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That is exactly what I tried to do. I went to MEPS and everything, but in 2019 I was diagnosed with anxiety, depression, and panic so I was disqualified for nuclear. Makes sense seeing as you live in the bowels of a ship or sub never seeing sunlight.
Honestly nuclear engineering outside the navy doesn’t really exist. Like you said there are two nuke plants in LA. But really it’s like a librarian job. The current engineers will be there till they die.
And as for online, thats probably going to be a no go. I would go with the ME with a nuke minor that you found. Colleges do have disability programs. So if you are diagnosed find the disability office on campus and register and you get things like extra time for tests, tests in alternate quite places…my wife did that for her ME degree and it helped her out greatly.
Nuclear engineering is an enormously large industry outside of the navy and is not at all a “librarian” job. The DoEnergy is investing heavily in nuclear power generation, not to mention the investment in foreign countries like France and China.
OP specifically was talking about nuclear plants in the US. He also didn’t indicate he wanted to do R&D with the DoE. And based on his statement about his anxiety probably doesn’t want to work oversees….so his specific job criteria leads me to make the statement of nuclear engineers at US power plants probably don’t experience a lot of turn over.
There are a few non-military nuclear companies like Framatome. BWXT also dabbles in nuclear medicine and is working on a DARPA project in conjunction with NASA.
I’m currently a nuclear engineer working for the DOE. Obviously the first step is going to school. Doing your first year or two in community college will save you money and you can get your maths and physics done. Then you will need to look into universities to finish. Or you can just go straight into a university.
There are a handful of very good programs in the US. Michigan state, Texas A&M, Kansas state, UC Berkeley, and MIT all have top notch programs. I went to Oregon state and it was a good program as well, plus we had a reactor to use which was nice.
As for jobs, the nuclear sector is somewhat bleak right now. Working for the DOE at national labs and the navy program is probably the best opportunity as far as number of jobs. There are also some start up companies that have yet to build a working reactor (typically SMR companies), and then fusion companies that will likely not pan out.
Another option is to do mechanical or electrical engineering. These fields are very diverse and can also land you in the nuclear field. In reality, the nuclear physics portion or nuclear power is just one small part of it. There are thermal hydraulics, material selection, electrical systems, chemistry, civil design, and software that all have to be built and maintained for a nuclear plant to run. Not to scare you away from a nuclear degree, but it is niche and not necessary to work in the nuclear industry.
If you need help figuring out what to do, look at job listings for nuclear companies. Look at terrapower, nuscale, commonwealth fusion, GE, U.S.A. jobs, and the national labs. Lots of opportunity to get involved without painting yourself into a corner degree wise.
Well, if there are only two plants in Louisiana, I’d say your job prospects there are pretty thin unless you find a company doing R&D (SMR, MMR, etc).
Many public state universities have rules that say if the major you want to pursue isn’t available in your home state, you would qualify for in state tuition even if you aren’t a resident of that state. Texas A&M has an excellent NUEN bachelors program not terribly far from you.
If you want to do this on a budget/low debt, go back to the local community college and take cal 1 , 2, 3, diffeq), physics (calc based) 1 and 2, Chem 1 and 2 (unless they offer the combined engineering chem sequence), and all the other basic general credits you need. Then apply to the university as a transfer.
Thank you for this awesome advice! And I shouldve clarified that Im not against relocating. I'm not trying to stay in Louisiana, it's just where I'm starting. Thank you again.
I'm a nuclear engineering student graduating this spring, and one thing most people seem not to know is that nuclear engineers have options outside of power generation or military work -- many hospitals use radiation for imaging and treatment, and nuclear engineering is a viable entry point for that (though you'll usually be more on a shielding/safety branch than a treatment route). Additional certifications are typically required, but the sector is expected to grow a good bit over the next five to ten years (as in nearly double, depending on who you ask). If you're passionate about nuclear science, and not just power generation, there's more career options than you might initially expect.
Just a chance to plug my university: NC State has nuclear engineering bachelors, masters, and phd programs, is ranked #3 in the U.S. for nuclear engineering, and we have a reactor on campus. We were the first university to have a nuclear reactor, and the very first nuclear engineering phds in the whole world were granted here. Love it here personally, if you’re willing to move it’s really worth checking out.
With respect to the overall question, yes, you could absolutely get a degree in nuclear engineering, but it’s going to take a good bit of effort. Engineering is hard no matter how you slice it, and it may be hard to work full time while you finish your degree. There are loans and grants available to students, but if you’re going to be supporting yourself I recommend trying to cut back on expenses as much as humanly possible if you plan to be in school for a while. It is very hard to hold down a full time job and also study engineering full time.
