2017-2022 Engineering Highlights

Strategic Goal: Pinnacle of Excellence at Scale

• Become the best in the world at the virtual-physical interface
• Innovate learning for the largest pool of premier engineering talents
• Empower industry

Learning

• Top 4 graduate Ranking in the U.S. back-to-back (2021, 2022) for the first time
• Largest top 10 undergraduate engineering program in the U.S. since 2021
• Record-high applicant number, selectivity, yield rate, and graduation rate
• ARC: Agile Reform of Curriculum in BME, ECE, EEE, IE, ME
• GRIT+: Global, Research, Industry co-op and Team project learning
• Data Mind: all engineering graduates acquire the mindset of data literacy
• 5X growth in Professional Master’s enrollment
• MS/MBA, and MD/PhD and MD/MS dual degrees with business and medical schools
• Elevated PhD stipend and 40% increase in number of PhD fellowships

Online

• Top 3 online engineering master’s program in the U.S.
• Introduced most affordable comprehensive online engineering master’s in ECE, ME and CE, all top 2 in the U.S.
• 3X growth in online enrollment
• New degrees in semiconductors and in autonomy/IoT/robotics
• Virtual labs and AI-based learning analytics

Research

• External research funding awards increased more than 70% in 5 years
• 12 national centers with $10M+ funding each established; most at virtual-physical interface
• Largest single federal award in College history: $70M LASER PULSE consortium
• Largest private sector award in University history: $75M from Rolls-Royce
• World’s fastest hypersonic wind tunnel (under construction) and nation’s first fully digitized nuclear reactor (operational).
• Purdue Engineering Initiatives in Autonomous and Connected Systems, Engineering-Medicine, and Cislunar Space

Innovation

• Creating knowledge and jobs together: attracting Rolls-Royce, Saab, SEL, Wabash and other companies to Purdue
• About 400 patent applications each year – up 40% in 5 years
• Contributed 75% of startups founded in 2021 at Purdue, which The Wall Street Journal ranked in top 6 in the U.S. in startup creation
• Indy 5G Zone opened in partnership with State of Indiana and private sector
• Ray Ewry Sports Engineering Center established in partnership with Purdue Athletics and International Olympic Committee

Talent

• Promotion and Tenure document underwent major revamp
• Lillian Gilbreth Postdoctoral Fellowship program
• Neil Armstrong Distinguished Visiting Fellows program
• Per capita extramural research awards up 65% in 5 years
• Record number of faculty appointed to named professorships and record number of NSF CAREER awards in 2022
• Staff-initiated transformation programs launched 

Diversity

• Female Engineering students above 30% and minority students above 10% for first time in Class of 2026
• Minority Engineering graduation rate exceeded College average for first time
• Record percentage of female graduate students
• Trailblazers program for minority graduate students and first-generation student academic boot camp
• Top school for Native Americans in STEM

Facilities

• Gateway Complex, 250,000 sq. ft., two buildings for innovative learning and student success
• Discovery Park District created for lab-to-life connected community and Zucrow Aerospace District for a hypersonic research and testing epicenter
• 15 other new construction or renovation projects in 2017-2027 Engineering Space Master Plan, more than half completed

Philanthropy

• $1.025B raised in Ever True Campaign that ended in June 2019, exceeding goal by 47%
• First public engineering college to raise more than $1B in a single campaign