Homecoming celebrates alumni support for building career pipeline
Alumni rally Bear Down spirit ahead of the football game at the annual College of Engineering Homecoming tailgate, where families share food and laughs with old friends.
The College of Engineering and its partners have ‘Red, Bue and True’ staying power.
“Our first-year retention rates are some of the highest on campus,” David W. Hahn, the Craig M. Berge Dean, told 350 attendees at the 62nd Engineers Breakfast.
Alongside remarkable growth, the college is remaining true to its purpose of steering students toward the nation’s greatest needs.
As the college expanded academic and research programs to meet workforce demand, 900 first-year and transfer students started in fall 2025, many with an eye on the job market.
Saying, “Students who want to be entrepreneurs recognize the value of engineering,” Hahn applauded the Integrated Business Engineering BS, a degree that fast-tracks undergraduates into business. He also welcomed the Department of Intelligence Operations, which relocated from the College of Applied Science and opens doors to defense and law enforcement job opportunities.
Additionally, Hahn updated alumni and supporters on progress toward goals that affect economic growth, including a 160% jump in research expenditures over the last five years.
In keeping with a workforce training focus, Engineering Student Council President Rohini Ghosh praised the community for helping set up metallurgy internships at ASARCO, a copper mining, smelting and refining company in Tucson.
“Your generosity and commitment to future generations of Wildcats have shaped every opportunity that I had,” said the W.A. Franke Honors College chemical engineering senior.