Under a new partnership agreement signed in December, students at WSU Tech (formerly known as Wichita Area Technical College) can now transfer to the Wichita State University College of Engineering and complete a bachelor’s degree in mechatronics engineering technology or engineering technology management with two additional years of study.

WSU Tech becomes the fifth community college to sign “2+2” agreements with Wichita State, allowing students the opportunity to complete an engineering degree within four years. Others include Butler Community College, Cowley College, Pratt College and the Sri Lanka Institute of Information Technologies.

Often when students transfer, not all community college courses are aligned with WSU College of Engineering degree requirements. This results in transfer students taking more than two additional years to complete a B.S. degree. With 2+2 agreements, partner institutions and WSU work together to collectively align all courses, allowing a seamless transition that ensures students don’t spend time or money on classes that aren’t a good fit for their final goals.

“These partnerships support our efforts to create more engineering graduates for the state of Kansas,” said Royce Bowden, Dean of the College of Engineering. “The agreements ensure that students who transfer from these institutions have a real possibility of completing a Wichita State degree from the College of Engineering within two more years.”

“The signing of this articulation strengthens our Shocker Pathway initiative and reflects the spirit and intent of our new affiliation with Wichita State University as WSU Tech, providing a seamless educational pathway for our students in mechatronics,” said Sheree Utash, president of WSU Tech.