New Program Better Prepares UK Engineering Freshmen for Success

A new initiative in the University of Kentucky College of Engineering will better prepare freshmen for success at the top-ranked engineering college in Kentucky. The First-Year Engineering Program will expose students to engineering courses, disciplines and faculty from day one, enabling them to make a more informed decision when choosing their major.

Starting this fall semester, all incoming freshman engineering students will be admitted as undeclared engineering students. However, instead of taking only engineering prerequisites, students will take brand new, custom-designed courses and explore all nine majors in the College of Engineering during their first year.

Courses in the program will cover crucial study habits, fundamentals of engineering computing and a hands-on design project, which was previously completed during a student's senior year. Transfer engineering students will also immediately find a close community in a course designed specifically for those students.

“First-Year Engineering will engage students in engineering problem solving and team-based learning," said Janet Lumpp, director of the program and professor in the UK Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. "Students will explore global issues like access to clean water, food security and engineering better medicine to see that it takes all type of engineers working together to make an impact.”

During the spring semester of their first year, students will declare their chosen engineering major when registering for their sophomore fall classes. With one solid year of fundamentals — as well as a design project — under their belts, students will be prepared to succeed in their desired majors and future careers.

UK is the University for Kentucky. At UK, we are educating more students, treating more patients with complex illnesses and conducting more research and service than at any time in our 150-year history.

http://uknow.uky.edu/content/new-program-sets-uk-engineering-freshmen-success