Fast Facts
- The University of Rhode Island is educating more bilingual and cross-culturally competent engineers than any other university in the country.
- The International Engineering Program is a totally integrated curriculum, with a highly dedicated faculty and staff able to provide help and assistance each stage of the way.
- With its two-building Heidi Kirk Duffy Center, IEP students have their own home away from home. The two-building living and learning community houses 75 students, and provides the best food on campus.
- 264 URI students are currently in the program (or 23% of all engineering undergrads), completing degrees in both engineering and language and culture. About 30% are women.
- 404 IEP students have completed six-month, paid internships in Germany, France, Spain, Mexico, Brazil, Canada, and China.
- Paid internship placement opportunities are available with over 60 partner firms in Europe, Latin America, and China.
- The IEP partners with some of the best universities in the world for purposes of study, research, and student exchange.
- The IEP is a pioneer at the graduate level too, now offering dual degree masters and doctoral programs with its partner university in Germany.
- For the cost of one extra semester at the in-state rate students gain: a year of international experience; a second Bachelor's degree; six months of solid work experience; fluency in a second language and cross-cultural skills!
- IEP grads are highly competitive in the workplace, often commanding higher salaries and entry into leadership-track positions.
- IEP grads get jobs, even in tough economic times. The program itself maintains contacts with many global companies and works actively to help its grads find good positions.
- URI's IEP, its students and faculty, have been the recipients of several awards from the German government, the German Academic Exchange Service, the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology, the American Society for Engineering Education, and so on.
- URI's IEP and its students have been supported by grants from the U.S. Departments of Education and Defense, and the National Science Foundation. The German government, several private foundations, numerous companies and individuals support the program as well.
- No prior background in the language is required, and the first two semesters of foreign language study fulfill a general education requirement, so there is really nothing to lose by trying the program out during freshman year!
alumni testimonial
"Taking Germany language classes exercised the other side of my brain so that when I graduated I felt well-rounded and confident."
--Sheida Danesh, '10 mechanical engineering and German language graduate, and current Masters of Science student at MIT
Facts & Figures Report
Learn more about our demographics and enrollment breakdowns in the IEP Facts & Figures AY 2009-2010 Report
