On the Rise: A decade of transformative change at Stevens Institute of Technology

“The upward trajectory of Stevens over the last 10 years is nothing short of remarkable. With this foundation in place, the sky’s the limit.”

- Nariman Farvardin, President


For more than 150 years, technological innovation has been the hallmark of a Stevens education and the distinguishing feature of its research and scholarly activities. Built on this distinctive foundation and guided by its 10-year strategic plan, Stevens has made extraordinary advancements across all areas of the university during the last decade —leading to record enrollment growth, unparalleled academic profile of students, unprecedented increases in research funding, and significantly improved access, diversity and student outcomes.

Some highlights of this transformational progress since 2011 include:

  • 67% increase in undergraduate enrollment
  • 145-point increase in the average SAT score of first-year cohort
  • 98% increase in the number of women undergraduates
  • 149% increase in the number of underrepresented minorities in the undergraduate cohort
  • 95% of the Class of 2021 secured employment outcomes or entered graduate school within six months of graduation, with a record average starting salary of $77,000
  • 73% increase in FTE graduate enrollment
  • 38% increase in full-time faculty and lecturers
  • 97% increase in research award funding
  • 100% of classrooms renovated with AV/IT upgrades
  • State-of-the art academic building opened in 2019
  • Magnificent 1,000-bed University Center Complex opening in 2022
  • $200 million capital campaign successfully completed
Portrait of Nariman Farvardin

INNOVATION

Motion graphics professor directing model with screen behind her.

“At Stevens, we don’t just talk about innovation, we live and breathe it. It is the driving force behind all that we do, both within the classroom and beyond the university’s walls.”

-  Mukund Iyengar, Founder and Director of the iSTEM@Stevens and Launchpad Programs, Teaching Associate Professor


Technology is infused into all curricula and programs at Stevens—in deep and meaningful ways—from the traditional STEM disciplines to business, finance, art, music and the social sciences. This “technology differentiator” prepares students to be innovative, entrepreneurial problem-solvers from the day they join, and it cultivates their innovation skill set all along their journey. Many students leave their senior design experience having created intellectual property and as CEOs of their own startup businesses.

  • iSTEM@Stevens and Launchpad Programs.
    These in-house entrepreneurship and coaching programs are designed to transform inspired students into bona fide technology entrepreneurs with their inventions. Students are mentored from idea conception through development and have created enterprises worth $36 million in just the last five years alone, a testament to the programs’ success.
  • Showcasing Innovation.
    Each year Stevens’ students showcase their Senior Design projects at the Innovation Expo and can also compete in the Ansary Entrepreneurship Competition, a high-stakes pitch contest to persuade prospective investors to help them turn their project into a successful business. The 2021 first place prize of $10,000 was awarded to Faizah Chowdhury and Jake Fiore for their Hip Tip pitch, a tool to aid surgeons in determining the best implant size for hip replacements and avoid the need for revision surgery.

Technological innovation inspires Stevens’ growing research portfolio:

  • CRAFT (The Center for Research toward Advancing Financial Technologies).
    In partnership with Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Stevens was awarded the first-ever National Science Foundation grant to create an industry-university cooperative research center devoted specifically to financial technology and science. Research generated from CRAFT will support various aspects of the fast-emerging fintech sector, including mitigating risks, developing a diverse workforce and addressing cybersecurity.
  • Stevens Institute for Artificial Intelligence (SIAI).
    Established in 2018, SIAI is an interdisciplinary effort comprised of more than 50 faculty members representing engineering, business, systems, design and the arts and humanities. The institute is dedicated to educating students and conducting research that advances AI and machine learning to improve all aspects of business and society.
Illustration of a light bulb immersed in lines and circles.
Female professor instructs class.

97% increase

in research funding in the last 10 years

INVESTMENT

New University Center Complex with solar panels in foreground.

Stevens is investing in our students by creating world-class academic, research and campus facilities, attracting pre-eminent scholars and researchers and evolving our curriculum to not only align with—but also anticipate—industry needs for the future.


Thanks to the investment and generosity of more than 14,000 donors who contributed more than 45,000 individual gifts through The Power of Stevens campaign, Stevens has surpassed its goal in the university’s largest fundraising campaign in its history.  

The successful $200 million campaign focused on three priorities: 

  • Student Success, to be used for providing a range of support for students, including scholarships, opportunities to study abroad, athletics and performing arts.
  • Faculty Excellence, to recruit and expand Stevens’ professors and researchers, as well as to provide faculty development funds.
  • A Vibrant Campus, to renovate and build new facilities that further solidify Stevens as a world-class technology and research institution. 

Through the Power of Stevens campaign, Stevens has added 158 new scholarships and  18 new named faculty fellowships and made numerous additions to our vibrant campus:

    • University Center Complex, a stunning new 1,000-bed undergraduate residence atop a three-story state-of-the art university center with conference facilities, game rooms, dining and student spaces with magnificent views of midtown Manhattan; scheduled to open in Spring 2022.
    • Gateway Academic Center, including new labs, classrooms and offices, as well as the new home to our computer science department.
    • American Bureau of Shipping Engineering Center, featuring three naval and civil engineering labs.
    • Ruesterholz Admissions Center, welcoming campus visitors and housing our admissions department.
    • Hanlon Financial Systems Center, serving our business school students, including a lab that simulates a real trading floor.
    • Lore-El Center for Women’s Leadership, offering a dedicated space for Stevens’ female students and faculty to connect on STEM.
    • Student Wellness Center, housing all of Stevens’ physical, mental and disability health services.

