- Expanding a superb liberal arts education at a small college to include experience at a large prestigious university opens more career opportunities than a standard engineering curriculum.
- Seamless transfer plans optimize your investment in your education by earning two degrees in as few as five years
- Strong written and oral communication, problem solving, leadership, and teamwork skills in additional to engineering knowledge better prepares engineers to anticipate and adapt to the ever-changing multidisciplinary world of technology.
- Students spend three to four years at Westminster building a strong foundation in the humanities and social sciences while completing a Pre-Engineering minor and the major of your choice (typically Math or Physics).
- Complete your engineering studies at one of Westminster's partner institutions (Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri S&T, or Southern Illinois University - Carbondale).
After approximately five years, you will have earned two degrees: a Bachelor of Arts from Westminster College AND a Bachelor of Science in Engineering.
- Small classes taught by dedicated faculty
- The opportunity to explore engineering early in your academic career via our Introduction to Engineering and Design course
- A successful record of acceptance into Dual Degree Engineering programs, with 100% of previous Westminster dual-degree students being admitted.
All admitted Westminster undergraduates are eligible to participate in the program. There are required courses for the Dual Degree Engineering program to complete regardless of their major.
It generally takes three or four years at Westminster followed by two additional years at one of the partner engineering institutions.
Currently there are three partner engineering institutions, namely:
Washington University in St. Louis: https://engineering.wustl.edu/academics/dual-degree-program/index.html,
Missouri S&T: https://cec.mst.edu/, Southern Illinois University at Carbondale: https://engineering.siu.edu/.
EGR/PHY 101 (Introduction to Engineering & Design), EGR/PHY 230 (Engineering Mechanics: Statics), PHY 300 (Analogue Circuits), and an on-line course EGR 100 (Introduction to AutoCAD). More engineering courses are actively being developed by faculty.
The Registrar’s Office maintains a large database for course transfer equivalency. Equivalent courses from other institutions are accepted by Westminster and honored by partner engineering institutions.
Yes. Westminster courses (major and general education) that are required by the engineering schools transfer under the dual-degree agreements. Posted course transfer charts can be found here:
Southern Illinois University at Carbondale:
https://artic.eis.siu.edu/articulation-guides/view1_2012.php?inst_code=UMO140&view=1
The total hours for required courses in the Dual Degree Engineering program range from 23 to 24. The requirement sheet can be found here: https://www.wcmo.edu/academics/degree/files/minor-pre-egr.pdf.
Visit the program web-page at: https://www.wcmo.edu/academics/programs/dual-degree-engineering.html or contact the program coordinator, Dr. Bharat Dhital bharat.dhital@wcmo.edu or 573-592-5660.
Typically during your junior or senior year depending on your degree progress.
The application process varies from partner engineering institutions. Details can be found at the following sites. Meanwhile, the coordinator of the Dual Degree Engineering program at Westminster College will facilitate the process to ensure a seamless transition.
Washington University in St. Louis: https://engineering.wustl.edu/academics/dual-degree-program/application.html
Missouri S&T: https://futurestudents.mst.edu/admissions/transfer/
Southern Illinois University at Carbondale: http://admissions.siu.edu/
Between 2018 and 2020, over twenty Westminster undergraduates have completed the Dual Degree Engineering program.
In the academic year 2020-2021, there are over a dozen undergraduates in the Dual Degree Engineering program not counting freshmen who have yet to join.
Yes. It is actually perfectly normal to do so. Your faculty adviser and the coordinator of the Dual Degree Engineering program will help you figure out what major should work best for your degree trajectory in engineering.
The choice of major should match the type of engineering you are interested. Most participants in the Dual Degree Engineering program major in math or sciences. However, majoring in more than one field is not unusual for those enrolled in this program.
Not necessarily. Incoming freshmen who are interested in engineering are encouraged to take EGR/PHY 101 (Introduction to Engineering and Design). In this course, one will be able to learn more about various types of engineering. Interactions with peers as well as faculty advisers will help you find out what type(s) of engineering you want to pursue.
