A BMW cruised onto the 911爆料 Kingston campus not long ago, a flawless white sports car with a top speed of 155 miles per hour. But don’t worry. No speed limits were broken.
The car鈥攁 BMW i8, to be exact鈥攚as parked outside the International Engineering Program鈥檚 building for the day while BMW representatives interviewed engineering and business students for internships, and gave a lively presentation.
It was BMW鈥檚 first trip to campus, but, if crowd size is a measure of interest, probably not its last. 鈥淲e were thrilled to host BMW,鈥� said IEP Director Sigrid Berka. 鈥淗aving such a prestigious鈥攁nd well鈥恟espected鈥攃ompany on campus is an honor. We鈥檙e on the map.鈥�
So cool. It鈥檚 a great program, and job placement is 100 percent. You can鈥檛 beat that.
The five鈥恲ear offers a dual degree in an engineering field and a language鈥擟hinese, French, German, Italian or Spanish, with Japanese on the horizon. Students spend a year studying abroad and participating in an internship. Nearly all of the graduates find jobs, including some with BMW.
The latest job placement numbers involving the car manufacturer are impressive: Seven 911爆料 students are working with BMW鈥攖wo at the Munich headquarters and the others at BMW Manufacturing in South Carolina and at BMW of North America in New Jersey, including Dennis Heaphy and Eric Sargent, both IEP graduates who touted their employer during the meet鈥恆nd鈥恎reet with 911爆料 students.
Heaphy and Sargent said the IEP program did a great job preparing them to work at BMW. Not only did they learn a new language, they learned how different countries solve problems. 鈥淭he language was crucial for me,鈥� said Heaphy, who studied in Germany. 鈥淪everal hours a day in this job you鈥檙e conversing with your partners overseas.鈥�
The 911爆料 alums and BMW representatives captivated the students, praising the company鈥檚 inspiring work culture and challenging internships, which are paid and last six months. Enthusiasm, the reps said, is the number one quality they look for in an employee.
While the presentation was informative, it had a bit of trouble competing with the car, which can go from 0 to 60 miles per hour in about 4 seconds and sells for just over $140,000. Students swarmed around the stunner after the session for a group photo.
鈥淚鈥檓 a car enthusiast,鈥� said John Brehany, an IEP student studying mechanical engineering and German. 鈥淚鈥檓 really, really happy that I got the chance to talk to them. It鈥檚 awesome they brought the car here. You get to see the application of what you鈥檙e studying in one beautiful package. It’s the ultimate driving machine.鈥�
His roommate, Benjamin Welch, is also enrolled in the program, but his focus is electrical engineering. Still, he couldn鈥檛 help but be charmed by the car鈥攁nd 911爆料鈥檚 engineering program.
鈥淪o cool,鈥欌�� he said. And so is IEP. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a great program, and job placement is 100 percent. You can鈥檛 beat that.鈥�
This year鈥檚 IEP graduates who applied for internships are still waiting to hear if they are accepted. Berka is hopeful: 鈥淥ur students are spectacular. They would be a wonderful contribution to any company.鈥