A new departure in engineering education

A new type of engineering course embodying the basic features of the six-year combined college and engineering course, but possible of completion by a high-school graduate in the usual four year period is described. Briefly, the plan for admission to the engineering school requires at least two years of college training with only part of the subjects prescribed. This is followed by two years in the engineering school, concentrated on the fundamentals of whatever particular branch of engineering (civil, mechanical, electrical or chemical) the student may choose. Beginning this fall, the University of Pennsylvania will change over all its engineering courses to this basis. Those responsible for this new type of course believe that it will accomplish the following objects: 1. It will give the student the. opportunity of forming a more mature judgment as to whether or not he has an aptitude for engineering, and if not, permit him to continue his studies along other lines without serious handicap. 2. It will impress upon both the student and his parents the fact that engineering is a profession and not a trade; that there is more to an engineering education than merely fitting a boy to get a job. 3. The graduate from this type of course will be as well prepared for his immediate undertaking as the usual technical school graduate, and, in addition, will have the background and broader point of view necessary for real development in his profession. 4. This background and broader point of view will aid him in developing a proper perspective of life as a whole, which, after all, is more important than one's profession.