Tag: online degree

Engineering Management: A Career in Profile

Engineering Management: A Career in Profile

Engineering Management - A Career in Profile

How do you know if Engineering Management is right for you? That depends on your goals, personality, and desire to move into leadership roles. An engineering manager guides projects from conception to completion and sets the milestones that lead the team to success. Imagine taking a step back from design and implementation and working with people involved in all steps of a project. Does this sound like where you want to be?

A Master of Engineering in Engineering Management degree, available 100% online from UofL, brings together the skills and talents of great engineers and excellent managers. With a focus on business practice, this degree marries the technological and analytical savvy of an engineer with the organizational and tactical abilities of a manager.

A good engineering management candidate has all the characteristic of a dedicated engineer. Whether you’re drawn to design, development, construction or evaluation – and no matter what kind of structure or machine you’re focused on – engineering requires a strong command of math and science.

Engineering managers complement the technical side of engineering with a thorough knowledge of the best practices in business as a whole. Financial management, risk analysis and intellectual property law play a significant part in the role of an engineering manager.

Potential Careers for Engineering Managers

Graduates from UofL’s online engineering management program can apply their credentials to various fields and positions. In the past, these have included:

  • Civil/construction engineering
  • Health care engineering
  • Logistics/distribution engineering
  • Manufacturing engineering
  • Computer and electronic product manufacturing
  • Pharmaceutical and medical manufacturing
  • Transportation equipment manufacturing
  • Biomedical engineering
  • Environmental engineering
  • Aeronautical engineering
  • Chemical and petro-chemical engineering
  • Federal, state, and local government positions

Earning Potential in Engineering Management

According to BLS.gov, the annual median salary for architectural and engineering managers in 2016 was $134,730. Relative to all management occupations, the median for engineering managers was nearly $34,000 higher.

How UofL’s Engineering Management Degree Can Help Advance Your Career

UofL’s online master’s in engineering management is designed for professionals with a bachelor’s in engineering or a hard science who want to develop superior skills in managing engineering projects. The program comprises 10 courses — thirty credit hours — that build upon prior engineering education and experience in the industry.

All courses in the engineering management program are taught 100% online. This allows students to earn their engineering management degree regardless of their location or current life situation. Students can be working or living in the U.S., or any other location worldwide.

The degree can be earned in as few as two years (24 months). Students can transfer up to six (6) credit hours from another graduate engineering program at UofL or from a regionally accredited institution, subject to department approval.

Learn more about the online Master of Engineering in Engineering Management degree from UofL.

About UofL Online Learning

The University of Louisville currently offers online programs in various areas of study for adult learners who are not able to come to a physical campus, but want to earn a college degree or certificate and advance their career.

The University of Louisville is a nationally-recognized, metropolitan research university, with a commitment to the liberal arts and sciences, as well as the intellectual, cultural, and economic development of our diverse community of learners.

A Family Tradition: Dr. Shawnise Miller Tells Her Social Work Story

A Family Tradition: Dr. Shawnise Miller Tells Her Social Work Story

Shawnise Miller - Director of Online Master's in Social Work at University of LouisvilleAn inspirational story of a family tradition helped shape a young leader—Dr. Shawnise Miller, the new Program Director for the online Master of Science in Social Work from the Kent School of Social Work at the University of Louisville.

When asked what drew her to the field of social work, Dr. Miller immediately thinks back to her childhood.

“My grandmother was the director of a local social service agency and from an early age, I spent time at her office. I didn’t go to daycare, I went to work with my grandmother. And even after starting school, I would spend my summer breaks at her office. Watching her help people and their families shaped me greatly.”

It was there that she learned that help can come in a variety of forms. “It could be providing direct services like food or financial assistance for rent…or it could be advocating for social justice on behalf of individuals or even whole groups of people.”

Entering the Family Business

When it came time to chart her own career course, Dr. Miller followed the passion for helping others in which she was raised and pursued her bachelor’s in psychology at the University of Louisville. Once she got started, she just couldn’t stop and pursued her master’s and her Ph.D. in social work.

“Growing up, my father always told me that school was my job, so I took it seriously. I developed a true love and appreciation for learning…And now, one of the most rewarding parts of teaching for me is being able to fulfill my own passion for learning as I challenge myself to explore new teaching techniques and technologies and develop new curriculum to then challenge my students.”

In addition to being the program director, Dr. Miller is also a professor, teaching Diversity, Oppression, and Social Justice Practice, a foundation course in the MSSW program. It’s there that she gets to help students bridge the gap between the theoretical concepts presented in social work literature and concrete examples of people and communities in need.

“I love seeing the lighMaster's in Social Work Course at University of Louisvillet bulb moments for my students…watching them make connections between course materials and real-life situations.”

In her course, students will also learn how to collaborate with peers, an essential skill in social work where so much of the work is spent building relationships and connecting clients with the right people who can offer the best assistance.

“Collaborative work is something my students will engage in throughout their careers so I integrate it throughout my curriculum. I give a group assignment and then I work with each group to help them work effectively and efficiently as a team. I have to be intentional about teaching them to collaborate…I can’t make the assumption they already know how.”

Dr. Miller’s experience in the online classroom and her dedication to staying on the cutting edge of online learning techniques promise good things in the online social work program at U of L’s Kent School. We on the Online Learning team are excited about her appointment and look forward to working with her.

