AU Engineering Overview
Anderson University has the same professional, gold-standard ABET accreditation in engineering as public universities. While at Anderson University, you’ll be taught and graded by doctoral-level faculty, rather than graduate assistants. We think this is an important distinction when choosing where to start your college career as an engineer.
Our faculty come to your competitions, invite you into their homes, know your name, and ask you about your projects and your goals. Our engineering students don’t hesitate to utilize faculty office hours to discuss issues in or out of the classroom. That’s AU engineering in real life.
WHAT KIND OF ENGINEER ARE YOU?
Engineers are innovators, designers, producers, testers, creators, and problem-solvers.
Engineering earnings soar!
Each year, engineering professionals receive the highest average starting salary in the United States. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) projects that employment within the engineering field will multiply into 140,000 new jobs over the next decade. So what does this mean for you? It means that a career in engineering is well worth the time and effort needed to earn your degree.
Day 1 vs. Day 600
Our engineering students have the opportunity to utilize the facilities, equipment, and tools in the AU Engineering Center starting day one. We don’t make you wait years or even months into your college career, as is the case at many other schools, before you can start innovating, building, and testing as an engineer. In fact, during business hours, the Engineering Center test and fabrication spaces always have a faculty member or student worker present to assist you in learning to use our additive and subtractive manufacturing tools. If you want to learn more about our Cybersecurity Engineering Lab (CEL), “Baxter,” our two-armed robot, the playfields to build and test robots in the electronics lab, 3-D printers, woodworking tools, and more, then feel free to explore our facilities.
STUDENT EXPERIENCES
Our program is uniquely designed so that all engineering majors go through a common core of coursework during their first two years, developing a strong cohort and foundational understanding before breaking out into each program specialty. This also means that if you’re halfway through the program and realize you want to be a different type of engineer, you don’t have to start over, as you might at other schools. We’ve got you covered with a smooth transition.
Competitions
As our students and faculty work together to build new technology, and as it is developed and tested, we seek competition opportunities for our students. Recent competitions have included the evGrand Prix and Solar Car team races. In its first year competing, AU students won the 2019 Autonomous Division of the Electric Vehicle Grand Prix at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. They didn’t just win, they dominated the competition. Their fastest lap time was 22% faster than Purdue University’s (second place) time and 59% faster than Kennesaw State University’s time (third place).
Student Organizations
- The Engineering Club connects students at Anderson University of different majors, backgrounds, interests, and skill sets. It offers activities such as guest speakers, service projects, field trips, and training opportunities in technical skills.
- The Women in Science and Engineering (WISE) group participates in outreach events (e.g., “Passport to Hi-Tech” at Conner Prairie), organizes themed chapel series on topics relevant to member interests, and coordinates get-togethers at off-campus locations (e.g., conducting scientific baking experiments at faculty homes).
Collaborations
- Working in collaboration with our Campus Activities Board (CAB), the Engineering Club built and maintains an AU Ninja Warrior course for annual student competitions.
- Collaborating with our biology department, our engineering students are developing and building a plant growth chamber for biology faculty and students to do research.
- Partnering with AU’s Study, Serve, Share program (Tri-S Global), students travel to remote areas to use their skills to help an impoverished village.
Research
Students wanting to focus on research, or wanting to spend their time at AU preparing for graduate school, can elect to do individual and group research with faculty.
- During AU’s annual Scholars Day, engineers can showcase their research and hone their research presentation skills. This is a public event where 50-60 students are selected to present their research in a convention-style setting, each with their own booth.
- Students working with faculty can publish and present their work through the IL-IN Section American Society for Engineering Education conference.
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