Environmental Engineering/Safety? Bioengineering? BS

[GoodYellowDogs]

I have looked at undergrad degrees for a while.   My son wants to look at something that would allow him to get into one of two areas:

1.  Bioengineering - he is a college-educated race car mechanic (with about 90 college units) and good with almost all types of machines and their associated computers systems.

2.  Environmental safety/quality/emergency jobs


Is there anything out their that is all online, cheap, and relatively fast.  He's okay with putting in the work, just doesn't want to spend 4 years more in college because he's a single parent now.

Thanks!

[Flelm]

What position is he looking for exactly, and where would his ultimate goal be? Does he have any upper level credit, and if so, in what?

Those are huge areas with a lot of different skill levels in them. If he's looking for entry level jobs, probably any bachelors would do. If he's looking to be able to move up, he probably really needs an engineering (mechanical, chemical, electrical?) or science (chemistry, biology?) degree, and possibly graduate degrees. At the company I work for (communications design), most if not all of our design engineers have their PhDs.

[sanantone]

While many safety programs include an emergency management course or a concentration, the two majors don't have a lot of overlap. Emergency management programs are usually not heavy on the science that's included in safety programs. I've taken several graduate-level safety courses, so most of my classmates were already in the safety field. Online degrees in safety are easy to find. He could go with plain regionally accredited, or he could look at the ABET and EHAC-accredited programs. A cheap, online bioengineering program is probably not out there. This degree is easier to find online at the graduate level.

https://www.nehspac.org/about-ehac/accre...-programs/

https://amspub.abet.org/aps/online-search

CEPH also accredits environmental health programs.

https://ceph.org/about/org-info/who-we-accredit/search/

[GoodYellowDogs]

While many safety programs include an emergency management course or a concentration, the two majors don't have a lot of overlap. Emergency management programs are usually not heavy on the science that's included in safety programs. I've taken several graduate-level safety courses, so most of my classmates were already in the safety field. Online degrees in safety are easy to find. He could go with plain regionally accredited, or he could look at the ABET and EHAC-accredited programs. A cheap, online bioengineering program is probably not out there. This degree is easier to find online at the graduate level.

https://www.nehspac.org/about-ehac/accre...-programs/

https://amspub.abet.org/aps/online-search

CEPH also accredits environmental health programs.

https://ceph.org/about/org-info/who-we-accredit/search/

[ss20ts]

https://www.excelsior.edu/program/bachel...anagement/

ASU has several degrees in biology.
https://asuonline.asu.edu/online-degree-programs/

https://asuonline.asu.edu/online-degree-...inability/

https://asuonline.asu.edu/online-degree-...inability/

https://www.bellevue.edu/degrees/bachelo...gement-bs/

https://www.bellevue.edu/degrees/bachelo...gement-bs/

https://www.snhu.edu/online-degrees/bach...al-science

This degree has a concentration in environmental sustainability.
https://www.snhu.edu/online-degrees/bach...thropology

https://www.fhsu.edu/geo/academic-progra...eosciences

https://www.wcu.edu/learn/programs/emerg...index.aspx

https://www.online.colostate.edu/degrees...economics/

https://www.online.colostate.edu/degrees/fire-services/

There's probably tons more if you do a google search. It all matters what specifically he's looking for. Cheap and fast are subjective terms. Will he be able to get a bachelor's in bioengineering in 6 months? Probably not. It all depends on what he's already taken and what he has left to complete. This will vary dramatically at every school.

[sanantone]

It should be noted that environmental sustainability is not the same as environmental health and safety. Environmental sustainability is related to environmental and conservation science with a focus on preserving the planet. Safety management, occupational safety, and environmental health are focused on humans. These programs cover things like industrial hygiene, toxicology, ergonomics, safety engineering, sanitation, and workplace safety.

[GoodYellowDogs]

Correct. I am aware.

[sanantone]

If he really wants a science-oriented program over emergency management, I'd go for one of three options: earn a safety or environmental health undergrad (ABET, EHAC, or CEPH-accredited program preferred), earn an undergrad in engineering or engineering technology (preferably a major that involves chemistry and biology), or earn an undergrad in a science (preferably in chemistry, biology, microbiology, or environmental science). At the master's level, it's easier to find environmental engineering and other engineering degrees. I've seen more online biomedical engineering than bioengineering programs. There's an abundance of MPH (environmental health concentration) and master's in safety programs online. If he majors in emergency management, he'll likely have to complete some science prerequisites to get into a graduate safety program down the line; he'll need almost another bachelor's degree just to get into a graduate engineering program. This is assuming that he hasn't already completed several biology, chemistry, and physics courses.

[GoodYellowDogs]

If he really wants a science-oriented program over emergency management, I'd go for one of three options: earn a safety or environmental health undergrad (ABET, EHAC, or CEPH-accredited program preferred), earn an undergrad in engineering or engineering technology (preferably a major that involves chemistry and biology), or earn an undergrad in a science (preferably in chemistry, biology, microbiology, or environmental science). At the master's level, it's easier to find environmental engineering and other engineering degrees. I've seen more online biomedical engineering than bioengineering programs. There's an abundance of MPH (environmental health concentration) and master's in safety programs online. If he majors in emergency management, he'll likely have to complete some science prerequisites to get into a graduate safety program down the line; he'll need almost another bachelor's degree just to get into a graduate engineering program. This is assuming that he hasn't already completed several biology, chemistry, and physics courses.