News

Troy, N.Y. — To determine how top schools rated in 11 different business specialties, BusinessWeek turned to the experts: the students. As a companion to the magazine’s 2007 rankings of undergraduate business programs, staffers asked 80,000 business majors at 123 schools to rank their programs on a scale of one to five in different academic categories. Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute’s Lally School of Management & Technology came in at number two in the nation in the area of corporate strategy. 

Troy, N.Y. — With a major grant from the Office of Naval Research, researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute are collaborating with four other universities to address a hot topic in today’s military: how to keep modern ships cool in extreme environments.

Troy, N.Y. — Acclaimed novelist Edward P. Jones will present awards to winners of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute’s McKinney Contest writing competition on April 18 at 8 p.m. Jones also will read selections from his own work at the event, which is co-sponsored by the New York State Writers Institute. 

Troy, N.Y. — Michael Shur, the Patricia W. and C. Sheldon Roberts ’48 Chaired Professor in Solid State Electronics at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, has been promoted to fellow of the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET). Shur is being recognized for his “individual responsibility, sustained achievements, and exceptional professionalism.” IET is the largest professional engineering society in Europe and the second largest of its kind in the world.

Troy, N.Y. — In celebration of National Architecture Week, world-renowned classical pianist John Kamitsuka will perform a benefit recital to fund scholarships for architecture students in the Roman Studies Program at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. The special program of Bach, Beethoven, Brahms, and Schubert will take place April 14 at 7 p.m. at the Troy Savings Bank Music Hall. The event is presented by Rensselaer’s School of Architecture and the American Institute of Architects Eastern New York Chapter (AIAENY). 

Troy, N.Y. – Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute recently garnered approval from the New York State Education Department to offer a doctoral degree in electronic arts. Now one of only a handful of universities in the United States to offer a Ph.D. program in this emerging field, the Institute will begin admitting students in fall 2007.

Troy, N.Y. – Twenty-five students have been inducted into the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Phalanx honor society. Phalanx honors student leadership and celebrates those who have “worked to better the standing of Rensselaer both on and off campus.” New members are selected — or “tapped” — by the student members of Phalanx.

Admissions and student life experts at Rensselaer offer advice Troy, N.Y. — Acceptance letters are in the mail, the deadline for deposits is rapidly approaching, and high school students across the country face a tough decision: With so many choices, how do you pick the right college? As they prepare to welcome another freshman class, the admissions and student life experts at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute offer advice to help reduce stress and smooth the transition to college life.

Troy, N.Y. — Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute’s graduate programs in engineering, applied mathematics, and the fine arts rank among the best in the nation, according to the 2008 U.S. News & World Report guide to “America’s Best Graduate Schools.” The publication is scheduled to hit newsstands on April 3, 2007. “These rankings are another validation of our ongoing transformation to a world-class technological research university with global reach and global impact,” said Rensselaer President Shirley Ann Jackson.

Thomas L. Friedman Photo by Fred R. Conrad of The New York Times