On-site delivery of BS in electro-mechanical engineering technology a collaborative effort between Penn State and Sony Electronics

Abstract

As part of increasing industrial outreach programs in Penn State University's (USA) Commonwealth Education System, the School of Engineering Technology and Commonwealth Engineering, the Penn State Campus at New Kensington and Sony Electronics have teamed together to offer a 2+2 Bachelor of Science (BS) program in Electromechanical Engineering Technology (EMET) at the Sony Manufacturing Center in Mount Pleasant, Pennsylvania. The atypical manufacturing constraints and work schedules at the center prohibit Sony's technical employees from enrolling in educational programs organized along traditional schedules. However, rapid expansion at the site both in size and product mix has increased the need for employees with enhanced technical skills and advanced academic training. Onsite offering of the BS EMET program is expected to help Sony meet this need as well as to expand career opportunities for qualified employees. The entirety of lecture courses for the EMET curriculum will be offered at the Sony facility. Laboratory classes will be held at the Penn State campus where suitable facilities are available. Classes will be scheduled in nontraditional ways to ensure that they mesh with employee work schedules and off-work hours. All instruction will be done by program faculty from the campus to ensure the quality, and ultimately the accreditation of the program. The entire program is expected to take approximately three and a half years to complete. The Sony program will also be used as a model for similar activities with other industrial partners in the New Kensington campus service area.