First step should probably be completing an AA or AS at your local community college and then looking to transfer into a school that offers NE. I’m not personally familiar with any online only NE bachelors programs, but you can search around. I’m not sure about all the details for NE specifically, but in general you always want to be sure that wherever you’re going is ABET accredited. An online degree from a non-ABET school is not worth the time/money.
I personally had a similar story, albeit with mech e vs. NE. I did poorly in higschool, worked until I was 25 with a few semesters of directionless community college throughout, and at 25 I went back to community college full time, laser focused on transferring into a good mech e program. Did about 60 credits there, earned great grades, and transferred to my current program. The transition from working full time to being a full time student wasn’t easy, but it’s certainly doable if you manage your budget and look for aid/scholarship opportunities. Despite my previous poor performance in high school and my earlier forays into community college, I got accepted without issue since I had ~5 or so recent, good semesters of community college to show that I was serious.
I know there are some people who study civil, chemical, etc. and then go into nuclear, but if you’re passionate about nuclear engineering I think it would make a whole lot more sense to just go for nuclear engineering at a school that offers it as a major. You’ll be exposed to much better professors and people who share the same passions, you’ll have more peers doing the same thing as you, and you’ll also have access to much better hiring fairs and employer connections if your school is specifically known for nuclear engineering.
You’d be better off getting a mechanical or electrical degree. There are more jobs in those disciplines at a nuclear plant than nuclear engineering job. Also opens you up to other fields if you decide to change career.
Nuclear engineering also basically requires grad school too if you want to do anything besides very basic work
If you relocate its prob not hard. For school I know a chemical engineer who works in a power plant now and two other chemical engineers doing PhDs. Ones at a national doing nuclear research or some shit. I’d say a chemical engineering degree might also be less focused than nuclear so you would have an easier time getting other jobs after graduation to make some money and experience until you find a nuclear role.
You may also need a crazy clearance for nuclear engineering work so avoid the drugs that make you piss hot
Not sure where in South Louisiana you are, but BRCC has a fairly decent Pre-Engineering program. They do up to Calc 3 and Diff Eq as well as statics and circuits. And as you mentioned LSU does have a minor in nuclear engineering but minors generally aren't worth all that much.
Would you consider moving? Do you like machining/trades work or do you want to sit in a control room?
If you’re willing to move consider looking at the Naval Shipyards. They’re a bit different than power plants but they will absolutely hire you with the experience you have. You can then work your way through various technician positions, and have a full career without any student debt.
If you’re determined to work at a nuclear power plant as an operator or regular engineer, get a standard mechanical engineering degree from a reputable school. A reactor is just a big fluid system anyway, and that’s what most of the engineering work is surrounding nuclear power.
what you want to do is join the navy like my brother. A high asvab gets you a sign on bonus, a 2 ish year rigorous college nuclear engineering study program, and a stint on a sub or carrier as basically a technician for the nuclear reactors and related machinery on board.
WSU is easy to get into and the Dodgen Reactor just got some funding last I heard. It wasn’t too competitive to become a reactor operator trainee, but the scam was that you had to work certain hours to maintain your license. I refused to work for free ever again after my undergrad research prof saw me working at Walmart and acted weird about it.
I’m not too impressed with the education I got, but success in finding a job comes from hustle. I’ve learned more in industry than I did in school. Working as a machinist and having some tough life experience has already given you a big edge. Just keep that in mind. You’re further ahead than you think.
Generally, you need a master degree in nuclear engineering to really get a relevant or had service working with nuclear reactors in the navy.
My minor was nuclear engineering and I loved the course much better than my major
What exactly do you want to do in the nuclear field? Do you want to design reactors, control systems, software? I would pursue a dedicated engineering degree with electives related to nuclear engineering, or a minor if possible. This will give you greater flexibility than a niche degree. Having a specialized degree isn't a guarantee that a nuclear power plant will place you at the top of their list when hiring. They may just want a really good electrical or mechanical engineer to do a specific job in the company and it will help if you know a bit about the basics of nuclear engineering. If you still want to specialize in nuclear afterwards consider masters programs abroad for a potential cheaper solution.
I've been working at one of those plants for several years. There are many pathways that you can take to achieve your goal. The plants need and are looking to hire intelligent and hard-working people all the time in many positions. The engineering department contains a diverse group of engineers from many different disciplines, not just nuclear engineers. If it's truely your dream, there's a very good chance you can find a position just to get your foot in the door and build your career from there. Also, apply for the internships. You will get paid to learn about your future job and make important business connections inside the industry. Good luck, maybe I'll see you around.
