State of the School

In December 2002, the SEAS faculty formally adopted a new strategic plan with a bold vision for the School. Our vision statement reads:

By 2015, the School of Engineering and Applied Science (SEAS) envisions becoming one of the top 50 engineering schools in the country, with nationally and internationally recognized fields of excellence. Over the next five years, SEAS will target three primary areas to realize its vision:

• Education: SEAS will foster a vibrant atmosphere where an intellectually diverse faculty offer outstanding, academically rigorous educational programs, and provide students with challenging theoretical and applied learning experiences that are relevant to society’s current and future scientific and technological needs;
• Research: SEAS will become recognized as a source of new ideas and knowledge that supports technological advancement through basic and applied research and technology transfer; and
• Service: SEAS faculty will contribute their expertise and information to the public through a variety of outreach and community service activities, particularly through their efforts as spokespersons on engineering-related subject matters.

To realize our vision, we have designed several goals, some of which are outlined below. SEAS has begun—and will continue over the next five years—a number of initiatives and activities to help reach those goals and, ultimately, our vision. We’re already on the path.

1. Students: Our vision requires that we increase student enrollment, aggressively recruit high-caliber students, and develop more rigorous academic programs.

Undergraduate enrollment increased 11%, from 430 to 478 students, over a three-year period.

On-campus graduate enrollment increased nearly 18%, from 840 to 991 students, over a three-year period.

Off-campus graduate enrollment increased nearly 17%, from 520 to 608 students, over a three-year period.

The average SAT composite score of this year’s entering SEAS class was 1250.

86% of the students in this year’s entering SEAS class was in the top 20% of their respective high school classes.

SEAS has increased undergraduate merit aid scholarships by 25% since 2000. Undergraduates may now receive up to $20,000 in merit aid.

2. Faculty: Our vision requires that we recruit and retain high-quality faculty, particularly in our three areas of strategic academic excellence: biomedical engineering, transportation/safety and security, and information technology/telecommunications.

Over a three-year period, SEAS has hired 12 new faculty members.

Half of our newly hired faculty works in our areas of strategic academic excellence.

3. Academics and Research: Our vision requires that we increase the rigor of our academic programs and improve the School’s research quality and scope.

In fall 2002, SEAS launched an undergraduate biomedical engineering program, and its enrollment has grown 150% since then.

In spring 2002, the U.S. government designated SEAS a Center of Academic Excellence in Information Assurance Education. It was one of only 36 universities in the U.S. to share that designation.

• Since then, our Department of Computer Science and Department of Engineering Management and Systems Engineering have established one of the nation’s best computer security and information assurance programs.
• The departments have developed new courses in information assurance and computer security. They also have built a new computer security lab and developed the Portable Educational Network, a portable lab that simulates the Internet in order to help students learn how to better defend computer systems and programs on the Internet against various kinds of attacks.

Since launching our strategic plan, SEAS has received $8 million in additional funding for research in our designated areas of strategic academic excellence.

• SEAS has also received funding directly from GW for research in our areas of strategic academic excellence. The University has provided approximately $200,000 for research in transportation/safety and security, and more than $300,000 for biomedical engineering research.

SEAS faculty in the Department of Computer Science have received a major research instrumentation award from the National Science Foundation (NSF) for future-home research. Each year the NSF gives relatively few such awards to U.S. academic institutions to increase the scientific and engineering equipment for research at American universities and to enable new lines of research in science and engineering.

Funding for SEAS research has more than doubled in three years, increasing from approximately $9 million to $20 million.

4. Infrastructure: Our vision requires that we improve the SEAS infrastructure by upgrading our labs and by increasing office space.

The National Science Foundation provided approximately $750,000 in fall 2003 to build the SEAS portable security laboratory, which is being used in a number of computer security and information assurance courses.

Throughout spring and summer 2003, workers renovated approximately 8,500 square feet of office and hallway space on all levels of Tompkins Hall. Included among the renovations is new conference space, which is available for SEAS use and contains state-of-the-art audio-visual equipment and teleconferencing capabilities.