Software Engineering - Waterloo

[Roman]

I've looked at the requirements several times, and this is what I see:

Chem
Physics
(others)

I know this is because its in the faculty for engineering, but do software engineers really have to take chem and physics at Uni? Or is it because the engineering is a common first year program like math? I got accepted into the Math faculty, but I was thinking of switching it to SE instead. Would that be possible, considering I took neither chem or physics?

[Tony]

The topic has already been discussed -- Chemistry for Software Engineers.

No, SE does not have a "general first year". Yes, they do have to take a course in Chemistry (just one though).

Though you'd also have to take a "science" credit for Math/CS as well (I think).

I'm assuming that you haven't applied to SE, so you'd have to switch majors internally once in. That's quite possible to do, but from my experience it's much easier to enroll into a major straight from high-school, than to transfer from another program.

[iluvchairs112]

If you haven't taken high school chemistry or physics then it is doubtful that you can get into software engineering. You would have to switch internally, like what Tony said. Because chem and physics are prerequisites for SE.

[Prabhakar Ragde]

The main reason that SE requires a chemistry course is for Engineering accreditation, whose criteria are derived mainly from traditional engineering disciplines in which a grounding in the physical sciences was more appropriate. Programs in those engineering disciplines for which chemistry is actually useful take a different Chemistry course.

You can't get into SE without the high-school prerequisites they list. An internal transfer may be possible after one year, but you'd probably have to take university-level chemistry and physics in that year. --PR