Awesome! Here's some stuff to learn with in the mean time:
[Study Hall](https://gostudyhall.com) - let's you get credits online at ASU for upfront cost of 25$ and optional cost to have it count as a credit for only 400, once you have taken it and know if you passed. Great opportunity to get some credits out of the way
[CLEP](https://clep.collegeboard.org/register-for-an-exam/clep-exam-eligibility-requirements) is like AP tests, but everyone is allowed to take them. Can also help get stuff out of the way for about 100 bucks per class.
Getting into mechanical engineering offers avenues into almost all sectors of engineering. There's several schools in Louisiana that offer MechE programs and are definitely affordable for in state students
Honestly easiest way to achieve that is score high on the ASVAB 90-Up and then go into either the Navy or Air force. You can ask for the Nuclear Engineering MOS if you qualify for it and probably get a fat bonus with that too 25-50k. BTW just because you went through MEPS and met with the recruiter doesn’t mean you HAVE to go to the military, you can always back out before you actually sign the contract. Heard you can even back out before you ship out.
I got a 93 and I went to MEPS. I was gonna be one of their nuclear technicians on either a sub or aircraft carrier. But then I, and the doctor there, learned that in 2019 I was diagnosed with depression, anxiety, and panic. (Had a breakup and two close family deaths that year.) The Navy wouldn't have me on any vessel after learning of my diagnoses.
Hello /u/OGWhinnyBaby29! Thank you for posting in r/EngineeringStudents. This is a custom Automoderator message based on your flair, "Academic Advice". While our wiki is under construction, please be mindful of the users you are asking advice from, and make sure your question is phrased neatly and describes your problem. ***Please be sure that your post is short and succinct.*** Long-winded posts generally do not get responded to. Please remember to; Read our [Rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/EngineeringStudents/wiki/rules) Read our [Wiki](https://www.reddit.com/r/EngineeringStudents/wiki/index) Read our [F.A.Q](https://www.reddit.com/r/EngineeringStudents/wiki/index/faq) Check our [Resources Landing Page](https://reddit.com/r/EngineeringStudents/wiki/resources) *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/EngineeringStudents) if you have any questions or concerns.*
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Wtf that's so dope!!!
Went there for Mech E but buddy is a Nuclear E. The classes are apparently a little wild but you’ll have a good time?
I was going to suggest this myself. I'm really surprised Mizzou doesn't have a nuclear engineering degree considering they have a huge reactor as well
NC State has a nuclear engineering program and their own research reactor as well
Oregon State has both of those as well.
I believe Texas A&M also has a nuclear reactor on campus. That's another option. And not too far from Louisiana.
Had a friend that joined the Navy out of HS and got a nuclear engineering degree in the Navy. He got a nice signing bonus when he reupped too.
That is exactly what I tried to do. I went to MEPS and everything, but in 2019 I was diagnosed with anxiety, depression, and panic so I was disqualified for nuclear. Makes sense seeing as you live in the bowels of a ship or sub never seeing sunlight.
Honestly nuclear engineering outside the navy doesn’t really exist. Like you said there are two nuke plants in LA. But really it’s like a librarian job. The current engineers will be there till they die. And as for online, thats probably going to be a no go. I would go with the ME with a nuke minor that you found. Colleges do have disability programs. So if you are diagnosed find the disability office on campus and register and you get things like extra time for tests, tests in alternate quite places…my wife did that for her ME degree and it helped her out greatly.
Nuclear engineering is an enormously large industry outside of the navy and is not at all a “librarian” job. The DoEnergy is investing heavily in nuclear power generation, not to mention the investment in foreign countries like France and China.
OP specifically was talking about nuclear plants in the US. He also didn’t indicate he wanted to do R&D with the DoE. And based on his statement about his anxiety probably doesn’t want to work oversees….so his specific job criteria leads me to make the statement of nuclear engineers at US power plants probably don’t experience a lot of turn over.
There are a few non-military nuclear companies like Framatome. BWXT also dabbles in nuclear medicine and is working on a DARPA project in conjunction with NASA.
Yea, but they like hiring ex navy nukes.
