as a mechanical engineer in America. On top of this, my father has worked as an employer of engineers for over 20 years now and has been on 100s of interview panels.

So your first question should be, what are employers looking for?

Well, I'll assure you two things right now. No employer of engineers, in Melbourne at least, is going to care what university you are from or what your grades were. (Shock horror, I know). My father has employed many many engineers and in 20 years, only one has been looked upon differently from the others due to his university (and he attended MIT and won many many awards in the process getting him there). Firstly, when you apply for a job in the engineering sector, at absolutely no point will your grades be shown to the employer. It doesn't show up on your academic transcript and it certainly doesn't go on your resume. Your employer will have absolutely no idea what your grades at University were. Secondly, nobody really gives two hoots as to what University you went to. Just trust me on that one. So I guess, you're wondering, what on earth can I do to get a job then? Well, it's really quite simple. Whether you get a job or not will depend on one thing, your interview. And it's not going to be about what your favourite football team is or whether your smile is shinier than the next guy. They will ask you questions about engineering and if you can demonstrate to them that this is a job that you really want to learn at and you will enjoy, they will hire you. The questions they ask will test your knowledge and your enthusiasm for the job. What the employers truly want, are people who can demonstrate both their aptitude but also their passion for the job. 

But, hang on, you must be wrong, if what uni you go to doesn't matter, well then VU is equal to Melbourne and Monash right?

Well, that's where you're somewhat mistaken. Let's look at VCE as this is the only analogy that most of you will truly understand. Let's imagine that for some obscure reason, we need to hire someone who is really good at Maths Methods. Now, if you went to Melbourne Grammar School, chances are, you were taught extremely well, you were part of a strong cohort with positive attitude to learning and you probably succeeded. When you're interviewed, you'll probably have no worries demonstrating that you have the aptitude to do Methods. Now, let's take pretty crappy Western Suburbs (generic) High School, where the Dux is usually around 88.2. Well, nothing at all is stopping you from studying really really hard and learning the course inside out. It's just you won't have the cohort to support you, the same quality of teachers or the same resources. But no, nothing is stopping you from getting a 50 and if you really love methods and work hard, you can still get the 50. Now, of course, it is much harder coming from a crappy school but there is no reason why you can't get the same level of knowledge as a MGS student. And if you were to both sit an interview, there would be no advantage what-so-ever to the MGS student if you had studied your methods really really hard. The same thing happens when you are going to University to study engineering. If you go to an extremely good University, you will have hard-working student group and extremely good quality teachers to help you. Going to VU for instance, won't damage your job outlook because you're from VU, you're just going to make it harder for yourself.

Hmm, but surely more can be taught to you in 4 year of B.Eng at Monash than 2 years of M.Eng at Melbourne right?

Not exactly. For starters, Melbourne's Engineers start engineering from day 1 of their Science degree. Just because the degree is called science, doesn't mean they don't do any engineering. Similar to why Monash have to have a broad first year for all student before they chose which field of engineering they wish to go into, there are Mathematics, Physics and Engineering principles that are covered in the Science degree that any Engineer needs to have down pat. There is absolutely no difference between being qualified from Monash or Melbourne with respect to whether your did a B.Sci/M.Eng or B.Eng, in the end you cover all the same subjects, it's just got a different name. But this also works against Melbourne, employers don't give a crap if you have a M.E or B.E, to them, as long as you are adequately qualified, that's all they need.

Hang on, what about RMIT, they promised me inudstry-based learning?
Well, folks (and I guess some girls, maybe #forev..) this is a very big deal. A lot of employers at higher engineering companies do not want industry trained people. Your engineering degree SHOULD give you the fundamentals of the field and teach you how to learn at your job. This might sound weird, but essentially a lot of jobs are extremely different, so all they really expect you to know is the fundamentals. From what is known to the engineers I know at least, RMIT is very industry focused and although you will be tailored to an initial job and know the ins and outs. This isn't something that a lot of employers particularly like as many of the skills will be absolutely useless to the next engineering job you attain. Having said that, RMIT is a very good engineering university. Just don't expect too much to be added to your employability because you have some experience in the engineering sector already.

