Looking for some school advice.

[mustangmike6996]

I will be finishing my enlistment in the USMC this coming fall/winter and I am trying to prepare for the transition back into the civilian world.

A little about me:

I worked as an ASE Master cert, L1 advaned diagnostics cert and C1 certified service consultant from up until the time I enlisted into the Marine Corps. I have an A.A.S. in Automotive technology from FSU, currently hold all of my ASE certs and have many other certs from the USMC. I will have 5 years active duty as an I-level Avionics technician, Collateral Duty Inspector (Qulaity Assurance) for testing/troubleshooting/repair of electroncis down the the component level on circuit cards.

I can easliy get back into the auto industry but I'm also considering obtaining a B.S. in engineering. My main goal is to work in R&D, as a tech rep, or field service engineer.

As far as continuing education I can finish my BS in management at FSU or go to MSU, U of M or lawrence tech (I dont know much about LTU though)

From personal experience, what would you all recommend. I will be staying in the Detroit area permanently.

 

[grr456]

I went to LTU after my military service, but that was in the early 70's so I don't have clue anymore. But, my daughter will be graduating from Kettering in a few weeks and I don't think you'll find a better engineering school. Both Kettering and LTU are regarded as 2 of the best engineering schools in the county.

Just my .02....Gary

 

[FlyLike]

One of my buddies here is an ex-marine looking to get into being an aviation mechanic since that's what he did in the corps. Apparently it's really good money and a high demand job.

 

[mustangmike6996]

I enjoy what I do but similar to working in a dealership, there is only so much room for growth before you have to move away from maintenance and transition to a more white collar job.

From the sounds of it, he was an O-level maintainer (actually work on the aircrafts) I am I level, so I dont work directly on the aircraft but do work on all of the gear removed. Specifically all of the Radar, Electronic countermeasures (ECM) and cockpit electronics. I do more of a depot job (somewhat of a factory refurbish style work) which makes getting into the actual avaition field a little harder because I cant obtain any FAA certs at this time.

 

[derbydad276]

just my 2 cents worth ...

if your good with your hands robotics

FWIW everyone I know that went to Lawrence Tech is making great money ! and the Airlines are still laying off no jobs there
and lets face it MSU or back to Ferris really ???? that's where fat chicks go

 

[WhiteHawk]

I would definitely recommend getting the Bachelors in Engineering. You pretty much have unlimited earning potential and job choice with your experience and an engineering degree. A guy I went to school with at Oakland U had some aircraft mechanic certifications and was a pilot. Once he got his BSME, he ended up getting an engineering job with one of the big defense contractors (Raytheon I think) working on aircraft carrier flight decks for big, big bucks. Sky is the limit with the degree, that is all I am saying.

-Geoff

 

[OMG ITS BEAN]

Definitely get your degree if you can. You may have opportunities now that look great but I think down the road in any technical/engineering field you will wish you had gotten your degree. To move up to any management or supervisory role in the future it's almost mandatory in any job field now.

 

[Atrus]

Nice thing with Kettering is it seems that with the internships and whatnot, you're almost guaranteed *a* position when you graduate. May not be exactly where you want to be, but it's a starting point and it's $$$ coming in.

 

[mdhmi]

Ferris or LTU or U of M. Yeah - that's tough one.

 

[mustangmike6996]

I did not know that LTU was as distinguished as many of you have mentioned. I am looking further into U of M and LTU as we speak. I have MSU and OU in mind as options as well (depending on acceptance to U of M or LTU) I have FSU in mind because I already have my AAS and a transition to a BS (in any major) would be much easier.

on a related note: tuition for LTU and U of M for the engineering courses is about 1k/credit hour ouch. (yes, I understand that it will pay for itself) :mmm:

 

[WhiteHawk]

If money is an issue, or you are just a cheap bastard like me, try community college to get the first two years under your belt. It is a big waste of money to pay LTU or U of M $1000 per credit to take Art History or Econ 1. You are usually better off taking calculus at comm. college too, since you will have smaller classes and less stuck up math professors.

Unless, of course, you want the whole "Go away to college" experience and rushing a fraternity type stuff, then one of the big universities is a no-brainer.

