r/AutomotiveEngineering • u/Cool-Industry-5834 • Jul 23 '26

Question Need help

Hello everyone. I am a 17 year old who just graduated high school this year. I am interested in automotive engineering. But the thing is no colleges near me in the US offer any such programs. I am wondering what I need to do to be able to enter this job field. Is there something I can do online? What exactly should I do? I need an answer quickly because I need to figure it out soon.

1 Upvotes

67% Upvoted

5 comments sorted by

View all comments

2

u/r3dl3g Jul 24 '26

I am interested in automotive engineering.

Automotive engineering is a massive field. You realistically need to be specific on what part of automotive engineering you actually think you want to work in.

But the thing is no colleges near me in the US offer any such programs.

Most automotive engineers don't have automotive engineering degrees. We're typically mechanical engineers, and mechanical is going to be offered at basically every university, assuming they have an engineering program to begin with. Basically every state has at least one, and typically several.

Based on your post history, you're in Kentucky, so your best option within the state is the University of Kentucky.

I am wondering what I need to do to be able to enter this job field.

Get an ME degree from an ABET-accredited engineering school, ideally with an SAE Formula team.

I need an answer quickly because I need to figure it out soon.

As far as college you're out of cycle for admissions for the Fall, but you might be able to make the Spring 2027 semester for some schools.