Zachery Hill and Bryan Caldwell were the first students to graduate in spring 2018 with the Master of Science in Engineering Management degree. Hill is an engineer at an electric company in Little Rock, and Caldwell is a senior project manager in the oil and gas industry based in Houston, Texas.

"My experience in the Master of Science in Engineering Management graduate program through the University of Arkansas Industrial Engineering Department has been invaluable," Hill said. "The M.S.E.M. program provided me with business skills and tools, as well as an opportunity to expand my technical knowledge both professionally and in my personal life. Also, the distance learning system  gave me the opportunity to balance my job responsibilities and weekly coursework requirements. As a working professional, the University of Arkansas MSEM graduate program has given me the confidence to be a more effective Engineer in the workplace." 

The Engineering Management Graduate Program was established in 2017 to help position engineers in leadership roles at companies in Arkansas and across the country. The program is delivered entirely online and can be accomplished in as little as one year.

Greg Parnell, director of the M.S.E.M. program, praised the graduates' achievement and said the new program was already gaining momentum.

"Our M.S. in Engineering Management program began in the fall of 2017, and we already have 23 students enrolled," Parnell said. "We are very happy to have two outstanding graduates of our program in the first year. On top of receiving their M.S. degrees, both students also completed a Project Management Certificate, which will make them even more valuable in the work force."

Currently the program has 23 students throughout the nation working at firms including FedEx, Glad Manufacturing, Rayethon and B/E Aerospace.