-Geoff

 

[mrvids]

There is a guy who works for General Dynamics (near Detroit) and as long as he gets a B or better they pay his tuition, but I am not sure where he is currently attending school. He is former Navy and working toward an engineering degree, I guess he works on electronics for military tanks for GD.

 

[TWOBEERS]

My son graduates from LTU next month with an Electrical Engineering major, and a minor in computer science. Excellent school. Believe me, he can pick and choose anywhere he wants to work. Kettering is also very good. The difference for him was that Kettering forces you to live on campus. With LTU, he was able to live at home while going to school which saved a lot of money.

 

[mustangmike6996]

thanks for all of the responses. I have my Montgomery GI/Post 911 GI bill that will be used so that would take the edge off of some of the courses. I would most likely do comm coll courses only if the school will accept them in their entirety. It took me too many extra credit hours to get my AAS because of transferring credits from one school to the next. Between My AAS at FSU and all of the ACE accredited courses Ive had in the USMC along with my A and C schools for my MOS, I have over 140 credit hours but nothing that will add up to a BS of any sort. Those also take a load off of electives. I am in no need to join a frat and party (Ill be 29 or 30 by my first semester)

 

[grr456]

The difference for him was that Kettering forces you to live on campus. With LTU, he was able to live at home while going to school which saved a lot of money.

Actually, that isn't quite accurate....You only need to live on campus the first semester of your freshman year. After that you can live anywhere you like.

Many people on this forum have gone there...

Gary

 

[95 Z/28 LT1]

The bigger the school or the better the pedigree - that approach usually won't let you down. However, Ferris and MSU will take you just as far as Kettering or LTU. It's how hard you want to work and what you do with the education that really counts.

 

[TopElimn8r]

If you plan on getting any sort of engineering degree I would highly recommend a minor in computer science. It is almost a requirement these days. To get a BME form U of M now a minor in Computer science is required. I totally agree with the difficulty of transferring credits. Most schools will not accept credits from schools you attended in the military,(including actual college courses from government contracted schools) I have first hand experience in this. I'm not sure if the GI bill is still structured the same as it was years ago but it was a pain getting the money from them and you have to complete a semester of school before they start paying.

 

[mustangmike6996]

there are many things that have changed with the older GI bill and the New Post-9/11 GI bill as well. It depends on which one I would prefer to use. They will take me through about 36 months of schooling.

The military schooling I do have (the courses I was talking about) are ACE accreditied so they actually are worth something (however little they might be) but 1-2 credit hours here and there in BS elective do help. I have many many computer classes/computer science and repair as well. I perform pinpoint troubleshooting on multi-million dollar test equipment along with all of the avionics gear for the EA-6B Prowler.

 

[WhiteHawk]

There used to be some deal in Michigan that would wipe out all requirements for the first two years but you had to get an Associates of Arts. If you just have random credits it doesn't count the same. I think for my first two years the big classes were calc I-III, linear algebra, diff EQ, statics, dynamics, chem 1, and calculus physics I and II. I had to take FORTRAN too (taught by the math department), but that one probably varies. There is no way I would pay the big bucks to take those classes for $1000 per credit (that is like 40 credits right there). Maybe if you just took those at OCC or something it would get you enough for the associates degree and solve your transfer issues.

-Geoff

 

[mustangmike6996]

Ill have to look further into that. I have my Associates of Applied Science already from FSU. I have U of M reveiwing my Joint Service Transcript right now along with my FSU credits to see where/how they can be applied to the BSME

Normally classes arent too tough to transfer but most schools do not like to transfer more than a few classes because they lose all the $$$$. It took me about 2-3 years to get FSU to bend and accept a bullshit USMC course that was worth exactly what I needed to finish my AAS. I had to talk to the dean directly numerous times and eventually he was out of the office and I ended up talking to the lady filling in for him. I explained that I was active duty for 4+ years, worked as an ASE master tech and had X amount of hours here and there just so they wouldnt make me retake a 100 level course for .6 of a cr hr which wouldve set me back another semester plus i wouldve had to take a 3 cr class at 328/hr. (and tuition assistance was taken from us at the time) no thanks.

Do you by chance know what the deal in MI was called?