PHILADELPHIA — The University of Pennsylvania and Bryn Mawr College are launching a new program that will allow undergraduates at Bryn Mawr to gain early admission into a master’s degree program offered by Penn’s School of Engineering and Applied Science.  The arrangement effectively allows Bryn Mawr students to obtain their bachelor’s degree in four years and then, through Penn, obtain their master’s degree with just one additional year of study.

Called the Four Plus One partnership, the agreement was finalized last week at a signing ceremony with Eduardo Glandt, dean of Penn Engineering, and Kim Cassidy, provost of Bryn Mawr.  Rising junior and senior students at Bryn Mawr will be eligible to apply. 

“This partnership with Bryn Mawr further solidifies the strong ties Penn Engineering continues to foster with peer institutions and is another important pathway for increasing access to an excellent engineering education,” Glandt said.

After their sophomore year, Bryn Mawr students with necessary backgrounds, majors and a strong academic record may apply, via Four Plus One, to a master’s program at Penn Engineering.

As part of the Quaker Consortium, students at Bryn Mawr are already eligible to take classes at Penn that count toward their undergraduate degrees at no additional cost. This new program expands on that relationship.

In addition to providing access to appropriate undergraduate prerequisites, the Four Plus One partnership will allow Bryn Mawr students to take graduate-level courses that will count towards their prospective master’s degree work in engineering. 

“This program will allow students to combine the many benefits of Bryn Mawr's excellent undergraduate, liberal arts, science and math education with advanced study in an outstanding engineering program,” Cassidy said. “The fact that Penn Engineering focuses on the science of engineering means that our students will be able to form natural bridges between their undergraduate and graduate work. We are very excited to have this opportunity for partnership.”