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I am having to make one of the most difficult choices in my life. I got accepted to both UBC and UofA for engineering in both. I know they both have awsome engineering faculties.. i know they both are accredited.
Cost is not really a factor and only slightly more for me to go to UBC then UofA
UBC ranks in the top 40 in the world and UofA really not that far behind in many world rankings.
The weather in Vancouver is much better then edmonton so this is one of my biggest draws. However- alot more engineering type jobs are in alberta and rather then the edmonton area because of the center of oil and gas. Petro is only avaliable in UofA.
I dont know what field of engineering ill want to do.. ill figure out after first year but leaning to civil,mech,mining, or petro from what i know about them.
I am worried that if i go to UBC i will have a hard time because its a 70%+ asian student engineering demography... Not cause they are harder working which they very well might be, just that i want to be included and have a good social experience. I myself am decent looking and very sociable. I should add i have a 90% entrance avg.
Do i go to UBC for the weather and lifestyle/climate and have a tougher time with job prospects, or do i go to edmonton have job opportunities up the ass but suffer miserable weather and climate 7 months of the year for 4 years... I am having a hard time between balancing success/offerings and where i want to live..
If you have experience in either campus, or engineering field in general give me tips and or advice so i can make the best judgement on what i should do. Especaily if you are non asian and went to UBC. I will greatly appriciate it!
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Mikeymoo went to U of A for engine so I would ask him. Although I hear him complain about Edmonton being just a really shitty city overall. I have friends that go to UBC and its just a beautiful campus and city. Also, after grad you could always go to Alberta and look for the jobs there.
Good Luck!
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motbob
United States12546 Posts
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For the blogs man, for the blogs!
I'd go for Alberta. Weather is subjective and to be honest, the fear of socializing because of an arbitrary number is silly.
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I'm at the UofA currently. For your undergrad, it really doesn't matter if you go to UBC or UofA, unless one of them doesn't offer a specific program. The advantage of UBC is definitely the weather. The weather here in Edmonton kinda sucks, so if you can't stand being cold outside, then you're out of luck. The advantage of UofA is that living in Edmonton is cheaper than living in Vancouver.
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Please state a reason when you suggest i go to one or the other 
[sorry i didnt know this was a blogging kind of post im fresh here]
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Didn't go to either campus or hold an engineering degree but I will say that UBC seems to be the better of the two options overall. I don't know about co-op placements or program qualities, but I'm sure both are very good.
As for the social aspect, there are going to be awkward people in any engineering program but that doesn't mean normal people are nowhere to be found. I found that when I went to university, most of my good friends were made in my first year from residence and not all of us were in the same program so don't worry about the Asianess of UBC. You will probably meet a lot of people like yourself at clubs, in residence and even in your Eng program.
Vancouver is also a much nicer city than Edmonton! Though, the Oilers >> Canucks in coolness.
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Why doesnt undergrad matter? Most engineers go into the real world after grad and dont look back i hear...
I want to find a coop job after 2 year, so opportunity is a big factor for me!
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Are you looking to do a masters after you finish your undergraduate?
I take it you're looking to get into the oil and gas side of things?
At first glance man, I'd recommend going to UBC. Vancouver is amazing and it won't make much difference later on. Having done an engineering degree at UBC will get you entry level work everywhere (at which point it becomes more about where you've worked and for how long anyway), or into a postgraduate program at UofA (because having a post graduate degree from a different university always looks good.
I'm a Canadian/NZ civil engineering student myself, so if you have any specific questions, i'd be happy to answer them.
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Do u think ill have the same work opportunties? As a company in alberta would hire a UBC grad the same as a UofA one? Dont people favor local people? Considering alot of the jobs are in alberta...
Im so scared to make the wrong decision  I appriciate Masamune your perspective on the social aspect that was very helpful for me.
How are competition at universities? A large proportion of asian keeners has me worried.
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I wouldn't worry about the percentages of asains, we have as many asains here in Auckland as Vancouver, and I can honestly say the distinctions are much more minor than everybody makes them out to be. i.e. there are the same proportions of slackers/work-a-holics as everywhere else.
Don't be scared to make the wrong decision man. You've got a choice between two amazing universities, you can't go wrong!
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Alethios how did u decide on civil? I like the idea of the masters, but i would like to work a bit before i do that, ill be going into university 2 years late so i have to finish and start earning a living sooner then later.
What school do you go too? Would the level of competition considering a constant level of effort for me be different between the 2 schools? Based on a engineering lifestyle where i deal with people, work on site sometimes and overview, and do some desk draft work too which field do u think fits this description?
