[AndyB]

You will find that using Solidworks today is a lot more prevelant in the business world, but you have to think beyond which program does what. Some hate switching between programs because you have to do everything differently, but that is the reason I think it is so great. Learning and using Inventor, Solidworks, and ProEngineer all give you a better sense of how things are built and in the end, make you smarter, so when the time comes, and you have to design something, you can do it in the most efficient way possible.

But to answer your question, Solidworks is probably your best bet, but don't act surprised if Inventor de-thrones them in the near future, those guys at Autodesk really know their stuff.

Hooray Autodesk!