Another Record Year for Dartmouth Engineering Investiture Includes First-Ever Online Degree Cohort

This year set new records for its doctoral and MEng degree programs. Reflecting the expansion of graduate research over the past five years, 34 earned the PhD in engineering sciences, breaking the prior high of 23. In the MEng program, 74, including 20 who were part of the online cohort, earned the degree.

For the third year in a row, the Master of Engineering Management (MEM) program awarded more than half of its 57 degrees to women. Eight graduates earned the Master of Science in engineering sciences, 114 earned the Bachelor of Engineering (BE) degree, and 107 engineering majors earned the Bachelor of Arts (AB) degree from Dartmouth.

More than 1,200 people gathered on the Dartmouth Green, with an additional 1,700 joining the livestream, to watch BE, MEM, MEng, MS, and PhD candidates, led by four student marshals, receive their academic hoods from the engineering faculty. Numerous graduates, faculty, and staff were also recognized for contributions and accomplishments in academics, research, engineering design, and service.

Keynote speaker Maria Klawe, president of Math for America. (Photo by Mark Washburn)

Maria Klawe, president of Math for America and the recipient of this year's Robert Fletcher Award, delivered the keynote address. She reflected on her experience as one of the few women working as a mathematician and engineer early in her career and on her tenure as the first woman to lead Harvey Mudd College, where she worked to broaden representation across the institution. 

"You have gained much knowledge and experience that will enable you to have a significant impact throughout your career," Klawe said. "One of your key experiences has been learning in a diverse community, and I hope you will use that to be a change agent who promotes encouragement and support for members of diverse groups wherever you are."

Two student speakers each shared their unique perspective on the Thayer experience. Naisha Sinha, a member of the first online MEng cohort, spoke about how the structure of the program far exceeded her expectations of enabling her to feel engaged and connected from thousands of miles away.

Student speaker Naisha Sinha, online MEng graduate. (Photo by Mark Washburn)

"The difference was intention: this program was designed so that distance would never be an issue," Sinha said. "Dartmouth chose to see the word 'online' as a design constraint to be solved. And that changed my definition of engineering. Engineering is not just the solution, it's the community that makes it possible. At Dartmouth, the university where the term 'AI' was first coined, I experienced something truly human: genuine connection — all while learning about AI."

BE graduate and current MEM student, Piper Gilbert, spoke about how support from the Thayer community helps students stick with engineering even if they don't immediately excel at it.

"One night in a Great Hall booth, demoralized by a puzzle I couldn't crack, I was one line of code away from giving up on engineering entirely," said Gilbert. "Two classmates I didn't know yet sat down, compared wrong answers, laughed, and stayed with me. By dawn, none of us had mastered the assignment, but we'd learned Thayer's rule: admit you're lost, and be each other's tour guide." 

Student speaker Piper Gilbert, BE graduate and current MEM student. (Photo by Mark Washburn)

Gilbert explained, "I stayed because a booth was open, and people sat down with me, and not one of them ever made me feel like the struggling version of myself was the permanent one. … Whatever comes, remember to sit down across from a stranger who is stuck. … This is what we leave behind: not what we built here, but how we sat with each other while we were building it."

Incoming Dean Douglas Van Citters '99 Th'03 Th'06, in his closing remarks, touched on the pace of technological change and the inevitable "yet-to-be-invented tools" that are impossible to predict. He proposed that this fast-evolving landscape is best addressed by building a certain kind of engineer.

"At Thayer, I learned how to be an engineer in a world that keeps moving, how to learn and keep learning, even as the ground shifted beneath me," said Van Citters. "You may start as engineers, but you're never only engineers. What we've taught you is a style of thinking that trains adaptability, an appreciation for the needs of other fields, interconnectedness, and strong communication."

He continued, "You are engineers with a deep understanding of people and society. Engineers who see nuance where others see black and white. Engineers who bring both real technical skill and real compassion to the hardest problems we have. This is what Dartmouth has built in you. You're the kind of engineers we should be building. No apologies. You're who we need for that future I can't predict."