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I am not racist or anything... but i tend to be able to joke socialize and just have fun better with most non asians, not all mind you! So if im doing group work projects and i have to work with very prideful intolorant and arrogant asians which ive come alot across it might be difficult. But then again u meet people of all races like that.
And i just am not attracted to asian girls, and id like to meet a girl i could marry one day in uni too!
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On May 27 2011 09:46 bdictkam wrote:Do u think ill have the same work opportunties? As a company in alberta would hire a UBC grad the same as a UofA one? Dont people favor local people? Considering alot of the jobs are in alberta... Im so scared to make the wrong decision I appriciate Masamune your perspective on the social aspect that was very helpful for me. How are competition at universities? A large proportion of asian keeners has me worried.
I wouldn't be worried to much about the "asian keeners". The keeners aren't exclusively found among the asians. This is more of a stereotype you'll eventually grow out of once you get to university.
As for the social aspect, yes there are a lot of asians like you said and yes they also tend to stick together much like how people of different races tend to group together. But do I think this will be detrimental on your social life? Not really. If you're really social, you'll always find opportunities to meet new people and the ones who will become good friends in the future.
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I don't know if you've seen the world rankings for the civil engineering schools around the world, but i imagine there is a pretty strong correlation between the ranking and the degree of competition.
http://www.topuniversities.com/university-rankings/world-university-rankings/2011/subject-rankings/engineering/civil-engineering
Notice UoA sneaking in 2 points behind UBC!
Personally, i'm in the same position as yourself with regards to the masters. I'm in my third year at the moment, and the student loan is piling up. I'll be looking to graduate, get a job for a couple years to pay off the bills, then head to UBC to do my masters (i'm a canadian citizen and I absolutely love vancouver!)
If you're looking to work on site, you're pretty much looking at civil engineering. Most of the other specilizations pretty much preclude that.
EDIT: Also, JoeSchmoe speaks the truth.
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I really should get to work, but feel free to PM me if you have any more questions and i'll do my best to answer them.
In summary though man, don't be worried about your decision, they're both great choices. Don't let yourself worry about the social aspects, every university in the world provides more social networking oppotunities than you could possibly use in a life time. To put things in some context, there are 30,000 students on campus right now, and even if 80% of them are unwilling to make new friends, thats still 6000 people to interact with on a daily basis (which you will, if you join clubs and put yourself out there). Lastly, civil engineering at the moment is one field that you don't need to fret too much about getting work. If you're at a good university (either of the two you've been accepted to), and get good grades you will find work. We're almost bombarded here at UoA with career's fairs, meet and greets and so forth. So many companies are looking to get their grubby mitts on us it's rediculous.
Don't stress, go where you want and back yourself in your decision.
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If you were do engineering again, or do it in the first place, would you do petroleum? Seems like the best highest paying jobs with jobs that travel alot are in this field... [i dont care solely on money i want an active interacting lifestyle]
Like i mentioned my choices are petro / mining / mech / civil
And if i want to go petro i HAVE to go uofa..
edit- Man u guys have been really good to me. I very much appricaite the help it has been very stressful!
Does UBC get the same bombardment of fairs? UofA seems like my ideal school, i just wish there was an ocean beside it haha! :D Everything seems to hing on if petroleum is worth going into over the other fields... otherwise i think im gonna go to UBC
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Good question. I guess the degree structure is a little different here at UoA, but the way it works is that the first year is immensely general, and you do a bit of everything. After the first year, you look back over what you liked and what you didn't, and choose your general field. The process continues as you progress through your degree, getting more and more specialised as you go.
In any case, I think you'll find that regardless of the particular courses you do, you'll learn most of what you need for your job, working on the job. In a sense, it doesn't matter too much which courses you end up doing. Your degree really just gives you an understanding of the general principles and a framework to aquire further knowledge (and employers are very aware of this).
My advice is to go to the university you'll think that you'll enjoy more, and leave the decisions about how you want to progress your career for when you've got a better idea of the options.
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Yeh but if i go to UBC and end up thinking i want to do petroleum... ill be hooped this is why this is an important consideration for me right now...
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Nah, you can always do a postgraduate diploma, or get a masters in it... or simply look for work with those companies. In my experience employers specifications for recent graduates are pretty broad.
At the careers fair most companies were just looking for 'Civil engineers' or 'Software engineers' or whatever. They know if you're intelligent and diligent that you'll pick things up.
If you have your heart set on petro though, absolutely go to UofA.
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EPT
