To meet the demand for trained mining engineers in southern West Virginia and elsewhere, West Virginia Universitys College of Engineering and Mineral Resources is offering several bachelors degree programs in mining engineering in conjunction with two West Virginia colleges.
The program, designed in cooperation with the WVU Institute of Technology and Southern West Virginia Community and Technical College, allows students to start their formal mining education at one of these two schools and complete their degree at WVU .
Our goal is to provide engineers and managers for the mining industry,said Gene Cilento, Glen H. Hiner Dean of the WVU College of Engineering and Mineral Resources.
Our nations increasing user-driven need for energy has created a strong demand for graduates in this field. The demand is so high right now, both in the coalfields of southern West Virginia and elsewhere, that our current graduates are leaving school with multiple job offers and starting salaries in excess of $50,000 per year.
WVU Tech offers two programs: The 2+2 Program allows students to spend their first two years at WVU Tech in Montgomery and the last two years at WVU in Morgantown, graduating with a degree in mining engineering.
In Techs 4+1 Program, students spend their first four years at WVU Tech, earning a civil engineering degree, then spend one year at WVU and earn a second degree in mining engineering.
We are very glad for the opportunity to partner with WVU to offer these joint degree programs,said Dr. M. Sathyamoorthy, dean of the Leonard C. Nelson College of Engineering at Tech.Many of our graduates want to live and work in West Virginia. With the increased demand from the mining industry, these cooperative degree programs will give mining engineering graduates the ability to stay in the state with high-paying careers.
Students at Southern West Virginia Community and Technical College can spend their first two years in southern West Virginia, taking math and science courses, then transfer to WVU for another two years and graduate with a degree in mining engineering.
We are very excited about the opportunity to provide our students with this program,said Carol Howerton, chair of the Technology and Engineering Division at Southern.We look forward to a fruitful partnership that will us expand our offerings to students and help them prepare for their careers.
To find out more about these cooperative degree programs, contact one of the following: Syd Peng, chair of the Department of Mining Engineering, WVU , (304) 293-7680 ext. 3301; M. Sathyamoorthy, dean of the Leonard C. Nelson College of Engineering, WVU Tech, (304) 442-3161 or Carol Howerton, chair of the Technology and Engineering Division, Southern, (304) 792-7098 ext. 212.