ALTOONA, Pa. — Penn State Altoona’s mechanical engineering program has been sanctioned by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET, the global accreditor of college and university programs in applied and natural science, computing, engineering and engineering technology.
Through ABET’s voluntary peer-review process, students and employers can be confident that a program or credential meets the standards needed to prepare graduates for a global workforce.
“ABET accreditation enhances the value of our students’ degrees, strengthens their career opportunities and provides confidence that they are receiving an education recognized and respected not just nationwide, but around the world,” says Ron Darbeau, Penn State Altoona chancellor and dean. “We talk about degrees opening doors and making students mobile. Through this accreditation, we are fulfilling that promise for students.”
ABET criteria focus on program curricula, faculty, facilities and institutional support and are conducted by teams of highly skilled professionals from industry, academia and government with expertise in the ABET disciplines.
Mechanical engineering joins two other ABET-accredited programs at Penn State Altoona: electro-mechanical engineering technology and rail transportation engineering, the nation's only ABET-accredited undergraduate degree program of its kind.
“Receiving this accreditation for our program is very rewarding to the staff, faculty and students,” says Grant Risha, professor of mechanical engineering. “We hope to continuously improve the student experience for years to come.”
ABET is a nonprofit, nongovernmental organization recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation. To date, 4,863 programs at 950 colleges and universities in 42 countries have received ABET accreditation.