Tufts University, School of Engineering
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Engineer your future at the Tufts University School of Engineering

Changemakers are engineers of tomorrow’s advancements, embodying innovation and global citizenship. Tufts University School of Engineering (SOE) is focused on nurturing students to become these forces for good. Its mission is to empower students to engineer their futures in such a way that ensures professional success and allows them to become positive agents of change.

To drive innovation and academic excellence, principled leadership is crucial. Matthew Panzer, Dean of Research for Tufts School of Engineering and Professor of Chemical and Biological Engineering, strives to achieve both of these goals by enabling interdisciplinary research among faculty members in the school and across the entire university. He’s always searching for more opportunities that will better serve principal investigators, the university as a whole, and of course, students.

“I believe in modelling what you wish to see more broadly,” says Panzer. “By striving every day to serve students and colleagues in a thoughtful, respectful, and optimistic manner through my actions, I hope to continue the tradition of academic excellence that Tufts is known for.”

 

Intentionally and actively engaging with society — locally, nationally, and globally – is a key goal for Kyongbum Lee, the school’s new Dean and Karol Family Professor in the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering. And he’s thinking big. Specifically, he is leading the school in using its collective ingenuity to propose technologies that utilise resources in a more sustainable, just, and equitable way. There are several ways to do this, Lee says. Chief among them is working with industry decision makers to not only develop new technologies but also educate the next generation of engineers.

“As an engineering school that is firmly committed to active citizenship, we should strive to be known as a trusted source of knowledge and provider of innovative solutions for the most critical issues facing society,” he says.

With award-winning faculty members at the helm, Tufts SOE looks set to continue making a difference in the world. Tufts’ Karen Panetta, a professor of electrical and computer engineering, was named to the US National Academy of Engineering in 2023 — one of the foremost honours in engineering. In 2011, she was honoured for her pioneering work in education with a US Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Math and Engineering Mentoring, presented by President Barack Obama.

Panetta embodies that dedication to education and mentorship as Dean of Graduate Education for the School of Engineering and as a tireless and globally recognised advocate for women in STEM at all ages and levels. Her research focuses on developing efficient algorithms for simulation, modelling, and signal and image processing for security and biomedical applications. “Research I’m doing now in artificial intelligence involves developing algorithms that emulate human vision and find ways to visualise sensor information the human eye can’t readily see,” she says.

Like the graduate programmes she leads, invention is at the heart of everything Panetta does. It’s a challenging route but one that she believes everyone is capable of. Her message to young people who are considering engineering? “Everybody thinks their career is going to be a linear, direct path. It’s actually a series of zig-zags. So keep pivoting and keep going,” she says. “Trust that you have the training you need and that there are people out there ready to help you get where you want to go.”

Tufts University, School of Engineering

Dean of Graduate Education Karen Panetta and MS student Jessica Nordlund. Source: Tufts University School of Engineering
Jessica Nordlund and Dean of Graduate Education Karen Panetta chat during a photo shoot on Friday, April 29, 2022

Tufts University, School of Engineering

“Through experiential learning activities, such as contributing to cutting-edge research performed side-by-side with our world-class faculty members at Tufts, students are able to apply their disciplinary knowledge from the classroom to help tackle important global challenges, such as protecting our environment and improving health outcomes for people around the world,” says Dean of Research Matthew Panzer. Source: Tufts University School of Engineering

MS programmes that realise your professional goals

Nestled near the bustling high-tech hubs of Boston and Cambridge, the school offers over 20 MS programmes, from Biomedical Engineering and Chemical Engineering to Computer Science and Mechanical Engineering. Whichever they pick, graduate students customise their own academic path. Students can opt for part-time or full-time schedules, or enroll in one of the school’s 100% online graduate programmes.

Regardless of programme and format, a graduate education at Tufts can be tailored to the academic interests and career goals of students. There are dual degree options, combining an MS in Innovation & Management with an MS in another engineering specialisation, for example. Those with a business venture or idea in mind can take entrepreneurship and engineering management courses at Tufts Gordon Institute.

What sets SOE programmes apart is how they fuse top-notch classroom instruction with hands-on experience and interdisciplinary projects that draw from real-world scenarios. As classes are small, students can make the most of their learning within and beyond the classroom with close mentoring and support from world-class faculty.

“Through experiential learning activities, such as contributing to cutting-edge research performed side-by-side with our world-class faculty members at Tufts, students are able to apply their disciplinary knowledge from the classroom to help tackle important global challenges,” notes Panzer.

The school cultivates an inclusive ethos, fostering a diverse community of mentors and students from across the world. This global mosaic forms a dynamic environment that values multiple perspectives. Sunil Kumar, the university’s recently inaugurated 14th president and the first person of colour to be appointed to this role, is an esteemed professor in electrical and computer engineering. “To be the light on the hill… not to show off that it is brighter than others, but to make sure that it provides light that others can use to advance their own lives,” emphasises Kumar on the university’s guiding philosophy.

With Tufts School of Engineering, no matter your background, you’ll graduate ready to pave your own path – and make a difference in the world.

Ready to start engineering your future? Explore Tufts School of Engineering or apply for admission.