After nine years of waiting, the engineering technology graduateprogram has been approved to carry a new concentration, computerengineering technology (CET) starting the Spring 2005 semester.This is just in time to save the floundering program that hasdecreased due to budget cuts.
"A majority of students have wanted this," said Ron Day,associate professor of manufacturing information technology (MET)and former department chair, "Most of them have followed theelectronic engineering concentration (EET) and now hopefully, theycan just switch over."
According to Tom Slack, assistant professor of engineeringtechnology and undergraduate curriculum coordinator for the CETprogram, the CET program is very similar to the EET program, exceptEET students do not study software.
"We've had this program in place, but not under aconcentration," Slack said.
Day said the letter of approval finally arrived Sept. 7 from theTennessee Board of Regents. After being sent through the approvalprocess this past summer, it was sent to U of M President ShirleyRaines before reaching the engineering department.
"Due to budget cuts we couldn't get this program approved," Daysaid.
The budget cut to which Day is referring is the loss ofsubstantial graduate assistantship money, said Dr. Alan Proffit,assistant professor of engineering technology and former graduateengineering technology advisor.
The graduate engineering technology program now has an estimatedenrollment of forty students, consisting of about 25 percentfemales, and a high population of international students.
Stack said this new concentration might have an impact on futuregraduate school enrollment.
"At first it won't make a lot of difference, but fundamentallyit might increase the graduate school enrollment," Stack said.
Proffit said that although it may increase local enrollment, theinternational student population would continue to decrease becauseof the budget situation.
"A lot of students who have received a master's degree inelectronic engineering technology actually wanted a degree incomputer engineering technology," Proffit said, "This may increasethe amount of undergraduates who continue on to graduate schoolhere."
Tiffany Collins, a senior CET major, said this new concentrationactually makes it possible for her to continue her education at TheU of M if she chooses to.
\'d2I don\'d5t want to get my masters in electronic engineeringtechnology, I am a computer engineering technology student and Iwant my degree to reflect that,\'d3 Collins said.\
Proffit said that the \'d2name credit\'d3 was another bigdifference between the EET and CET program.\
\'d2One of my goals was to get this program started, so I amtrying to get the word out,\'d3 Day said.\kerning0\expnd0\expndtw0\
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