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| Ask an Undergraduate Student: Frequently Asked Questions |
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Got a question? It may have already been answered.
Browse the frequently asked questions below, or browse the full archives.
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Browse FAQs
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Q: Did you decide which engineering discipline to study during your first year in college? Or later?
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Q: I am a community college student and I am trying to decide if I should transfer to a university that has both Engineering and Engineering Technology programs. However, I can't find the difference between Engineering and Engineering Technology. Could someone please explain the difference?
The difference between Engineering and Engineering Technology
The main issue that separates Engineering from Engineering Technology is the focus of Engineering Technology on implementation.
While Engineering is considered to include components such as design, analysis, optimization, forecasting and validation, the focus of Engineering Technology is almost solely on implementation.
The US National Society of Professional Engineers describes the difference between Engineering and Engineering Technology thus:
"Engineering programs are geared toward development of conceptual skills, and consist of a sequence of engineering fundamentals and design courses, built on a foundation of complex mathematics and science courses.
Engineering Technology programs are oriented toward application, and provide their students introductory mathematics and science courses, and only a qualitative introduction to engineering fundamentals.
Thus, engineering programs provide their graduates a breadth and depth of knowledge that allows them to function as designers. Engineering technology programs prepare their graduates to apply others' designs."
Engineering Technology Programs versus Engineering Programs
Due to the emphasis on implementation, the Engineering Technology curriculum will differ from an Engineering curriculum in that the course selections will contain less theoretical and analytical courses. According to ABET's FAQ page:
"Engineering undergraduate programs include more mathematics work and higher level mathematics than technology programs.
Engineering undergraduate programs often focus on theory, while technology programs usually focus on application.
Once they enter the workforce, engineering graduates typically spend their time planning, while engineering technology graduates spend their time making plans work.
At ABET, engineering and engineering technology programs are evaluated and accredited by two separate accreditation commissions using two separate sets of accreditation criteria.
Graduates from engineering programs are called engineers, while graduates of technology programs are often called technologists.
Some U.S. state boards of professional engineering licensure will allow only graduates of engineering programs, not engineering technology programs, to become licensed engineers."
International Recognition of Engineering Technology: The Sydney Accord
The Sydney Accord is an agreement between institutions that are responsible for accrediting Engineering Technology programs in different countries. Essentially this agreement states that graduates of accredited programs in any of the signatory countries should be recognized by the other countries as having met the academic requirements for entry into the practice of Engineering Technologist.
The signatory countries of this accord as of February 2007 are Australia, Canada, Republic of Ireland, Hong Kong, New Zealand, South Africa, and the United Kingdom.
The United States has not signed the Sydney Accord, primarily because the engineering technology profession is not well defined as a separate profession (distinct from professional engineering) in the United States. For a complete explanation, see the National Society of Professional Engineers' position on Engineering Technology.
Note that although the United States is not a signatory to the Sydney accord, the principal accrediting body for Engineering and Technology in the United States, (ABET), provides accreditation to Engineering Technology programs. We provide five (5) examples of universities in the U.S. that offer an accredited degree in Engineering Technology. To find them, we used the TryEngineering University Finder and selected Engineering Technology from the list of accredited fields.
The universities are: California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, LeTourneau University, McNeese State University, Temple University, and the University of Central Florida.
More Information
[1] Northeastern University School of Engineering Technology website: What is Engineering Technology, accessed February 1, 2007.
[2] NSPE (2006) NSPE Issue Brief: Engineering Technology, Publication #4049
[3] University of North Carolina website: Engineering versus Engineering Technology , accessed February 1, 2007.
[4] Wikipedia.org: Engineering Technology, accessed February 1, 2007. Caution: Wikipedia entries can be changed arbitrarily by any user at any time.
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