He noted that the School of Engineering made a joint appointment with the School of Medicine last year and hoped to make another appointment in the coming academic year. Speaking more generally about the engineering school, Hennessy remarked on its national reputation. It also grants about 1,300 degrees a year, or about 30 percent of the university's total number of degrees, he said. Computer science is gaining in popularity, and last year more than 80 percent of undergraduates had taken at least one computer science course, Hennessy added. As more students major in computer science, there has been a small drop in the number of engineering majors.
Efforts are under way to strengthen undergraduate engineering research opportunities.
Hennessy also described the engineering school's efforts at distance learning. The school has the largest distance education program among research universities in the country. The Stanford Center for Professional Development offers 250 courses, and the school has awarded over 5,000 master's degrees through distance education. Increasingly, career professionals take Stanford courses without pursuing a specific degree. Distance learning is gradually shifting from television and video technology to the Internet.