DIII 3-2 engineering programs

With the late Summer recruiting fast approaching for 2017s making college/baseball decisions, I am hoping to revive this old thread to see what the current thinking is on the subject of 3-2 Engineering programs and playing college baseball. 

I recognize many of the old posters with students exploring this option may not be here anymore.  But between this thread and another one with a similar title, there was a pretty negative assessment of the option of pursuing 3-2 Engineering and playing baseball.  I am wondering if that should still be the case?

At the time of these old threads, some of these 3-2 programs were new to the LACs (as noted, adopted as a means to attract more kids to consider LACs).  So here are some questions for others who may have considered the option of your son attending a LAC to play baseball with the goal of going into another school for years 4-5 to pursue an Engineering degree:

• Did anyone's son start with the goal of finding a 4-year Engineering degree program where they could play baseball and then decide to switch to the 3-2 option (at a LAC or even D1)?  If so, did it work out and they got both degrees?  Why did your son decide to go this route (i.e. worried about being able to play baseball and study Engineering, baseball coaches discouraged or prevented Engineering major, etc.).

• Has anyone had a son who enrolled in the 3-2 program, completed the 3 years at the LAC and then moved on to the Engineering school and found a way to play that 4th year of eligibility?  If so, did they have to wait out a year?  Did it take any special actions on the part of the LAC program coach, and if so, was their an up front commitment to support it?

• For those involved in the hiring of engineering college graduates, would you really look differently at a student who began their college career at a LAC, got a BA degree, and then received a two-year BS degree in Engineering?  One poster on another thread said he had never hired a graduate from a "2 year degree"  and that the student would be looked at negatively, while another poster said having the BA implying the ability to actually write and communicate as an Engineer would be more valuable.  Would a kid who transfers into Columbia, or USC, or similar elite school that participates in some of these 3-2 programs really not be able to find an Engineering job after they get their degree?

I am aware that many would prefer the more straightforward option of going to a school where a kid could both play baseball and get their Engineering degree in four years.  But how common is that, particularly at the D1 level even at great engineering schools like Purdue and Georgia Tech?  Is it possible that a kid may have a better chance of doing both by going the 3-2 option even if it means a 5th year of tuition and no more baseball after 3 years? 

All thoughts and perspectives appreciated.

Found a blog about 3-2 and the comments are more interesting than the article itself:

http://www.thecollegesolution....engineering-program/

Particularly this one:

For athletes wishing to study engineering, the 3-2 or 4-2 programs are especially recommended. Unless they are highly ranked in their sport nationally, they may only be able to play at a NCAA Division 2 or 3 school and these programs allow them to do so before they enroll in their engineering program.

and this one:

One thing that comes to mind is overal cost. A student may go to a LAC that provides generous merit aid, but then transfers to Washington Univ for the final 2 years for the engineering degree. Washington Univ is a school which does not give out a lot of merit aid and has very high tuition.

Backstop22,

I haven't changed my thoughts (5 years ago) on 3+2 for my oldest son's situation.  His college choice gave him the most academic flexibility while playing at a competitive D1 level.  To be clear, he had no desire to be a professional baseball player.  Personally, I think a better question is asking about the D1 baseball demands of Purdue and Georgia Tech (your engineering examples) if your son has the desire to be a professional baseball player.  These are extremely competitive conferences with demanding Fall, Spring and Summer baseball requirements.  

If your son wants to be a professional baseball player then the 3+2 makes more sense as he could have the option to turn pro after his junior year draft with the understanding he could come back to get an engineering degree later.   Of course he'd have to be drafted high enough to make it worthwhile.

Another thought swimming in the back of my mind is the fact that many students either don't like engineering (it wasn't what they thought), don't make the academic cut, or find something that they like better.  So, possibly the 3+2 option is overthinking things?  I don't know, I'm just throwing ideas out there.

A fifth year of undergrad was not an option in our situation.  My son did not want to pay for it, and he wanted a break from college.   The competitive level at his engineering school was incredibly intense, and he was looking forward to starting his career after graduation.

Just my honest two cents...feel free to reach out if you want to discuss specifics.

My opinion has not changed. Most of the LAC's with the 3-2 degree are D3's. There are quite a few 4 year options for engineering at the D3 level. 

In our area, we have a couple of very well respected engineering schools. I would look hard and long at those before choosing a 3+2. 

I appreciate your perspective having gone through it with your oldest.  And no, professional baseball considerations are not even on the table for my son.  In his perfect world, he would go to a D1 like a Purdue or GT (or even a D2 like UC-San Diego out here in SoCal), play baseball and get an Engineering degree from one of the best engineering schools in the country and graduate with a nice job in engineering.  But the more I research the rosters on those schools' baseball teams, it seems even at great engineering schools, the baseball players are not majoring in engineering.  You may be on to something that it is the player who decides against engineering once they get to college and try it, not the college coach discouraging them from it.  But he has been open in communicating to the coaches of these schools of his engineering interest, and that may be killing any remote chance he has in getting them interested in him as a player.

