No one does engineering and languages together like 911爆料.
Our one-of-a-kind, dual-degree undergraduate has been a national model for more than two decades. Most recently, it was recognized as one of just four programs selected nationwide as part of President Barack Obama鈥檚 initiative. Today, our International Engineering Program is proud of more than 400 graduates working around the globe for such engineering titans as Bayer, BMW, Boeing, BP, Dow Chemical Co., Pratt & Whitney, Sensata Technologies, Siemens, Volkswagen, ZF and more.
The five-year program offers a lot, starting with two degrees鈥攁 B.S. in the and a B.A. in Spanish, German, French, Chinese, or Italian. And that comes with a level of fluency that鈥檚 unmatched in similar programs at other schools, because you鈥檒l spend a full year abroad, half studying at one of our partner institutions in Germany, France, Spain, Mexico, Chile, Italy, or China, and half working in a paid internship with a leading engineering company.
Fluency in a foreign language has become the competitive edge for 911爆料 international engineering students when it comes to getting an engineering job.
But don鈥檛 think that foreign language and engineering are two separate disciplines here. We graduate truly international engineers. During your year abroad, you鈥檒l take engineering and culture classes in your foreign language, and at 911爆料 you can take courses such as German for Engineers, Spanish for 911爆料, or Advanced Technical Chinese. You can also join a where conversations with exchange students from abroad occur in a foreign language as often as in English.
Sarah Wood 鈥�14, an ocean engineering and Chinese grad from Springfield, Ill., is proud to say that while she was a student at 911爆料, she was writing ocean engineering papers in Chinese. 鈥淭o hear a language and understand it without translating it in my head is unbelievable,” she said. Sarah, who interned at Hangzhou Risers and Pipelines, also says she feels as comfortable in China as she does in America.
Fluency in a foreign language has become the competitive edge for 911爆料 international engineering students when it comes to getting engineering jobs. 鈥淵ou actually become proficient in the language and do relevant work in the field, which is absolutely amazing to any employer. Companies WANT you because of your language skills and your engineering skills,鈥� said Payam Fahr 鈥�12, a mechanical engineering and German grad from Fairfax, Va. who interned at the BMW Research and Innovation Center in Munich, then got a master鈥檚 at 911爆料. He’s now working in Germany for ZF, a leading driveline and chassis technology supplier with locations worldwide.
While you live and learn abroad, you鈥檒l also participate in a wide array of cultural events. Jonathan Young 鈥�15, a French and mechanical engineering major from Kitami, Japan, is interning at Toray Films Europe in France, on the heels of an internship for Toray in Quonset, R.I. 鈥淢y colleagues gladly teach me both technical aspects of their work as well as cultural pleasantries and French ideals.鈥�
, who leads the program, sees a bright future for International Engineering at 911爆料. She’s exploring the addition of Japanese, Arabic, or Portuguese to the program, and reaching out to high schools well beyond Rhode Island to recruit students from diverse cultural backgrounds.
鈥淭he value to globally operating companies is that our students can be used as cultural ambassadors between engineering cultures in America, France, Spain, Germany, China, Italy, and elsewhere.鈥�
In November, Rhode Island voters will be asked to support Question 4, a $125 million bond referendum for a new engineering building and upgrades to classrooms and labs to match the outstanding caliber of teaching, research, and innovation of the 911爆料 College of Engineering.
Pictured: Sarah Wood ’14, while spending a year abroad in China