Engineering students who work long hours to get through their undergraduate years may no longer have to dread the thought of doing it all over again for a master's degree.
The 4+1 Initiative, reintroduced to Duke by Tom Katsouleas, dean of the Pratt School of Engineering, gives students the option to complete a Bachelor of Science in Engineering degree and Master in Science degree in five years. The program is available across all engineering departments.
Although the opportunity to obtain both degrees was actually available in the past, Katsouleas said the program was "awkward and inactive."
But the new program is resurfacing with great momentum, allowing undergraduates to advance their training and further their research, he said. As many as a quarter of the Pratt graduating class is expected to participate in the coming academic year.
"It was recreated in response to the changing needs of professional engineers," Katsouleas said. "We feel that a broad four-year curriculum and an in-depth concentration is the right kind of preparation for industry needs and the global economy."
A new faculty committee will oversee the program's development and a detailed Web site is also in the making that will guide interested students in preparing for graduate school.
Although the program is ideal for students who enter Pratt with advanced placement or summer course credits that allow them to lighten their senior year academic load, the program is open to any students who have space for two or more graduate courses in their final semester.
Students participating in the program would apply before the standard graduate school application deadline in January and would be given provisional graduate student status as an undergraduate.
Participants would also only pay the undergraduate tuition rate for the graduate courses taken during the senior year.
Jeff Glass, Pratt senior associate dean for education, strongly encouraged students to participate, noting the advantages the rigorous curriculum can bring.
"A masters degree can provide the additional education that will give students deeper knowledge in their field and even some business and leadership training, depending on their curriculum," he said.
The program may also give students a leg up in the competitive job market, Glass said. He added that employers recognize the value of a master's-level education in an engineering discipline to complement the undergraduate coursework.
"This will give them a competitive advantage and enable them to take on more responsibility more quickly in their jobs," Glass said.
Some engineering students said enrolling in graduate classes during their final undergraduate semester is a prospect worth the extra effort to fulfill most course credits before graduation.
"Oh yeah, I'd definitely be willing to shift my schedule," said sophomore Andrea Casanova, a mechanical and civil engineering double major. "[The program] sounds really great."
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