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Mechanical Engineering coupled with Intelligence and Homeland Security

I plan to study Mechanical Engineering and minor in Intelligence and Homeland Security at The Citadel beginning in the fall of 2017. I am curious to know if and how this combination of studies will benefit our country in the future. #engineering #mechanical-engineering #mechanical #intelligence

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Glenn’s Answer

Baylor, Spruce makes a lot of good points. A major in mechanical engineering can be applied to any area. Intelligence and Homeland security do need devices for there work. To name a few metal detectors, x-ray machines, cameras, night vision googles, etc. There are plenty of opportunity to design and manufacture these products. There are also infrastructure that are targets for terrorist that need to be improved like the power grid, damns, etc. Improvements to make these less centralized will make us more secure.
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Scott’s Answer

Baylor, good luck at the Citadel this year. Its a great school for the major/minors you are going to study. There is a big demand for skilled folks in Homeland and the Intel Community. Both have demand for a wide array of skill sets and backgrounds and ME is a good place to start. I would suggest rounding out your base of knowledge with history and language skills if you are looking to get into field work. To answer your question about how that combo benefits our country... Your desire to work in government service is the most important benefit to the country. Get in there and work hard.
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Spruce’s Answer

I don't know anything about intelligence or security work except what I read in spy novels. However I would probably give this same answer to anyone considering any minor with ME, EE, or any other engineering major. My strong recommendation is that you focus on your engineering studies only, especially if you're going to do school full-time. There is a lot to learn and most of it is hard. Many schools have jam-packed engineering curricula to a full four years already so if you want to repeat a class or maybe study abroad for one semester, that will push you out to 4 1/2 years. In addition, most of the classes are required for your major leaving little room for schedule flexibility. Also, you may find one or two areas of study that you really have trouble with and may want to repeat.

I hope I haven't made this sound too hard, but hopefully hard enough to discourage pursuing a minor, at least right away. The one exception might be for a second language. That is becoming more and more important with large, international companies who do not go into a new country anymore with a bunch of people from headquarters, but may start in a new country and try to grow it organically as fast as practical.

The last comment I'll make about a minor as specific as yours is that with a straight mechanical or electrical engineering degree, you can step into almost any industry and start adding value right away. If you find that you're still interested in intelligence or security as a junior or senior, you could make more impact as a summer intern or talk to a couple of your network contacts about your upcoming graduation, either of which I think would make as big or bigger impact than a minor. Good luck.
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