    Stevens was awarded a STARS Gold rating in recognition of its sustainability achievements from the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE), showcasing Stevens’ strong dedication to sustainability in both the classroom and campus operations. Also, beginning in fall 2021, Stevens will source 100% of its electricity directly from local renewable energy, putting our university in an exclusive cohort of universities electing to run on 100% clean electricity.

    Students working at table inside ABS Engineering Center.

     More than

    $461 million in new and upgraded facilities

    since 2011

    Black and white photo of Stevens campus.
    Color image of campus with new University Center Complex.

    The Center of the University

    The New
    University Center Complex

    IMPACT

    Students jump for joy and throw their caps in air to celebrate their commencement.
    Student works in lab.
    Smiling students in cap and gown at commencement.

    Student outcomes tell the story.


    Within six months of graduation, typically more than 95% of students secure employment in highly competitive technology companies or enter prestigious graduate programs. Year-over-year, graduates have among the highest salaries in the nation—for the Class 2020, the latest data available, average starting salaries were $77,000—well above the national average of $50,000. Moreover, Stevens ranked 12th in the nation in PayScale’s 2020-21 College Salary Report for “top colleges with the highest paid graduates.”


    “Stevens provided me with opportunities to grow both academically and professionally, equipping me with a wide range of skills to excel in my career. The school’s proximity to New York City meant I could work part-time at NBC in Rockefeller Center while still attending classes full time. This allowed me to graduate with a strong professional network that gave me an edge over graduates from other universities…”

    - Jenna Wong ’20, Media Tech Associate, NBCUniversal


    INSPIRATION

     

    Inspired by the potential, talent and sheer drive of its students—and the life-changing opportunity enabled by a Stevens education—the university launched the ACES program in 2017: Accessing Careers in Engineering and Science. ACES provides an on-ramp for deserving high-ability and high-need students, particularly underrepresented minority (URM) students and those from underserved communities, to take full advantage of a Stevens education.


    Results of the ACES program have been remarkable and demonstrate the power of early access to STEM programming, mentorship and financial support. In the first year of the program, there was a 60% increase in URM students in Stevens’ pre-college summer STEM programs and a 46% increase of URM students in Stevens’ incoming first-year cohort. In the second year, there was a 50% and 29% percent increase, respectively, in pre-college and undergraduate participation of URM students over the baseline year.

    Importantly, ACES students are succeeding, with an average GPA above 3.4 and a 97% averaged two-year retention rate. When the first cohort graduated in 2021, their rigorous, hands-on STEM education, in combination with industry experiences, networking opportunities and other programming, has prepared them to successfully transition into a STEM career or graduate study.

    Programs like Stevens ACES, the A. James Clark Scholars program, the Lawrence T. Babbio Pinnacle Scholars program, iSTEM/Launchpad and many others are providing   financial assistance, mentorship and numerous support services to nurture students’ educational and professional development to graduation and on to a successful career.

    When speaking about the life transformation that a Clark Scholarship provides, Adrian Garcia summed it up best: “I come from a city known for excessive gang violence, and my family isn’t in a financial position to be able to send me to a school like Stevens…The scholarship makes it possible for me to come here so that I can develop my skills as an engineer and as a leader, so I can give back to society in some way.”

    Student studies notes on bench in Gateway Academic Center.
    Portrait of Adrian Garcia smiling.

    Clark Scholar Adrian Garcia

    Clark Scholar Adrian Garcia

    INTO THE
    FUTURE

    Students works on motorized vehicle in engineering lab.

    “We launched a 10-year strategic plan in 2012 entitled, ‘The Future. Ours to Create.’ Ten years later, I am filled with pride at all this university has accomplished, but the best is yet to come.”

    President Nariman Farvardin


    During the past 10 years, Stevens has undergone a remarkable transformation. Stevens has grown in size and improved in stature. In almost every imaginable measure of performance, impact and productivity, the university has reached new heights of achievement. This success has been nothing short of spectacular!

    Undergraduate and graduate applications have each more than tripled, resulting in a significant growth in enrollment, improved selectivity, enhanced diversity, an impressive rise in the academic profile of students, as well as strong student outcomes, including record high graduation rates. Stevens has added nearly 100 faculty lines, significantly expanded academic programs, and strengthened the scope, quality and impact of the research enterprise.

    The campus has been totally transformed—through a modern IT infrastructure and the addition and renovation of living and learning spaces, a major new state-of-the-art academic and research building and, opening next year, a magnificent University Center Complex that will be a hub for campus life. This iconic structure will provide nearly a thousand student residents with the most stunning views they may ever have in their lives!

    Recently, the university successfully concluded a $200 million campaign, the most ambitious in our history. The success of The Power of Stevens campaign is due entirely to the renewed engagement and reinvigorated sense of pride of so many members of our community. These strategic initiatives have led to so much progress at Stevens.

    Increased philanthropic support, combined with sound fiscal discipline, have put Stevens in a very strong position for the future as we begin to consider our next strategic plan for 2022-2032.

    Stevens is a national treasure. Our star is on the rise, and the best is yet to come!