Dean, College of Engineering

Apply now Job no: 553016
Work type: Management (MPP)
Location: San Luis Obispo
Categories: MPP, Administrative, At-Will, Full Time, On-site (work in-person at business location)

The College of Engineering (CENG) is known as a national leader in engineering education with its Learn by Doing, hands‑on approach and focus on undergraduate and master’s degree education. The College includes approximately 6,200 undergraduate students and 300 graduate students who are enrolled in 14 bachelor’s and 11 master’s degree programs, most of which are ABET accredited. With an emphasis on applied learning and problem‑solving, the College’s in‑demand graduates are heavily recruited by some of the best‑known companies in the world including Apple, Boeing, Cisco, Google, Tesla Motors in addition to state and federal agencies.

The College offers a robust array of highly‑ranked engineering and computer science programs, including Aerospace Engineering, Biomedical Engineering, Civil & Environmental Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science & Software Engineering, Electrical Engineering, General Engineering, Industrial & Manufacturing Engineering, Materials Engineering, and Mechanical Engineering, as well as additional graduate programs in Engineering Management, Fire Protection Engineering, and Regenerative Medicine. Undergraduate students can opt to pursue a blended program in several CENG disciplines, providing an accelerated route to a graduate degree.

CENG recently unveiled the Noyce School of Applied Computing (Noyce School), a new interdisciplinary school combining three academic departments under one umbrella:
Electrical Engineering, Computer Science & Software Engineering, and Computer Engineering, further developing the concept of applied computing and strengthening collaborations across the College and the University. Interdisciplinary engineering programs can also be found outside of CENG, including Liberal Arts and Engineering Studies, Architectural Engineering, and Bioresource and Agricultural Engineering, as well as Cal Maritime’s School of Engineering programs in Mechanical Engineering, Facilities Engineering Technology, and Marine Engineering Technology.

Student success is paramount to the College of Engineering, and the College aims to provide an excellent education that empowers all students to innovate, design, and create sustainable solutions to real‑world challenges. As part of this mission, CENG is committed to universal student success and offers a robust advising model that provides comprehensive services to guide and empower students to achieve their goals.

Current Context

In November 2024, the California State University Board of Trustees voted to integrate Cal Poly and the California State University Maritime Academy (Cal Maritime), and effective July 1, 2025, the two institutions now operate as a single university, Cal Poly.

Announced in June 2024, the Noyce endowment is a transformational gift to the University, enabling Cal Poly to build upon its nationally recognized Learn by Doing approach to undergraduate education. It brings together three highly ranked engineering programs—Electrical Engineering, Computer Science and Software Engineering, and Computer Engineering—to create the Noyce School of Applied Computing.

In October 2021, the University began the process of converting from a quarter calendar to a semester calendar system, and the University will implement semester terms at the start of the 2026‑2027 academic year. After Cal Poly converts to a semester calendar, the entire California State University system will be operating on semesters.

Looking ahead, enrollment is expected to grow in the coming years to support CSU system goals, meet California’s demand for more Learn by Doing graduates, better reflect the state of California’s demographics, and align with system‑wide financial incentives. The most recent campus master plan calls for growing the maximum student headcount on campus to approximately 25,000 by 2035. This growth will be supported by the introduction of Year‑Round Operations (YRO), which will be implemented in the 2027‑2028 academic year.

Role of the Dean

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