Our mission is to engage students through personal relationships and high-impact educational experiences to maximize their success.
Our core values are: 

Personal Relationships. We foster the development of strong relationships between students, faculty, staff and alumni.

Engagement. We engage everyone in the educational process through distinctive curricular and extracurricular activities.

Opportunity. We provide unique educational opportunities that fully develop individuals into practicing engineers and computer scientists.

Development and Success of Individuals. We seek to help each individual achieve success in pursuit of their personal and professional goals.

ABET accreditation is a measure of quality and an official seal of approval of our programs by a nonprofit, non-government organization recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation.

It means that a team of highly skilled professionals from industry, academia and government scrutinized every aspect of our programs – curriculum, faculty, facilities and more – to ensure we meet high standards.

It signifies that our engineering programs are capable of producing graduates who are ready to lead the way in innovation and emerging technology.

Our bachelor’s degree programs in civil engineering, computer engineering, electrical engineering and mechanical engineering were all re-accredited by ABET in 2015. Our bachelor’s degree program in computer science was re-accredited by the Computing Accreditation Commission of ABET. And our engineering education program became the first program in the nation with this name and unique academic offering to receive accreditation by ABET.

Want to build a concrete canoe, radio-controlled airplane or off-road vehicle that can stand up to the competition? Every year ONU teams travel to regional and national competitions where they’re pitted against engineering students from top schools across the U.S. We’re proud of our excellent standings year after year in these competitions.

On campus you’ll find a variety of active and award-winning student organizations. Several are dedicated to engineering and computer science. By participating, you’ll develop leadership skills, network with professionals, make lifelong friends, gain knowledge about your chosen profession, volunteer, and have the chance to travel to regional and national conferences. Campus opportunities include Joint Engineering Council (JEC), Polar Robotics Club, and Innovators of Ohio Northern (ION). Honoraries and Greeks include Tau Beta Pi, Upsilon Pi Epsilon and Phi Sigma Rho. Professional organizations include American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE), Association for Computing Machinery (ACM), Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineering (IEEE), Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE), and Society of Women Engineers (SWE).

In a world of accelerating change, the skills you learn today can be obsolete tomorrow. What will stand the test of time, however, is a mindset. The Kern Entrepreneurial Engineering Network (KEEN) at ONU was created to cultivate an entrepreneurial mindset among undergraduate engineering students. The entrepreneurial mindset is one that embraces change, blending technical understanding with the desire to craft innovative solutions that create extraordinary value for others. Ohio Northern University is among 24 elite schools invited to join KEEN, and it’s one of the few institutions to be with the network since its inception in 2005.

Twitter: @KEENatONU

Facebook: KEEN at Ohio Northern University

Why wait until you graduate to make a difference? You can start now. Tackle real projects in local communities and across the globe that improve lives. 

For local impact, check out EPICS: Engineering Projects in Community Service. Students team up to solve engineering challenges for local organizations. Read about how we built a replica Mars rover for the Armstrong Air and Space Museum in Wapakoneta, Ohio; refurbished a concrete base for historical Civil War cannons in Forest, Ohio; upgraded the village of Ada’s website; adapted toys to match the capabilities of children with different physical disabilities; and constructed a wooden pedestal for a cast-bronze bell for the Ada First United Methodist Church.

For global impact, check out Northern Engineers without Borders. Students travel to remote villages in developing countries to work with villagers on engineering projects that will improve the standard of living in the village. These projects usually involve electricity, fresh water or buildings. In recent years, our students have coordinated projects in the Dominican Republic.

For impact on the next generation, STEM Academy gets local elementary students excited about the STEM fields (science, technology, engineering and mathematics). ONU engineering students plan, organize and staff STEM Academy. They travel to local elementary schools and engage students in interactive engineering projects – like building batteries out of lemons and weight-bearing structures out of playing cards.

Some ONU engineering students participate in research experiences for undergraduates, called REUs. These usually take place at large research institutions or government labs. REUs are highly competitive. You have to apply and be accepted by the group sponsoring the research. But ONU students have an excellent rate of placement. Our engineering and computer science students have participated in REUs at Duke, Georgia Tech, Case Western, Notre Dame, Ohio State and the Mayo Clinic, working in the areas of nano-technology, wind turbines, biomedical, automotive and more. We also offer an REU for ONU engineering students through the Evans Student Research Fellowship Program. This program provides 10 weeks of paid work during the summer for two students assisting ONU engineering professors with their research projects. Evans Fellows are selected through a competitive application process.

At ONU, we feel a keen sense of responsibility to do our part to increase interest in the engineering field. Through camps and outreach programs, we expose hundreds of young people to engineering every year. We spark curiosity, build interest and generate excitement for engineering among students in elementary through high school. Learn more.

Females: Find out what it’s really like to be an engineering student at Ohio Northern during a special on-campus overnight experience. You’ll be grouped with current ONU engineering women, so feel free to pick their brains. Ask them anything. You’ll get the answers you seek and an honest depiction of what life is like as a female engineering student at Ohio Northern. Hosted once a year by the Society of Women Engineers, this event includes opportunities to learn more about the various disciplines of engineering, a scavenger hunt to familiarize yourself with ONU’s campus, and other bonding activities with current and prospective students.

For more information about the SWE Overnight, please contact Laurie Laird, director of corporate & alumni relations and assistant professor of mechanical engineering, at l-laird@onu.edu or 419-772-2421.