Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

American University Partners with Columbia University to Offer Dual-Degree Program in Engineering

  • 01/20/15

WASHINGTON, DC — Expanding its commitment to the sciences, American University (AU) in Washington, DC, has entered into a partnership with Columbia University in New York City that will enable undergraduates to also get an engineering degree from Columbia’s Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science. The joint degree program is underway.

Students will complete their AU degree, and then attend Columbia to complete a bachelor’s of science in a specific engineering major. AU’s requisite math and science courses are comparable with Columbia’s various engineering tracks. Students can complete both degrees in five or six years.

“We are delighted to partner with Columbia University on this project,” says Peter Starr, dean of AU’s College of Arts and Sciences. “The dual-degree program offers American University students a wonderful opportunity to combine a liberal arts education with professional training in the field of engineering.”

Teresa Larkin, a physics professor and director of the dual-degree program for AU, has begun advising students about the program. Students who meet Columbia’s criteria are guaranteed admission to Columbia and will be enrolled to complete an engineering degree, she said.

“The partnership is a fantastic recruiting tool for STEM programs at American University,” Larkin said. “But more than that, it gives our students an opportunity to receive two degrees to put on their resume, instead of one. It quadruples the number of opportunities for them in terms of graduate studies, internships, and jobs.”

Columbia’s Combined Plan program is the first dual-degree engineering program in the United States. AU joins more than 100 colleges and universities that are Columbia Combined Plan affiliates.

Engineering at the undergraduate level is a growing degree program in the U.S. The number of bachelor’s degrees in engineering awarded grew by 6 percent in 2013, according to the American Society for Engineering Education. The growth continues a decade-long increase in bachelor’s degrees, which have climbed 28 percent since 2004, according to ASEE.

“Engineering is a discipline that takes cutting edge ideas from science and turns them into action and service. American University students want to acquire knowledge and skills to have an impact, and engineering offers the possibility of doing that in a rewarding career full of real world problem-solving,” said Nathan Harshman, chair of AU’s physics department.

For more information, visit the Columbia Combined Program website.

Featured

  • Photo credit - Chuck Coates

    Florida District Modernizes Central Energy Plants at Two High Schools

    Flagler Schools, a public school district in Flagler County, Fla., recently partnered with Matern Professional Engineering to modernize the central energy plants at two of its high schools, according to a news release. The project is part of a larger, district-wide effort to reduce energy costs and operational expenses.

  • FGCU Breaks Ground on New Health Sciences Building

    Florida Gulf Coast University (FGCU) has launched construction on a major new academic facility that leaders say will reshape healthcare education in Southwest Florida for decades to come, according to university news.

  • Houston-Area High School Breaks Ground on 117,000SF Multi-Use Facility

    North Shore Senior High School, part of Galena Park ISD in Houston, Texas, recently broke ground on a new multi-use facility for student extracurriculars, according to a news release. The North Shore Multi-Use Facility will include dedicated practice and training space for the school’s athletics and fine arts programs.

  • New Arizona Fine Arts School Reaches Construction Milestone

    Construction of the new Hilltop School for the Arts and Theater in Litchfield Park, Ariz., recently hit a significant milestone, according to a news release. The Agua Fria High School District held a beam-signing ceremony to celebrate the building’s topping out, or the placement of its last structural beam.