Pre-engineering students at CSB and SJU find that the program offers a solid preparation for engineering, along with many advantages (liberal arts setting, small class size, close relationship with faculty, etc.) few engineering schools can offer. The dual-degree program in physics and engineering allows students to take the first three years of the physics major at CSB and SJU and then transfer to an engineering school. After a total of about five or six years, the student receives a Bachelor of Arts degree in physics from CSB and SJU and a Bachelor of Science degree in engineering from the engineering school.

Students can also transfer to an engineering school after two years and receive a degree only from the engineering school. Some students stay here for four years, earn a physics degree, and then go off to engineering school, usually to graduate school.

“Our graduates have found that a solid grounding in physics provides excellent preparation for engineering school, and have easily made the shift from physics to engineering,” said Dean Langley, professor of physics.