OEM Class of 2013 Kicks Off

GAINESVILLE, FL: The 15th class of the Outreach Engineering Management, or OEM, program kicked off with orientation and classes on the weekend of August 19-21.  The class will meet once per month in Orlando, Florida for the next 20 months.  The program leads to the M.S. or M.E. in Industrial and Systems Engineering with the Engineering Management Option.  Many participants stay with the university for an additional year and complete an M.B.A. through the concurrent degree option.

The Class of 2013 is comprised of 56 students from a variety of academic and professional backgrounds. The average age is 30 and the average amount of professional work experience is 7.5 years. The students represent 33 different employers, with Lockheed Martin, Siemens Energy, Harris Corporation and the U.S. Military represented by multiple students.

Twenty-one students graduated from universities outside of the state of Florida while 31 graduated from Florida’s state university system (including 16 from UF). Eleven students have an undergraduate major in Mechanical and/or Aerospace Engineering, 11 students have an undergraduate degree in Electrical Engineering, and 9 students have a bachelor’s degree in Industrial Engineering. Five students already have advanced degrees while 13 have non-engineering (but technical) degrees. Of the 56 students, 27 percent are female. Four students live in Georgia and will be commuting to Orlando each month.

The Class of 2013 is the fifteenth OEM class, and the sixth group of OEM students to meet for classes in Orlando. Class size is capped at 56 students per year and a number were placed on a waitlist this year. If you are interested in the program, you are encouraged to apply early. Nearly 600 students have now enrolled, and the OEM graduation rate is over 90%.