Do well in math and science courses. It is highly recommended that one be placed in to Calculus I or higher for his first fall semester at Westminster. Dual credit as well as AP Calculus, Physics, or Chemistry with a score of 4 or 5 will accelerate your degree progress.
Yes. The Careers Services Office at Westminster assist undergraduates with searching for internships and jobs. Plenty resources are also provided including mock interviews, resume revision, etc. For more information: https://www.wcmo.edu/academics/ssc/career/index.html.
100% of previous Westminster dual-degree students have been admitted by partner engineering institutions. Meanwhile, those who chose not to attend an engineering school worked in industry and government.
Yes. In fact, many of the participants in this program are athletes. Work closely with your faculty adviser and coach to figure out a plan that works best for you. The coordinator of the Dual Degree Engineering program will monitor your schedule to ensure that you can graduate on time.
Yes. FAFSA covers a maximum of 180 credit hours for your undergraduate study including both Westminster and the partner engineering institution. Typically, it makes sense to use half of the hours for courses taken at Westminster and the other half for the engineering institution. Moreover, Dual Degree Engineering students are also eligible for additional merit-based scholarships at partner institutions.
No. The Dual Degree Engineering program offers a pre-engineering minor degree. Participants of this program will continue on to one of the partner engineering institutions that have ABET-accredited programs.
The Dual Degree Engineering program at Westminster offers a pre-engineering minor. There is no engineering major at Westminster.
No. Westminster College does not offer associate’s degree in engineering.
Some recent testimonials can be found here:
“If you want to pursue engineering but do not want to sacrifice the communication and writing skills needed to be truly successful in the industry today, you should consider Westminster's dual-degree program. This program gives you the best of both worlds. You will receive two world-class education experiences both centered in Missouri. This program will make you a more confident engineer, as well as a more capable leader later in your career.” – Austin Fiegel ‘14, recipient of a H. Brown Fellowship through Washington University at St. Louis
“Westminster’s Dual Degree Engineering program greatly prepared me for my life as an future engineer. Fantastic professors helped me along the way to establish a strong understanding of technical skills. However, I think the most important thing for me was Westminster’s liberal arts education. I was forced to expose myself to many different subjects that I think helped me set myself apart in engineering school after Westminster. Any engineer can work out technical problems, but a lot of engineers have trouble getting in front of people to give presentations or being able to explain their ideas to other people. I truly believe that Westminster helped me a establish a strong foundation in all of those areas and in turn greatly prepared me for engineering school and my life as a future engineer in a way that going straight to engineering school could not have done.” – Zachary Backes ‘16, earned a B. S. in Civil Engineering at the University of Missouri in 2018. Currently working for EFK Moen, Fairview Heights, Illinois.
“I feel this program helped me prepare for my following years at Missouri S&T! The courses at Westminster definitely helped me succeed in my post graduate courses having previous knowledge which some of my classmates did not. Also, Westminster and Missouri S&T collaborate very well to make the transfer process easy and convenient for their students.” – Joshua Jacox ‘17, earned a B. S. in Mechanical Engineering at Missouri S&T in 2019. Currently working for Stroco Manufacturing, Hazelwood, Missouri.
“This summer I got the opportunity to become a Coop/Intern at Flowserve Co. in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The internship gave me an opportunity to become the leader on some of their continuous improvement operations. Some of these operations included doing design and seeing through a project to assembly. The internship gave me great on-sight experience so that I can know what to expect in future engineering jobs past Westminster College. The Dual Degree Engineering Program at Westminster College has allowed me to put myself in the best situation possible to pursue my engineering degree and obtain internships such as the one that I had a Flowserve Co.” – William Braley ‘19, pursuing a M. S. in Mechanical Engineering at Washington University in St. Louis, recipient of partial Brown Scholarship.