Rensselaer at Hartford


Rensselaer's Education for Working Professionals is the Hartford, Connecticut branch of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Until 1997, it was known as the Hartford Graduate Center. The primary focus of the institution is to offer graduate-level education for working professionals across the country via its digital delivery.

History

The Hartford Graduate School was established in 1955 by Rensselaer and the United Aircraft Corp to address a shortage of scientists and engineers in southern New England. United Aircraft bought and equipped the first building and provided annual financing so that its employees could earn graduate degrees at no individual cost, although the facility was and is open to those not employed by United Aircraft.
The Graduate Center began with 220 students and seven faculty members who relocated from Rensselaer to Connecticut and adjunct professors from local industry. An additional campus was founded in Groton, Connecticut, to respond to the educational demands of Electric Boat, a subsidiary of General Dynamics.
In December 1996, trustees of both Rensselaer and the Hartford Graduate Center voted to transfer Hartford's assets and have it more directly controlled by RPI. Under the new arrangement, Hartford had its own board of trustees, named by the Rensselaer president. In 1997, the Hartford Graduate Center was given its current name — Rensselaer at Hartford.

Campus

The main Hartford center has a landscaped campus readily accessible from both Interstates 84 and 91. The center of the campus contains the main building, the "Tower Building" which contains about 30 classrooms, each seating 10-50 persons. Adjacent to the Tower Building is "Seminar Hall", with additional classrooms and a small auditorium. The school has its own library, the Cole Library, but students can request books from Rensselaer's other libraries on the main campus. The Groton Site is located at the Mystic Executive Park where Rensselaer offers a number of cohort degree programs.

Academics

Rensselaer at Hartford offers graduate programs in Business Administration, Management, Computer Science, Computer and Systems Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Engineering Science, Mechanical Engineering, and Information Technology. Specialized programs include the Dual master's degrees, the Weekend MBA, the Weekend M.S., and the Executive Master's Program, as well as several graduate certificates in Bioinformatics, Computer and Information Sciences, and Engineering.
There are also training programs and workshops for professionals, in the areas of Information Technology, Leadership and Executive Development, Quality, and Technical and Professional Development.