But given that situation, it pretty much limits a kid like mine who is 99% sure he wants to pursue mechanical engineering from pursuing anything but the technical D3 schools or considering the 3-2 option at the LACs.  And of course, 2/3 of the academic schools at Headfirst and Stanford are LACs, and wouldn't you know it, the only real interest he has gotten are from the LACs.  A few of which have the 3-2 option into some great Engineering schools like Columbia and USC.  That 5th year is a scary consideration (heck 5 years to a 17 year old is a lifetime!), but then if you get financial aid from being a part of the baseball team the first three years, the two paid years at a Columbia would not seem as burdensome (especially if he went there for 4 years as a regular undergrad).  Just another factor to evaluate.

I remain hopeful that maybe someone here on this forum has successfully navigated the 3-2 option and it worked out well for their son.  Otherwise, it is coming down to a tough decision for my son to either give up on baseball or find another major he might be interested in.  We will try to visit a few of the D3's with engineering this Fall to see if that might work, but there are none out West (except Harvey Mudd or Caltech that he probably cannot get into).

I don't understand any negativity toward an Engineering degree, whether it took 5 or 4 years to complete.  To get the diploma the same core coursework has to be completed.  It took me 6 yrs to graduate, after changing degrees 3 times and schools twice, and after 20 yrs as an engineer it hasn't hurt me.  

I'm sure Backstop22 understands this but just want to make sure this sentence doesn't confuse anyone: "That 5th year is a scary consideration (heck 5 years to a 17 year old is a lifetime!), but then if you get financial aid from being a part of the baseball team the first three years, the two paid years at a Columbia would not seem as burdensome (especially if he went there for 4 years as a regular undergrad)."

You don't 'get financial aid from being a part of the baseball team at a D3'. There is no athletic aid at a D3 just a possibility of merit aid if you have those stellar stats everyone loves to see. 

Great timing for this thread to be revived.  Our son is looking at 3-2 as an option but not 100% decided at this time.  I'm wondering if a degree in physics is enough to land a decent job and then pursue a masters in engineering while working to help with costs?

I think I read somewhere on one of the school sites that for the student to be able to get the two degrees, they need to complete both the 3 at the LAC and then the 2 at the Engineering school right after it (only then  would the LAC grant the BA).  I presume it is that way at all of the schools.  However, many also offer a 4-2 option, which sounds like it would be an option for your son.  Do the 4 years at the LAC, get to play baseball all 4 years, then get the Masters in Engineering.  But what I do not know is if you can take any break and delay the Masters and still be under the acceptance criteria promised by some of the LACs with schools like Columbia.  You could probably get an answer by calling the 3-2/4-2 advisor at his school of interest and see what they say.

Still hoping someone on this forum has a success story on this topic.  If not, that suggests it may not be much of an option for those of us with sons who are considering 3-2 or 4-2 as a means to do both baseball and engineering.

Three teammates from our son's D3 team did the following:  Two did 3/2, they played and graduated from LAC in "3" years, transferred to an Ivy for the "2" and graduated with Engineering BS this Spring.  They were both content with playing for the three years - they were honored along with the 4-year Seniors during Senior Day. The third played 4 years and graduated from LAC, worked for one year, and is enrolled beginning this fall in highly-regarded program for Chem E Masters.  It seems to have/be worked/ing out great for each of them.  

Great to see there are few success stories out there with this program.  Also it was very classy of the baseball team/coach to invite the two kids who left after three years back for their Senior Day.  To me that really sends the right message that the players left early for a good reason--to pursue their dream major--and left the baseball program on the best of terms.  Nice to see at least one program recognizes it really is all about these kids educations. 

A couple thoughts as a Dad of a 2012 and 2016, a long time hiring manager, and someone who struggled mightily to get a BSEE:

- Regarding looking at the degree differently, no, not necessarily.  It probably wouldn't matter and might even be beneficial, i.e., the 3-2 or 4-2 student with some liberal arts background or even a degree would be viewed positively.

- There are LACs that offer engineering in a four year degree.  Union College, Trinity University, Trinity College, Lafayette College, Hope College, et.al.  I've been surprised at the number of LACs that offer engineering via in school, four year prorgrams.  The LACs with engineering may require a little more investigation as the degree may not be specific to a discipline, e.g., Electrical, Chemical, etc., but may be generic, e.g., Engineering or Engineering Management.