Carnegie Mellon Chemical Engineering

[gishwah1]

Hi everyone,

 

I was wondering if any current or former CMU students could share their thoughts/opinions on the school's chemical engineering graduate program. I know the program's ranking is up there, but it would be great to hear a real student share their stories. It would be interesting to hear about the research and faculty, reputation of the school, student life, etc.

 

I have been admitted to the PhD program at CMU and it looks to be the most favorable of my options as of now. I know I'll be able to get this information when I visit in March, but it would be nice to learn more sooner than later.

 

Thanks!

[sr0304]

I started a PhD at CMU in 2011, in the Humanities, but dropped out because I did not care for the school. Let me start off by saying that a lot of your decision should be based off of you're feelings about the program. But as far as the school is concerned: it's overpriced, not particularly benevolent, and if you ever need student support regarding ethics, well...the Ombudsman is the Vice Provost, if that tells you anything.

 

I admire Andrew Carnegie as a political and cultural figure, but the administration will charge you a lot of money and if you struggle with bills, the best they can do is push it to 2 weeks later. What's frustrating about this process is that the administration will act like they're "helping you out." Such a joke.

 

I didn't go through this, as I was given full funding. However, I watched my students struggle. They were stressed, discouraged, and falling deep into debt without many resources to avoid it. The lack of financial aid and school support is why CMU has been ranked as one of the country's most stressful schools, and the suicide rates are pretty high too.

 

But maybe your offer is amazing and the faculty seem caring toward you, and in that case, you should go. It's your call. Just sharing my experience with that University--it's usually just the rich kids who have the luxury of loving it there.

Edited February 3, 2013 by sr0304

[gishwah1]

Thanks for the reply and I'm sorry to hear you had a bad experience there. I am lucky to be in a program where I am well funded for my entire stay, so I don't think this will apply to me. I can't say anything about the faculty since I haven't met any of them in person yet.

 

It would be really great if anyone else could share any information on the ChE program at CMU.