Recently recognized for excellence by CollegesofDistinction.com, the Martin D. Walker School of Engineering at Olivet Nazarene University sets high standards for its students. As a result, its graduates are highly valued by employers for their ethics and skills in teamwork, communication and problem solving. They also enter the workforce well prepared with the knowledge of the most current design and application principles.
Olivet holds the distinctions of being the only Nazarene institution offering nine or more engineering concentrations and with a School of Engineering.
Incoming engineering students and their parents point to several distinctives when choosing Olivet for the engineering program. Students and graduates underscore the value of these, too.
- Leading technology in a variety of shops and labs on campus: a circuit board and 3D printing lab, a tech shop, a weld shop and a mechanical engineering lab
- Internship and co-op opportunities
- Senior design projects working with real world clients
- Participation in the top student competitions, such as SAE Baja competition, American Society of Civil Engineers Concrete Canoe national competition and Vex Robotics competition
- Active student chapter of the Society of Women Engineers with membership open to men and women
- Learning directly from professors who are engineering professionals with years of real world experience
- International missioneering teams that solve real problems in a variety of global locations
- Professional networking and relationships necessary to build and shape careers
More than 95% of 2015 Olivet engineering graduates secured a job or entered graduate school within six months of graduation. Companies where graduates have interned and/or accepted full-time jobs include Caterpillar, CSL Behring, FAA, Google, Honda, John Deere, Kellogg’s, Otterbox, Proctor & Gamble, State Farm — to name a few.
Steve Angus ’93 is now a senior engineer with Ford Motor Company. Currently, there are a total of nine Olivet engineering graduates working in multiple Ford Motor Company facilities. Two of them, Kendra Maxon ’15 and David Powers ’15, are going through the Ford College Graduate professional development program.
“After the first Olivet engineers were hired at Ford, one of the supervisors came up to me and said, ‘Where did you get these guys? They are awesome!’” Steve says.
Samantha Reynolds ’17 is now a field applications engineer with MAX Technologies USA, based in Florida. The company builds databuses used for the testing and simulation for avionics equipment. After graduating in May and starting her job in June, she flew to Paris with her team for the International Air Show, the world’s largest air show with more than 2,300 exhibitors and 150,000 professional visitors.
“At Olivet, I learned how computer hardware works, and I am using this knowledge on the job as a foundation for additional learning,” Sam says. “Since my field is relatively specific, and will continue to be for a long time, I’m in a constant learning process.”
All engineering majors graduate with a Bachelor of Science in Engineering (B.S.E.) degree. Each chooses his/her concentration(s) from the following options: Architectural, Chemical, Civil, Computer, Electrical, Environmental, Industrial, Mechanical, Software.
Olivet’s engineering program is accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET. Students, employers and society can be confident that an ABET-accredited program meets the quality standards that produce graduates prepared to enter a global workforce.
To learn more about the Walker School of Engineering at Olivet, contact the Office of Admissions at admissions@olivet.edu or 800-648-1463.
