But in today’s rapidly evolving world, those who are truly successful are more than just exceptional engineers or computer scientists. Whether they start their own business, rise within a company, or work in government or academia, they are creative problem solvers and strategic thinkers who have an entrepreneurial mindset.
To foster this way of thinking in our students, we have hired our first Entrepreneur in Residence, Atul Teckchandani, who is a professor at the Mihaylo College of Business and Economics and has an engineering background. Over the past year, Professor Teckchandani has offered support and guidance to students looking to turn their ideas into marketable products or businesses.
This year also saw the start of CSUF’s Engineering Ambassadors Network, which trained a diverse group of more than a dozen ECS students to speak about their majors and give presentations about STEM careers to prospective students and the community. Similar to our focus on the entrepreneurial mindset, our Engineering Ambassadors are developing skills that are helping to prepare them for their future careers.
Moving forward, our goal is to integrate these types of learning into our curriculum more broadly. By spring of 2020, ECS students will be able to get credit for a business course at Mihaylo College. And, we are looking at adding a business component as a requirement for senior design projects, encouraging students to enter startup competitions, and exploring corporate partnerships and mentoring opportunities.
So, as we celebrate our most recent graduates and welcome them to the ranks of our alumni, we continue to implement this bold new vision that will give our students an even greater competitive advantage in this 21st century economy.
