By Howell John Núñez
April 29, 2018
On Sunday, April 29, 2018, the New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) invited the students of Applied Technology High School to its all-day OPEN HOUSE. (The NJIT, our school partner, was formerly known as the Newark College of Engineering). It was an enormous event, filled with thousands of prospective students and parents. The energy was overwhelming, as hundreds of well-informed student ambassadors received all of us enthusiastic visitors. They were tremendously friendly, welcoming and most importantly… helpful. We learned so much about the school and, most notably, about the life of a college student. In one-on-one discussions, the upper class men addressed many of the mysteries and uncertainties of college life. They were so generous with their time and clarified many of our questions.
The day started at the brand new multi-level, high-tech Wellness Center. Here, a fleet of host personnel quickly registered all the students and were invited to take the escalator to the upper level for a continental breakfast. They did it right… with tons of food and drinks for lots of hungry people. Here, we were able to tour the wellness facility. We spoke with departmental professors, interacted with SO MANY of the school clubs. After a quick bite, many of us took campus tours. The entire campus complex in downtown Newark underwent a $300 million dollar renovation, and it is eye-opening. You actually forget you are in Newark!
In addition to the Wellness Center, there stands a 10 thousand square-foot Maker Space, equipped with state-of-the-art CNC machinery, water cutters, Additive Manufacturing (ultra-large 3D printers), Auto CAD, and tons of space for special projects. It looks like a high-tech Japanese facility. The new dormitory in the Honors College was spacious, bright, and cheery. On the walk back for the keynote address was the tall NJIT clock tower, NJIT students warned: “if you walk underneath it, you will not graduate in 4
years. You will be stuck at the college for 6-plus years before graduation.”
The school’s keynote speaker… Dr. Fadi P. Deek, the Provost and EVP was amazing–sincere and very down-to-earth. He earned all of his degrees at NJIT and demonstrated a love for the school and the students. He met his wife at NJIT, and his three children graduated from the school at accelerated rates. Two of them are now physicians and the other is working on a PhD. He said that NJIT is good, but that we should not be fooled: it has a difficult curriculum. But if we apply ourselves, we will get an excellent education. He mentioned that the school receives many research grants and offers great opportunities for students to get real-life work experiences. Most notably, 96% of its students find immediate employment.
Following the address, students were dismissed one by one to tour the schools of their interest. We had the opportunity to take two in-depth school tours, which were for the students only. Many questions were answered. The biggest takeaway from the overall event was “Do not start the schools of engineering without taking Calculus I.” Otherwise, students will not be allowed to take most of the core courses. This was a great event and established NJIT as a major powerhouse university…not only in New Jersey but nationally.
Quick Facts:
• Total enrollment: 11,400
• SAT average composite score for fall 2015
freshmen is 1212 (top 25%). For Honors
College freshmen, the average composite SAT
score is 1385 (top 10%).
• More than 50% of freshman students and 25%
overall live on campus (undergraduates).
• 281 tenured faculty; 99% hold doctoral degrees
• Student-faculty ratio is 18:1
• 1,309 full-time employees
• 4,000 students and teachers in pre-college
educational programs including ATHS
• 7,400 prospective students and their parents visit campus annually for open houses and tours
• First in the nation among America’s Most Underrated Colleges – BusinessInsider.com
• A Top National University – U.S. News and World Report
Applied Tech Times 