Engineering at Florida Gulf Coast University was originally established as the School of Engineering in fall 2005 and became the U.A. Whitaker College of Engineering (WCE) in August 2011.  The WCE is located in Holmes Hall, a building that was specifically designed for student-centered teaching of engineering and computing courses in an active and collaborative learning environment. The College currently has 23 faculty and staff and over 800 students and offers undergraduate engineering degree programs in bioengineering, civil engineering, environmental engineering, and software engineering as well as an undergraduate degree in computer science for students who were on campus before fall 2011.  The BS in Bioengineering, BS in Civil Engineering, and BS in Environmental Engineering are accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET, http://www.abet.org/.  We will apply to have the software engineering degree accredited after the first students graduate with the BS in Software Engineering in May 2015.  The BS in Computer Science is being phased out with the last students expected to graduate by 2014.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the employment outlook for our engineering degree programs is among the best with 72 percent growth in projected employment for bioengineering (also called biomedical engineering), 24 percent in civil engineering, 31 percent in environmental engineering, and 32 percent in software engineering between 2008 and 2018.  Projected job growth in software engineering should result in 295,000 new jobs in this field!

Come visit us in our administrative office, 208 Holmes Hall (HE), or our advising office, 219 HE

NEWS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS

2013 Engineering Extravaganza Summer Challenge

The U.A. Whitaker College of Engineering invites rising sophomores through seniors in high school to join us for our Engineering Extravaganza Summer Challenge!  This day camp will introduce students to engineering with a focus on the disciplines offered at FGCU.   Activities throughout the week are highlighted below.

Dates / Times:  Monday 24 June – Thursday 27 June 2013 from 8:30 am – 5:30 pm and

                         Friday 28 June from 8:30 am – 1:00 pm

Location:          Holmes Hall, FGCU

Engineering Programs in WCE

- Bioengineering

- Civil Engineering

- Environmental Engineering

- Software Engineering

Ongoing activities scheduled throughout each week

Morning Activities

·       Speed Designs to start each day

·       Hands-on Laboratory Activities

·       Discipline Specific Design Challenges

Afternoon Activities

·       Professional Development topics including:

o   Preparing for Engineering

o   Global Engineering

·       Week-long Colossal Design Challenge

On the Friday mornings parents are invited to join us for the Colossal Design Challenge Final Competition between teams followed by a closing lunch presentation.

Total cost is $350 for the week and includes lunch and snacks.  To apply, please  click on the WCE Store tab on the left hand column towards the top of this web page.

For more information or any questions, please contact Dr. Lisa Zidek at lzidek@fgcu.edu.