Students interested in an Engineering career can now start their studies at the University of Maine at Presque Isle through the University of Maine System’s Maine Engineering Pathways Program. This unique 1+3 degree program offering allows students to complete their first year of engineering education at UMPI, and then finish the remaining three years of their engineering degree at the University of Maine or the University of Southern Maine. The program helps to address state workforce development needs while preparing students to join the Maine workforce in a field with starting annual salaries of $60,000 or more.
“We’re very pleased to join with five other University of Maine System campuses on this program and provide the County’s only engineering pathway,” UMPI President Ray Rice said. “Having this 1+3 degree program at UMPI provides our students with some very important new opportunities: the chance to begin an engineering degree closer to home, and the ability to work toward a career—starting their freshman year—in a field where candidates are highly sought after and where jobs traditionally have the highest average starting salaries.”
Engineering employment in the state has grown 25 percent in the last decade, with Maine firms annually seeking to fill more than 1,400 engineering vacancies—positions that are critical to maintaining the safety of Maine’s roads and bridges, sustaining its utility infrastructure, and supporting its manufacturing sector.
Maine’s public universities are the state’s only pathway to an engineering degree and, because of growing industry demand and anticipated retirements, they are working to double engineering education capacity to help meet the state workforce need of more than 3,000 new engineers in the next decade.
For UMPI students in the program, once they successfully complete about 35 credits of coursework—which includes a heavy slate of math and science courses—they can transfer to UMaine or USM to complete their degree in one of 13 engineering degree programs, from Biomedical Engineering to Civil Engineering to Mechanical Engineering.
The Maine Engineering Pathways Program offers another important opportunity for all UMPI students by providing introductory course work for those who want a better understanding of the engineering profession and to explore engineering as a potential career.
“The Maine Engineering Pathway Program provides some truly excellent opportunities for our students, especially those who want to get a very affordable start on their Engineering degree as well as those who are considering the field and want to find out more,” Dr. Jason Johnston, UMPI Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, said. “We would encourage any students in the region who are planning to pursue an Engineering degree to take a close look at this program.”
For more information about the Maine Engineering Pathways Program at UMPI, contact Dr. Jason Johnston, at 207-768-9652 or email jason.johnston@maine.edu.