About UofL’s Master’s in Social Work

If you have considered pursuing your master’s in social work, please take a moment and visit our site to learn more about UofL’s social work program. We offer a 30- and a 60-hour program depending on your background and experience, and we would love the opportunity to help you pursue your education goals.

From the Online Classroom to an Overseas Hospital

From the Online Classroom to an Overseas Hospital

Rhea T. Williams, BSN, RN, BS is a married mother of two, a U.S. Air Force veteran and has worked as an ICU nurse in Germany and the US. She shares her experience as an online student pursuing her RN-BSN degree at UofL and details how the degree has made a difference in her career.

Tell us a little about your career path leading up to your decision to enroll at UofL.

“I came to nurrhea-williamssing after working in other areas of healthcare for a few years. As a first generation immigrant to the U.S., I witnessed first-hand the struggle of trying to access healthcare and dealing with all other seemingly more pressing aspects of every-day life.

My career in nursing is the fulfillment of a lifelong dream to become a primary healthcare provider. After the completion of my associate’s degree, I began working as a critical care nurse in an Intermediate Care Unit (IMCU) in inner city Baltimore. I went on to become a Cum Laude graduate of the Bachelor of Science in Nursing for Registered Nurses at University of Louisville while living in Germany, and I currently work as an ICU nurse at a large hospital and PRN ICU at a small community hospital. In addition to my degrees in nursing, I also hold a Bachelor of Science in Psychology.”

What motivated you to pursue an RN-BSN online program?

“My job as a critical care IMCU nurse in Baltimore placed me on the front lines of working with under-served populations. Most of the clients were uninsured and sought healthcare assistance only after multiple problems had compounded into complex cases. Even though I worked on the IMCU, our ICU at that facility was so small that we cared for clients that normally would be ICU patients at other hospitals.

It was a great learning experience and propelled me to further my education in Nursing so that I could be of greater assistance to those with the greatest need. I decided that I wanted to complete a bachelor’s in nursing and hopefully continue on to the FNP one day.”

Why did you choose UofL’s online RN-BSN?

“I chose UofL after much deliberation, because I knew that I would be completing the majority of my degree while living in Germany. It was important to me that the process of completing my degree was as streamlined as possible and that everything would be as accessible to me as if I was living in the United States.

While there are several wonderful universities in my home state of Maryland, I was searching for a school that would be able to tailor the program to my unique circumstances, while having the support systems of a large university. Of course it didn’t hurt that UofL is an amazing school with a great reputation in the academic world.”

What did you like best about the RN-BSN program at UofL?

“My favorite classes were A&P and Pharmacology, mostly because I found them to be the most challenging. I really appreciated taking those courses, as some BSN programs do not require these two classes for graduation. I think that they really provide a solid foundation for becoming a better nurse and for pursuing graduate level studies.”

Do you have a favorite project you worked on in this program?

“My absolute favorite was the community health project at the end of the program. As I was in Germany I had to go out into the community, explore the German healthcare system and collect various health statistics. I spoke with German doctors, nurses and healthcare administrators about how they approach care and how the national insurance system works there. It allowed me to gain a better understanding of different approaches to healthcare that I might not have otherwise experienced.”

How did the 100% online format work for you?

“Well, as you can guess by now, the online format would be the only one that would work for me. Frankfurt, Germany is six hours ahead of Maryland, and so an 8:00 a.m. start for me was the middle of “snooze time” for everyone physically at UofL. I needed to be able to access my virtual classroom at any time and complete coursework as necessary.

We also spent a good portion of time traveling, which made it important that the system requirements were as universally standard as possible so that I could use most computers anywhere to complete class tasks and assignments on Blackboard.”

How has UofL’s RN-BSN program helped you in your current position?

“I feel the education I received at UofL gave me the confidence to go into ICU nursing knowing that I had a good academic foundation. As I said earlier, I really value the coursework requirements in this program. Every class was informative, applicable and relevant to the practice of nursing today. It also fostered a desire to make improvements in my individual practice of nursing.

I personally wrote and developed a mentorship program for new nurses at my hospital using the tools that I gained completing my degree at UofL. The benefits of a UofL education are prominent and palpable.”

What does your current career path hold for you? Where would you like to go?

“I am currently in the process of completing applications for graduate school — yes, back to school for me. I plan on becoming a Family Nurse Practitioner and heading back to some of those immigrant and underserved communities I hold dear to my heart. It is my goal to complete the DNP as a terminal degree in nursing, but I am not ruling out an additional Masters in Public Health like one of my UofL professors and mentors.”

What advice do you have for other online students considering enrollment at UofL?

“In order to be successful at online learning, honest self-evaluation is key. Know how you learn, what you need in order to complete coursework and tasks. Know when to ask for help. Your professors are there to help you and will do what is needed to ensure that you gain the knowledge if you are putting forth the effort.

All of my professors at UofL were always only a short email away. Just because you are a distance student does not mean that you do not have the same access and support traditional students do.”

Join nurses like Rhea on a path to success with UofL online learning!

The Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) program at UofL is designed for nurses with an associate degree or a nursing diploma. The program potentially qualifies registered nurses for higher earnings and a broader range of employment opportunities. This program also facilitates the Institute of Medicine’s recommendation that 80% of nurses earn a BSN degree by the year 2020.

UofL’s online RN-BSN program was recently honored with a ranking of ninth in the nation for value and curriculum quality by affordablecolleges.com. Working nurses can complete the Bachelor of Science in Nursing in as few as five semesters, although students are welcome to take more time if needed.