Personally, my father and the general consensus amongst his colleagues has been that Melbourne's Engineers are their slight favourites, but this in NO WAY will hamper you if you are from another university. If you really want to be an engineer because you love engineering, work hard and you're on the road to full time employment.

[Russ]

This is from a friend, who has close family who have a lot of first-hand experience in the engineering sector, hopefully this settles out some of the issues you (and others) may have

Hai Tony!

Ask him whether he's ever seen an academic transcript because I can assure him that your marks are most definitely on there and it's :wtf: to think that they're not

[enwiabe]

That's definitely all bullshit. The guy who wrote this sounds like a pathological liar who gets off on making up shit.

Engineering employers definitely look at your marks, in many cases very closely

[ninwa]

Firstly, when you apply for a job in the engineering sector, at absolutely no point will your grades be shown to the employer. It doesn't show up on your academic transcript and it certainly doesn't go on your resume. Your employer will have absolutely no idea what your grades at University were.

Are you kidding me. What do you think goes on an academic transcript, pictures of llamas?

Firstly, when you apply for a job in the engineering sector, at absolutely no point will your grades be shown to the employer. It doesn't show up on your academic transcript and it certainly doesn't go on your resume. Your employer will have absolutely no idea what your grades at University were. Secondly, nobody really gives two hoots as to what University you went to. Just trust me on that one. So I guess, you're wondering, what on earth can I do to get a job then? Well, it's really quite simple. Whether you get a job or not will depend on one thing, your interview.

How do you think someone GETS an interview in the first place? Sleep with the interviewer? How pretty the font of your resume is? No. It's how good your MARKS are.

A lot of employers at higher engineering companies do not want industry trained people.

... I don't even

When examined by industry, the most important aspect of a graduate's CV found across all industry groups was 'employment history'. Accounting and finance ranked ‘academic results’ as of equal importance.

At an overall level, academic achievements in terms of ‘results’ and ‘qualifications’ were ranked highly, in second and third place respectively. The least important aspect of a graduate's CV overall was ‘Relevant associations and professional memberships’.

[abd123]

This is from a friend, who has close family who have a lot of first-hand experience in the engineering sector, hopefully this settles out some of the issues you (and others) may have

So you want to be an Engineer?

Now, let's take pretty crappy Western Suburbs (generic) High School, where the Dux is usually around 88.2. Well, nothing at all is stopping you from studying really really hard and learning the course inside out. It's just you won't have the cohort to support you, the same quality of teachers or the same resources. But no, nothing is stopping you from getting a 50 and if you really love methods and work hard, you can still get the 50. Now, of course, it is much harder coming from a crappy school but there is no reason why you can't get the same level of knowledge as a MGS student.

Damn, going to an average western for myself this surely offended me in someway and might offend other western school kids too.

Well he used that as an 'analogy' as to putting western suburb schools not being good as private or selective schools, I guess I can pass with that.

[Thu Thu Train]

Threads like this are so pointless. Everyone is just going to say "No come to my uni it's better". You go to each of the uni's open days and you talk to people and you make up your own mind.

Anyway go to Monash. UoM is for losers.

[JinXi]

This is from a friend, who has close family who have a lot of first-hand experience in the engineering sector, hopefully this settles out some of the issues you (and others) may have

So you want to be an Engineer?

Now, let's take pretty crappy Western Suburbs (generic) High School, where the Dux is usually around 88.2. Well, nothing at all is stopping you from studying really really hard and learning the course inside out. It's just you won't have the cohort to support you, the same quality of teachers or the same resources. But no, nothing is stopping you from getting a 50 and if you really love methods and work hard, you can still get the 50. Now, of course, it is much harder coming from a crappy school but there is no reason why you can't get the same level of knowledge as a MGS student.

Damn, going to an average western for myself this surely offended me in someway and might offend other western school kids too.

Well he used that as an 'analogy' as to putting western suburb schools not being good as private or selective schools, I guess I can pass with that.

This is just like going to India and telling a homeless kid that one day, he could be living in America with a steady job and a house. Is that possible? Yes. Is it realistic? No.

[86]

Anyway go to Monash. UoM is for losers.

[JinXi]

Anyway go to Monash. UoM is for losers.

(Image removed from quote.)

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