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School of Engineering Overview

At Rensselaer you'll gain problem-solving tools for lifelong learning and discovery in areas that address global challenges, including concerns related to the environment, productivity, healthcare, communications, transportation, and more.

Undergraduate Opportunities

A Strong Foundation

Renowned for innovation in education, Rensselaer's unique undergraduate CORE engineering program provides you with a solid base on which you can build your degree program—whether you know what kind of engineer you want to be, or if you plan to explore the many possibilities offered at Rensselaer.

Where Ideas Become Reality

Learn engineering by doing. Our studio classrooms proved interactive workstations for computer-aided design and a host of other applications. Here, you'll get the chance to create and build in multi-million dollar venues including:

  • LITEC; an innovative course and special classroom where you'll learn embedded controls by racing "smart cars"
  • The O.T. Swanson Multidisciplinary Laboratory; where you'll get the ultimate workspace that simulates the real-world professional environment
  • The Fabrication and Prototype Area; where you'll work with the industry's latest machining and manufacturing technologies.

Plus, you'll work with the latest professional grade software. Partners for the Advancement of Collaborative Engineering, PACE, is an exciting opportunity at Rensselaer. PACE provides hardware and software (life-cycle managment (PLM) software tools) in the interest of developing the next generation of automotive engineers, designers, and managers.

Abundant Research Opportunities

Rensselaer has a campus wide Undergraduate Research Program (URP) offering a variety of research opportunities. In fact, the scope of it puts us in a class of our own. Read more about Engineering Research Opportunities

A Global Perspective

Rensselaer is leading the way. Building partnerships around the world for you to become an engineer of the future. An engineer who will thrive in the global economy. For more information visit the Study Abroad Program on the Office of Undergraduate Education website.

Graduate programs that will inspire you

At Rensselaer, research is a continuum that starts with basic knowledge, leads to innovation and technology transfer, and evolves into entrepreneurship.

The School of Engineering's nearly 150 faculty members include National Science Foundation Early Career Award recipients, members of the National Academy of Engineering, and other eminent professional organizations. As a graduate student you will have the opportunity to work one-on-one with these leaders. Search through the faculty section, or check out our "Facts and Figures" page for more information.

Take advantage of the Institute's unprecedented growth in research.

In response to the nation's largest contribution to a private university, Rensselaer is embarking on a new era of growth in research. Research funding at Rensselaer is on the rise. Currently, research proposals in the School of Engineering are up across the board; in quantity, award levels and total dollars. Rensselaer’s research extends across a broad portfolio in such areas as:

  • Advanced materials
  • Automation systems
  • Biotechnology
  • Environmental science
  • Microelectronics
  • Modeling and simulation
  • Nanotechnology
  • Polymer synthesis
  • Scientific computation

Often, this research is conducted as part of the many strategic partnerships Rensselaer has developed with public and private partners such as IBM Corporation, GE, Samsung, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), National Science Foundation (NSF), NASA, U.S. Department of Defense, US Department of Energy, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Nissan, Dow Chemical, ALCOA, Exxon Corporation, National Institutes of Health (NIH), Lockheed Martin, General Motors, Barclays Capital, and Hitachi.

For more information on the types of research being done, go to the "Research" section.

The Institute's largest graduate program

The School of Engineering capitalizes on the resources that only a technological university can integrate into graduate education. The School offers 20 graduate degrees in a variety of fields of study. Come to the School of Engineering and you'll join the ranks of the largest graduate program in the Institute, comprising over 45% of the total graduate population.