The Cooperative Engineering program was developed to satisfy the need for engineers in Southwest Missouri.  Employers of engineers in Southwest Missouri have historically had difficulty filling their engineering positions and attracting engineering talent to the area.  Their need was greatest in civil and electrical engineering disciplines, and so the Cooperative Engineering program was developed to offer degrees in civil and electrical engineering to students on the Missouri State University campus in Springfield.  It was envisioned that the program would provide a better opportunity for students from Southwest Missouri to major in engineering, and that many of those students would stay in the area and provide the necessary engineering talent.  The program has been very successful.  Enrollment has exceeded our expectations, and the majority of students in the program are from Southwest Missouri. 

In order to balance resources and enrollment it has become necessary to place an enrollment restriction on the Cooperative Engineering program.  The following rules will apply:

1.  Students who are admitted to Missouri State University prior to January 1, 2010 and who enroll for classes at MSU during the spring 2010 semester are eligible for the program regardless of their residency.  This includes out-of-state and international students.

2.  Students who are admitted to Missouri State University after January 1, 2010 must have residency in one of the following nine counties in Missouri:  Christian, Dade, Dallas, Greene, Lawrence, Polk, Stone, Taney, Webster.   Students who do not have residency in the nine county area are not eligible for the Cooperative Engineering Program.  Missouri State University will continue to offer the pre-engineering program to all students, which allows students to complete the first two years of courses on the Missouri State campus and then transfer to the Missouri University of Science and Technology (or another engineering school) to complete their engineering degree.

3.  Students will be allowed to transfer into the Cooperative Engineering program from partner colleges (such as Ozarks Technical College), with the following guidelines:

a.  Students who are admitted to the partner college prior to January 1, 2010 are eligible for the program regardless of their county residency, as long as they are a resident of Missouri.

b.  Students who are admitted to the partner college after January 1, 2010 must have residency in one of the following nine counties in Missouri:  Christian, Dade, Dallas, Greene, Lawrence, Polk, Stone, Taney, Webster.   Students who do not have residency in the nine county area are not eligible to transfer into the Cooperative Engineering Program.  Students may still complete the pre-engineering program at their partner college to complete the first two years of courses and then transfer to the Missouri University of Science and Technology (or another engineering school) to complete their engineering degree.