The School of Engineering and Applied Sciences has established a study abroad program with Jiaotong Uniaversity in Shanghai, an agreement that highlighted Engineering Dean James Aylor's trip to the far-east this past spring.
Aylor returned April 26 from a 10-day overseas trip to Asia where he visited five universities in the hopes of establishing a study abroad program for engineering students as well as to strengthen faculty ties for further research. Aylor was immediately attracted to China, which he characterized as a "hot spot" in terms of student interest, and wanted Engineering students to have the opportunity to take advantage of what the country's universities have to offer.
While there, Aylor and his associates -- he was accompanied by computer engineering professor's Lloyd Harriot and Zongli Lin -- signed an agreement with Shanghai Jiaotong University.
Under the agreement, students at both the University and Jiaotong will pay tuition at the same rate as their home school and students would be responsible for their living expenses, Harriott said. The classes will be taught in English and the students from both countries will be exposed to culture and language classes.
"The universities in China are very interested in getting their students to have experiences in the U.S.," Aylor said.
Aylor said it is currently very difficult for engineering students at the University to study abroad because of the demanding nature of the curriculum and the fact that many courses are only offered once a year.
One goal of the trip was to explore ways to streamline the process of studying abroad for engineering students, Aylor said. Previously, interested students were required to meet with a dean, but often found it too difficult to fulfill the necessary requirements while overseas.
"My goal was to find a way to be more organized, perhaps have a person in charge to organize or create [study abroad] opportunities," Aylor said.
Engineering students will now be able to study in China for a semester or a year without falling behind in their requirements, Harriott said.
The trips' agenda also included efforts to strengthen ties with faculty members at the Asian universities, he said.
"Chinese universities are very interested in faculty exchange," Aylor said, adding that he hopes his trip will enable collaborative research opportunities for the University's faculty, or perhaps even faculty sabbaticals to do research overseas.
"In China, the profession of engineering is very highly respected,
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