SUNY Oswego's electrical and computer engineering, and software engineering programs were recently accredited by ABET, a global designation ensuring the program and its graduates meet the quality standards of the engineering profession.
"Accreditation in many programs is not required," said Rameen Mohammadi, SUNY Oswego's associate provost for undergraduate and special program. "You can have an excellent program and not be accredited. But, when it comes to engineering, you have to be accredited."
"It makes our degree look just that much better," said Samantha Carey, a senior electrical and computer engineering major.
"It's a testament to what we've built," said Marianne Hromalik, an associate professor of electrical and computer engineering.
"ABET accreditation is the standard," Mohammadi explained. "There is no other standard. If you're not ABET accredited, you are not accredited, period, in engineering."
"It's just a testimony to degree work that this campus is doing," said senior electrical and computer engineering major Nana Yeboah.
"I've been at several universities in Europe as well as here, and there's no place quite like Oswego," said Bastian Tenbergen, an assistant professor of computer science who teaches software engineering courses.
"There is a fairly interesting set of learning outcomes that have to be met now by engineering students and liberal arts institutions are a much better place in providing those opportunities," Mohammadi noted.
"Along the way, I had wonderful professors every single day trying to push me forward," said Sushmita Banerjee, a May 2019 computer science graduate. "Considering that I was a female, the push was stronger, to make sure that the program was having enough women. The representation was there and also, the women were having adequate support."
"Because we have kept our classes so small, that is one of our missions, that we keep our classes 20 and under because of our labs," Hromalik said. "We know all our students."
"Going from a non-trad student into the IT world was kind of intimidating, but SUNY Oswego and the professors here really care and they prepare you," said Kimberly Fischer, a master's in human-computer interaction student.
"There are many times that I needed help, because in engineering, you get stuck on a lot of problems and stuff like that, and the faculty are always available," Yeboah said. "They always try to prepare you as much as they can. They give you the best possible tools."
"Every single time each person is given individual attention and care and made sure that each student succeeds in the program and that is one of the greatest things, I think, the program does for a student," Banerjee said.
Tenbergen praised the "wonderful facilities" available to students. "The Shineman Science Center is brand new and has everything you ever wanted and things you didn't know you want," he said.
"We produce students who are phenomenal," Hromalik said. "Everywhere they go, they are praised. In every job that they do, they (employers) keep asking for more of them. They think that they're excellent in what they do, and we feel very, very proud of what we actually have to offer here."
"The school definitely helped me to set that process up, find me the job itself, then prepared me to take courses so that I could have a better resume, have a better cover letter, know how to hold myself when I'm talking to people who are much higher up than me and then prepare myself to actually step forward, a 19-year-old, into the working field," said Banerjee, who graduated early as well as summa cum laude. "Somehow that company felt that I was good enough and so, when the time came for me to graduate and basically start my future from here on out, they were like, 'Hey, how about you come back with us?' And so, they hired me full time."
An ongoing partner with SUNY Oswego, SRC Inc. in Syracuse, said they have good reason to trust SUNY Oswego graduates.
"One of the things we find with, when we bring SUNY Oswego candidates in, is they are prepared," said Joe Lauko, senior vice president for electronic warfare for SRC. "They tend to be very grounded and tend to have the background, the practical background that we're looking for too."
"It is difficult to know how you could get a better education than the one you would get here at Oswego," Mohammadi said. "This is the place to go."
For more information on Oswego's accredited engineering program, visit the college's engineering website.