Austin College offers students the opportunity to pursue a career in engineering by studying at Austin College for either three (3/2) or four years (4/2) and then studying at an engineering school for an additional two or three years. At the end of this time the student receives a Bachelor of Arts degree from Austin College and a bachelor’s degree in engineering from the engineering school.
Course Description
This program provides Austin College students the opportunity to earn two undergraduate degrees by obtaining a liberal arts background before specializing in an engineering field. In the Dual Degree Program in Engineering, a student spends the first three years at Austin College and then transfers to an engineering school at which a suitable program of study can be arranged. The work at Austin College consists of courses in mathematics, the sciences and the liberal arts. Between two and three years of work, depending on the engineering school and the preparation of the student, are normally required to complete the degree requirements at the engineering school.
Austin College is one of a select group of liberal arts colleges which has a unique cooperative agreement with Washington University in St. Louis. Cooperative agreements have also recently been concluded with Columbia University, which offers a wide range of programs in engineering and the applied sciences, and with Texas A&M University, in physical and chemical engineering. In addition, Austin College and the University of Texas at Dallas offer a special Three-Two Program in Electrical Engineering. These arrangements offer certain advantages to students, but it is possible for students to transfer to a variety of engineering schools, both in the state of Texas and elsewhere, provided sufficient advance planning is undertaken in the first two years at Austin College. Upon completion of the requirements for the degree at the engineering school, the student is also awarded a bachelor of arts degree from Austin College.
Austin College does not offer any engineering courses; however, qualified students may earn an engineering course credit from Washington University during the January Term or during a special three-week session in May. Costs for this, like other special off-campus January term courses, are not included in the basic tuition fee.
It should be noted that this program assumes the same academic preparation prior to admission to Austin College as that required of students admitted directly to the engineering school as freshmen. For example, the student should be ready to enter calculus and physics during the first semester of the first year. A student not so prepared may need to take extra courses in a summer term or an extra fall or spring term unless time can be saved elsewhere. It is important that the interested student consult with the pre-engineering adviser in the selection of all courses to be taken at Austin College.