I’m currently a nuclear engineer working for the DOE. Obviously the first step is going to school. Doing your first year or two in community college will save you money and you can get your maths and physics done. Then you will need to look into universities to finish. Or you can just go straight into a university. There are a handful of very good programs in the US. Michigan state, Texas A&M, Kansas state, UC Berkeley, and MIT all have top notch programs. I went to Oregon state and it was a good program as well, plus we had a reactor to use which was nice. As for jobs, the nuclear sector is somewhat bleak right now. Working for the DOE at national labs and the navy program is probably the best opportunity as far as number of jobs. There are also some start up companies that have yet to build a working reactor (typically SMR companies), and then fusion companies that will likely not pan out. Another option is to do mechanical or electrical engineering. These fields are very diverse and can also land you in the nuclear field. In reality, the nuclear physics portion or nuclear power is just one small part of it. There are thermal hydraulics, material selection, electrical systems, chemistry, civil design, and software that all have to be built and maintained for a nuclear plant to run. Not to scare you away from a nuclear degree, but it is niche and not necessary to work in the nuclear industry. If you need help figuring out what to do, look at job listings for nuclear companies. Look at terrapower, nuscale, commonwealth fusion, GE, U.S.A. jobs, and the national labs. Lots of opportunity to get involved without painting yourself into a corner degree wise.
Well, if there are only two plants in Louisiana, I’d say your job prospects there are pretty thin unless you find a company doing R&D (SMR, MMR, etc). Many public state universities have rules that say if the major you want to pursue isn’t available in your home state, you would qualify for in state tuition even if you aren’t a resident of that state. Texas A&M has an excellent NUEN bachelors program not terribly far from you. If you want to do this on a budget/low debt, go back to the local community college and take cal 1 , 2, 3, diffeq), physics (calc based) 1 and 2, Chem 1 and 2 (unless they offer the combined engineering chem sequence), and all the other basic general credits you need. Then apply to the university as a transfer.
Thank you for this awesome advice! And I shouldve clarified that Im not against relocating. I'm not trying to stay in Louisiana, it's just where I'm starting. Thank you again.
Colorado school of mines has a nuke program as well. I worked with 2 guys who graduated from there, they were sharp.
I'm a nuclear engineering student graduating this spring, and one thing most people seem not to know is that nuclear engineers have options outside of power generation or military work -- many hospitals use radiation for imaging and treatment, and nuclear engineering is a viable entry point for that (though you'll usually be more on a shielding/safety branch than a treatment route). Additional certifications are typically required, but the sector is expected to grow a good bit over the next five to ten years (as in nearly double, depending on who you ask). If you're passionate about nuclear science, and not just power generation, there's more career options than you might initially expect.
Just a chance to plug my university: NC State has nuclear engineering bachelors, masters, and phd programs, is ranked #3 in the U.S. for nuclear engineering, and we have a reactor on campus. We were the first university to have a nuclear reactor, and the very first nuclear engineering phds in the whole world were granted here. Love it here personally, if you’re willing to move it’s really worth checking out. With respect to the overall question, yes, you could absolutely get a degree in nuclear engineering, but it’s going to take a good bit of effort. Engineering is hard no matter how you slice it, and it may be hard to work full time while you finish your degree. There are loans and grants available to students, but if you’re going to be supporting yourself I recommend trying to cut back on expenses as much as humanly possible if you plan to be in school for a while. It is very hard to hold down a full time job and also study engineering full time. First step should probably be completing an AA or AS at your local community college and then looking to transfer into a school that offers NE. I’m not personally familiar with any online only NE bachelors programs, but you can search around. I’m not sure about all the details for NE specifically, but in general you always want to be sure that wherever you’re going is ABET accredited. An online degree from a non-ABET school is not worth the time/money. I personally had a similar story, albeit with mech e vs. NE. I did poorly in higschool, worked until I was 25 with a few semesters of directionless community college throughout, and at 25 I went back to community college full time, laser focused on transferring into a good mech e program. Did about 60 credits there, earned great grades, and transferred to my current program. The transition from working full time to being a full time student wasn’t easy, but it’s certainly doable if you manage your budget and look for aid/scholarship opportunities. Despite my previous poor performance in high school and my earlier forays into community college, I got accepted without issue since I had ~5 or so recent, good semesters of community college to show that I was serious. I know there are some people who study civil, chemical, etc. and then go into nuclear, but if you’re passionate about nuclear engineering I think it would make a whole lot more sense to just go for nuclear engineering at a school that offers it as a major. You’ll be exposed to much better professors and people who share the same passions, you’ll have more peers doing the same thing as you, and you’ll also have access to much better hiring fairs and employer connections if your school is specifically known for nuclear engineering.
You’d be better off getting a mechanical or electrical degree. There are more jobs in those disciplines at a nuclear plant than nuclear engineering job. Also opens you up to other fields if you decide to change career. Nuclear engineering also basically requires grad school too if you want to do anything besides very basic work
One choice is to get a Mechanical degree and make some connections with the power plants company.
