Students in the Portland-Metro area will now be able to earn a bachelor’s degree in the high demand field of Mechanical Engineering at the Oregon Institute of Technology’s (Oregon Tech) Portland-Metro campus in Wilsonville. The national and regional accrediting bodies for engineering degrees recently provided final approval for the program to extend its bachelor’s degree from the Klamath Falls campus to the Portland-Metro campus; it was previously extended to Oregon Tech’s Seattle campus in 2013.
Oregon Tech provost Dr. Gary Kuleck said, “This is an important milestone for our students and the university to be able to offer this in-demand degree in the state’s largest population center and in the heart of the Silicon Forest. Our thanks goes out to ABET accreditors, the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities, and the other approving entities who have provided access to Mechanical Engineering to Portland-Metro students. We welcome students to enroll in the program immediately, both new freshmen as well as transfer students from other colleges and universities.”
While coursework and sophisticated labs in Mechanical Engineering have been available at Oregon Tech’s Portland-Metro Campus for several years, the extensive state review and national accreditation process took until this month to complete. This is despite the fact that Oregon Tech has offered a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering for many decades out of its Klamath Falls campus, and at its Seattle campus which exclusively serves Boeing employees at the current time.
Dr. Nagi Naganathan, president of Oregon Tech said, “I’m so pleased that Portland area students will now have access to this important degree program. We constantly hear from our industry members that they need more highly educated and skilled mechanical engineers in the state’s largest urban center. Oregon Tech is pleased to now be able to help meet this need for industry and to extend our partnership with companies across the state and region.”
A survey of Oregon Tech’s graduates over the last three years show success rates of almost 95 percent in being employed or seeking an advanced degree within six months of earning their degree; and median starting salaries of $60,000 a year.
Students with questions about beginning or completing the BSME at Oregon Tech’s Portland-Metro, can contact Dr. Rob Paxton, the Mechanical Engineering Program Coordinator, at Robert.Paxton@oit.edu or 503-821-1257.
