Etown students take pride in their majors and programs. There are so many unique features of Etown that appeal academically to students. Etown wants their students to succeed and provides everything needed to do so.

More than just students are noticing the exceptional programs because the College has been nationally recognized. Etown was recently ranked in the top 100 undergrad-focused engineering programs by the US News and World Report.

Students and faculty are proud of their engineering program and shared what makes it so special. Some important topics to cover after being nationally ranked are what the criteria is for the rankings, what makes Etown engineering outstanding and how our engineering students utilize their skills for good.

This ranking from the US News and World Report means that Etown applies to certain criteria. In order to be ranked, the school must be accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission and the highest engineering degree offered is a bachelor’s or master’s. Etown faced 230 programs where the terminal degree for engineering is bachelor’s or master’s, some even bigger and more expensive schools, but was still ranked in the top 100.

The ranking was determined based on peer assessments. Two deans or faculty were sent surveys where they were asked about other institutions in their ranking category and asked to rate each program they were familiar with between one and five. There are ranking categories for institutions with doctorate degrees versus bachelors or masters because schools that offer masters may have an unfair range of more courses to choose from.

“I strongly believe we have one of the best programs in the country led by outstanding faculty who are innovative and dedicated to student-centered teaching,” Dean of the School of Engineering, Math and Computer Science Sara Atwood said. Atwood also pointed out that our exceptional engineering has many victories from capstone competitions and awards from national conferences. “Our alumni are highly sought-after by employers and rise quickly through the leadership ranks of their companies.”

Several Etown students said the small class settings help them succeed at engineering. “Smaller classes allow personable relationships to be made with my professors,” sophomore engineering major Ethan Zelinsky said. “All of my professors are extremely knowledgeable in their field.”

Sophomore engineering major with a concentration in mechatronics Zach Brown stated that Etown brought him out of his comfort zone in a good way. “I chose Etown engineering because of the focus on interdisciplinary education,” Brown said. “Etown builds engineers with skills in multiple fields outside of their concentration.” Brown said that Etown requires students to take at least one engineering class outside of their concentration.

Engineering students at Etown are passionate about changing the world. The Etown Cycling Club repairs bicycles for those in need. The club has a small inventory of donated bikes thanks to our engineers for rehabilitating them. The Etown Community Housing and Outreach Services (ECHOS) gifts these bikes to clients in need.

Etown is also ranked in the top five of all non-PhD granting schools in Pennsylvania. It is clear that Etown makes an effort to get their students well rounded in multiple fields. Etown develops students’ problem solving and critical thinking skills.

Etown provides hand-on experience and prepares students to become innovators of the future. The engineering program was also named a College of Distinction last year. Other programs recognized from Etown were Business, Career Development and Education. “It is affirming to see growing national recognition for all the great work our Etown students and faculty do,” Atwood said.

After being ranked in the top 100 undergrad-focused engineering schools, it was covered what the criteria was, why Etown deserves this recognition and how Etown engineers are showing it. It is not just engineering that makes Etown stand out. The exceptional guidance from faculty makes every Etown graduate a valuable candidate. Etown has resources that benefit every major. Everyone should be proud of both the engineering program, but also our student engineers themselves. The program could not do it without the outstanding work ethic of our students.