About the College of Engineering and Applied Science

• Ranked Top 5 for co-op (US News and World Report) among public and private universities in the nation
• 18:1 Student-to-faculty ratio
• 23 Average class size

Our college is the birthplace of cooperative education — around campus, you'll hear us refer to it as co-op. It's integrated into engineering and applied science curriculum and for more than 100 years, students graduate with at least full year of experience. 

Our city is a huge part of who we are and what we do. After all, it’s in our name. Cincinnati is home to seven Fortune 500 companies and lays claim to one of the most vibrant startup ecosystems in the nation. You’ll hear us refer to our city as the Queen City and we have dozens of reasons why it’s so special. Here are some of our favorites: 

• To provide a world-class educational experience in engineering, computing, and applied sciences from undergraduates through doctoral levels.
• To expand the frontiers of knowledge and disseminate this information to the scientific community, industry, government, and the general public.
• To foster partnerships with industry, the broader educational community, and local, state, and federal governments to expand excellence, access, and diversity. 

Leading urban public colleges of engineering, computing, and applied sciences through education, experiential learning, and knowledge creation and dissemination into a new era of innovation and impact. 

On September 22, 2009, the UC Board of Trustees approved the creation of the College of Engineering and Applied Science (CEAS).

This restructuring strengthens the focus on engineering and engineering technology and the enhancement of STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) related programs. The integration and collaboration of these two predecessor colleges —The College of Engineering and The College of Applied Science — does not diminish the legacy or stature of either unit but offers numerous opportunities for positive change. Each entity brings a rich history with exceptional and often complementary strengths.

The College of Engineering has always been part of the university’s history. The appointment of a professor of civil engineering in 1874 and the organization of a department of engineering, culminated in the establishment of the College of Engineering in 1900.

In 1923 a six-year cooperative program was added in general engineering which led to dual degrees: a bachelor of engineering and a master of science. The college began offering courses in engineering through its own evening division in 1924 and by 1926 grew to include course work in applied arts.

The Institute for Scientific Research, established in the 1920s, expanded the concept of cooperative education by joining the university with industry at the research level.

The goal in the 1950s was to offer graduate instruction in every department. A joint project with the Engineer’s Council for Professional Development (ECPD), and local industry provided opportunities for young professional engineers to pursue graduate degrees without leaving their jobs.

The Ohio Mechanics Institute (OMI), parent name of the College of Applied Science, was founded in 1828 as a private educational institution and the first school west of the Alleghenies dedicated to technical education. The institute became a regional technology resource boosting the Cincinnati economy in the late 1800s.

OMI operated exclusively as an evening college until 1901 when day courses on a pre-college level were added. In 1919 the day courses were revised into collegiate programs. In 1934 the cooperative education plan, where students could spend time working in industry, was initiated. 

In 1958 the college designated separate names for its day and evening operations, the day school became the Ohio College of Applied Science (OCAS) and the evening school was named the Ohio Mechanics Institute Evening College (OMIEC). The college merged with the University of Cincinnati in 1969 and offered programs in the engineering technologies and related areas with the aim of preparing individuals for careers as engineering technologists, engineering technicians, and managers in industry.  The college began offering bachelor’s degrees in the early 70s.

The name of the college was changed in 1978 to the OMI College of Applied Science, combining the day and evening divisions, and was shortened to the College of Applied Science in 2000.

Both colleges and the City of Cincinnati have shared long and productive partnerships. From the earliest days to the present the Colleges of Engineering and Applied Science have maintained strong ties to local and national industry through cooperative education assignments, research funding and graduate placement.  The University of Cincinnati honors the distinguished history and traditions of these two colleges, now strengthened by their union.

The sun-clock that sits in the engineering quadrangle was a gift from the Class of 1955 designed by two chemical engineering students, Ron Rosensweig and Hans Mueller.  Hand-made almost entirely of brass, the sun-clock weighed thirty-five pounds and was manufactured for the price of $500 by the Rief Manufacturing Company in Fairfax, Ohio. Owing to the precision of its design and manufacture, the sun-clock’s hand chiseled analemma—the graduated scale shaped in a figure eight showing the sun’s declination and the equation of time for each day of the year—could tell time within one minute’s accuracy.  In recent years college staff have referred to the entire instrument as simply the "analemma.”

Throughout its years on the quad, mishaps and thefts plagued the clock to the point that in 1968 all of the instrument’s moving parts disappeared. The sun-clock was irreparable because Rosensweig and Mueller, who designed the clock, had long since graduated and the college did not have any blueprints or any sketches to work from. Several employees in the UC Physical Plant worked together to consult with the original designers and secure funding to replace the sun-clock. Rosensweig, who had become president of Ferrofluidics Corporation in Burlington, Massachusetts, was quick to offer to redesign the sun-clock from square one in the absence of the original plans and sent a completed drawing for an estimate to Rief Manufacturing Company. Despite the considerable increase in cost to replace the original, the efforts of many persons culminated in success in July of 1970 when the new sun-clock was mounted on its pedestal with a plaque next to it reading, “There is Time for Those Who Pass.”

For over 50 years the analemma has remained a visible reminder of engineering and technology accomplishment and will continue to distinguish the College of Engineering and Applied Science at UC.  As a lasting symbol of dedicated service and demonstrated ability the analemma was chosen by the dean of the college as a special recognition piece awarded to carefully chosen individuals who represent the epitome of engineering and technology excellence and service to the community, their chosen careers, the college of engineering and applied science and the university.  Individuals awarded the analemma pin are, and will remain, loyal and trusted friends of the college and the dean’s inner circle of valued advisors and confidants.