| Fall '07/Winter '08: Moving Forward, REACHing Out
As we embark on a program that will increase Rensselaer’s global reach, the entire School of Engineering continues to reach higher in many areas. In the past few months alone, our faculty have earned a substantial number of recognitions for their educational and scholarly accomplishments. Our student body has reached new levels of quality and diversity. Our research platforms now include the Computational Center for Nanotechnology Initiatives (CCNI) —the largest university-based supercomputer in the world.
Consider our students for a moment. At a time when the engineering student body in the United States is shrinking, the School of Engineering is moving in the opposite direction. Over the last few years, our incoming undergraduate class has grown from 550 to 780, which has pushed our total number of undergraduate engineering students beyond 3,000. Moreover, 29% of last year’s incoming first-year class was female— a record for our school and a welcome sign for our profession. Our improved six-year graduation rate is currently at 81%, with 70% of our undergraduates going to industry and government positions and 30% going directly to graduate school.
| Research expenditures will exceed $85 million for the first time— up 60% from the previous year. |
The school is breaking other records as well. In the last year, the average SAT score for our first-year students increased by 26 points to a new school high of 1347. Our research expenditures this year, as reported to USNWR, will exceed $85 million for the first time. As our research awards and expenditures continue to grow, so do the numbers of doctoral students.
Positive indicators like these often spring from the quality of faculty, and the most recent recognitions confirm the distinctions of our professors. These recognitions complement other signs that we are moving forward. In recent months we have announced five new department heads:
Jose Holguin-Veras
Professor and Acting Department Head, Department of Civil and Environmental EngineeringShekhar Garde
Professor and Department Head, Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering
Rensselaer Names Garde New Head of Chemical and Biological EngineeringKim Boyer
Professor, Ph.D., Department Head
New professor's research involves heart and eye modeling, smart satellite imagingCharles Malmborg
Professor and Department Head, Decision Sciences and Engineering Systems
Rensselaer Names Malmborg New Head of Decision Sciences and Engineering SystemsRobert Hull
Henry Burlage Jr. Professor of Engineering and Department Head, Materials Science and Engineering
Nanotechnology Expert To Lead Rensselaers Materials Science and Engineering Department
Twelve new faculty members have joined our ranks, and three more professors will hold chairs. Finally, we have initiated a new research center: The Center for Multi-scale Engineering, led by Professor Jacob Fish and the Center for BioFORM, led by Professor Jon Dordick.
As Rensselaer Engineering continues to grow, we focus on a most promising mark of progress: our upcoming international program, which I believe will increase the global awareness and cultural sophistication of our engineering graduates. If Rensselaer is to become a university with global reach and impact, our students must become global citizens. In the new Rensselaer Engineering Education Across Cultural Horizons (REACH) program, we have taken a giant step toward ensuring that they do.The School of Engineering is indeed moving forward. I hope you will continue to support us in our journey.
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