The 2012 Explore Engineering (E²) program enjoyed its largest participation ever, with 120 students attending the June 24-29 experience. This year there were over 220 applicants, demonstrating that E² is gaining popularity among Connecticut and Northeast region high schools.  E² is a week-long program for high school sophomores and juniors. During this exciting week, participants learn about engineering careers by working in small groups with faculty and college students to learn what various engineers do in the workplace; learn and demonstrate engineering concepts and design and build an engineering device. The students enjoyed a variety of exciting activities, including dissecting porcine hearts, making composites, casting plaques from molten aluminum, exploring ultra-high performance concrete, performing computer programming using Scratch, measuring fuel cell performance and other activities.

In fall 2012, the Undergraduate Programs Office will host not one but two Engineering Career Fairs, on September 25^th and October 30^th.  According to Assistant Dean of Undergraduate Education & Diversity Marty Wood, the increased employer demand of recent years has made the idea of two events very attractive.  Both fairs will be in held in Rome Ballroom, in the South Campus Complex, from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.  View a Career Fair video here. UConn’s Engineering Career Fairs typically attract over 50 companies seeking to hire students for co-ops, internships and full-time employment.

Two student groups, Engineering Ambassador and Phi Sigma Rho, are developing plans for a fall Engineering Involvement Fair.  The event is still in the planning stages.  Tentative details are for a 2-7 p.m. fair on September 12^th in the lobby of the Information Technologies Engineering Building. Students will be able to review different options for getting more involved in a variety of fun activities pivoting around engineering.