It depends on a lot of things...

If being able to surf is a priority, UCF is a way easier commute before/after class than UF.

If academic prestige is an issue, Georgia Tech was founded as a school for mechanical engineering at its inception, and the ticket from GT carries a lot of weight. I believe Auburn ME/AE is also a bit more highly regarded than the FL schools.

Between UF and UCF, my employer in Melbourne has a relative bias toward UF for EEs, but a lot of it's related to where our older managers and their kids went to school. In other words, based on retardedly irrelevant criteria.

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My own experience with UCF was mostly positive, but declined toward the end. Their EE department was taken over by Greeks (not fraternities, but professors from Greece with no work experience) with high research ambitions, and they got too big for their britches too fast. But compared to UF, I really liked the smaller class sizes at the time. I'm not sure how class size and 1-on-1 professor time compares now.

You mentioned Engineering/Aerospace, which is really pretty broad. A lot of electrical engineers wind up working "aerospace". I guess one question is whether your kid has a very specific interest, like robotics, control systems, aircraft/wing design, spacecraft design, propulsion, weaponry, etc... If there is a specific desire for one of those, then further investigation is worthwhile.

I think UCF renamed their Dept of Mechanical Engineering to be MEAS (Mechanical Engineering and Aerospace Sciences) or something like that, and might now even offer separate degrees (ME vs AE) within that dept.

If there are no specific desires, then you'll probably do very well with either school, as long as the grades are good (employers still put a premium on that). Work experience is helpful, and that's one area where UCF has an advantage because of the huge aerospace industry in/around Orlando. I worked part-time for a couple years at Lockheed Martin, and I think that was a little more effective experience-wise than one or two summer internships would have been.

Despite all the aerospace industry around Orlando, you'd be surprised to find out how much work is not done here; i.e., for certain employment opportunities you'll still have to pay some dues out of state.

Feel free to PM me if you want to talk more. I don't have all the answers, but can offer some insights based on 10 years at UCF and 25 years in industry (some overlap between them).

Some of our preeminent mechanical engineers from the forum are unavailable at the moment, afaik.

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P.S. I found the girls to be much friendlier in Gainesville!



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That boy's got somethin' wrong with his medulla oblongata.