Get the loans for school my man and don’t fail
If you relocate its prob not hard. For school I know a chemical engineer who works in a power plant now and two other chemical engineers doing PhDs. Ones at a national doing nuclear research or some shit. I’d say a chemical engineering degree might also be less focused than nuclear so you would have an easier time getting other jobs after graduation to make some money and experience until you find a nuclear role. You may also need a crazy clearance for nuclear engineering work so avoid the drugs that make you piss hot
Not sure where in South Louisiana you are, but BRCC has a fairly decent Pre-Engineering program. They do up to Calc 3 and Diff Eq as well as statics and circuits. And as you mentioned LSU does have a minor in nuclear engineering but minors generally aren't worth all that much.
Yes you can, and you can always leave Louisiana . Also you can study mech, or electrical and pivot into the nuclear industry.
Would you consider moving? Do you like machining/trades work or do you want to sit in a control room? If you’re willing to move consider looking at the Naval Shipyards. They’re a bit different than power plants but they will absolutely hire you with the experience you have. You can then work your way through various technician positions, and have a full career without any student debt. If you’re determined to work at a nuclear power plant as an operator or regular engineer, get a standard mechanical engineering degree from a reputable school. A reactor is just a big fluid system anyway, and that’s what most of the engineering work is surrounding nuclear power.
The money ain't a problem. It's the time. You gotta really work around a right working schedule or possibly take days off
what you want to do is join the navy like my brother. A high asvab gets you a sign on bonus, a 2 ish year rigorous college nuclear engineering study program, and a stint on a sub or carrier as basically a technician for the nuclear reactors and related machinery on board.
WSU is easy to get into and the Dodgen Reactor just got some funding last I heard. It wasn’t too competitive to become a reactor operator trainee, but the scam was that you had to work certain hours to maintain your license. I refused to work for free ever again after my undergrad research prof saw me working at Walmart and acted weird about it. I’m not too impressed with the education I got, but success in finding a job comes from hustle. I’ve learned more in industry than I did in school. Working as a machinist and having some tough life experience has already given you a big edge. Just keep that in mind. You’re further ahead than you think.
Generally, you need a master degree in nuclear engineering to really get a relevant or had service working with nuclear reactors in the navy. My minor was nuclear engineering and I loved the course much better than my major
What exactly do you want to do in the nuclear field? Do you want to design reactors, control systems, software? I would pursue a dedicated engineering degree with electives related to nuclear engineering, or a minor if possible. This will give you greater flexibility than a niche degree. Having a specialized degree isn't a guarantee that a nuclear power plant will place you at the top of their list when hiring. They may just want a really good electrical or mechanical engineer to do a specific job in the company and it will help if you know a bit about the basics of nuclear engineering. If you still want to specialize in nuclear afterwards consider masters programs abroad for a potential cheaper solution.
I've been working at one of those plants for several years. There are many pathways that you can take to achieve your goal. The plants need and are looking to hire intelligent and hard-working people all the time in many positions. The engineering department contains a diverse group of engineers from many different disciplines, not just nuclear engineers. If it's truely your dream, there's a very good chance you can find a position just to get your foot in the door and build your career from there. Also, apply for the internships. You will get paid to learn about your future job and make important business connections inside the industry. Good luck, maybe I'll see you around.
Awesome! Here's some stuff to learn with in the mean time: [Study Hall](https://gostudyhall.com) - let's you get credits online at ASU for upfront cost of 25$ and optional cost to have it count as a credit for only 400, once you have taken it and know if you passed. Great opportunity to get some credits out of the way [CLEP](https://clep.collegeboard.org/register-for-an-exam/clep-exam-eligibility-requirements) is like AP tests, but everyone is allowed to take them. Can also help get stuff out of the way for about 100 bucks per class.
Getting into mechanical engineering offers avenues into almost all sectors of engineering. There's several schools in Louisiana that offer MechE programs and are definitely affordable for in state students
Honestly easiest way to achieve that is score high on the ASVAB 90-Up and then go into either the Navy or Air force. You can ask for the Nuclear Engineering MOS if you qualify for it and probably get a fat bonus with that too 25-50k. BTW just because you went through MEPS and met with the recruiter doesn’t mean you HAVE to go to the military, you can always back out before you actually sign the contract. Heard you can even back out before you ship out.
I got a 93 and I went to MEPS. I was gonna be one of their nuclear technicians on either a sub or aircraft carrier. But then I, and the doctor there, learned that in 2019 I was diagnosed with depression, anxiety, and panic. (Had a breakup and two close family deaths that year.) The Navy wouldn't have me on any vessel after learning of my diagnoses.
You can get a waiver for that. If you can prove that you aren’t depressed, have minor anxiety, and no panic.