We are CEM
The College of Engineering and Mines (CEM) at the University of Alaska Fairbanks has been educating engineering students since 1922. Originally, it was founded as the Alaska Agriculture College and School of Mines in 1917. Over the years, students from around the world have pursued their engineering degree with us, taking advantage of the opportunity to learn one-on-one from outstanding faculty in the unique environment of Interior Alaska.
UAF is Alaska's top teaching and research university, but our classroom environments in engineering and mines are more like what you would find at a small college. UAF is the only university in Alaska that offers eight undergraduate degrees accredited by ABET.
The Institute of Northern Engineering is the research arm of CEM. It has several distinct research centers and provides facilities and support to dozens of researchers working in conjunction with the College.
Our Mission & Vision
The College of Engineering and Mines at the University of Alaska Fairbanks advances and disseminates technical and scientific knowledge through innovative teaching, research and public service with an emphasis on Alaska and other high-latitude regions. The college promotes students' self-motivation to excel, and guides them towards professional careers and entrepreneurship in an environment of life-long learning.
The vision of the College of Engineering and Mines at the University of Alaska and its research arm, the Institute of Northern Engineering (INE), is to provide strong B.S., M.S. and Ph.D. degree programs, increase enrollments and graduates, and maintain and enhance research excellence and growth in extramural research funding. Vitality in scholarship is improved at all levels by recruiting and retaining the best and brightest faculty, staff, and undergraduate and graduate students. Instructional programs use the most current technologies and methods to provide students the knowledge and skills they need to develop to their full potential. CEM is dedicated to continuous improvement of its academic programs and to substantially increase the number of engineering graduates to meet the needs of the state and the nation.
- The William Elmhirst Duckering Building was built in 1964. The building has served as home to instructional and research programs in engineering. William Elmhirst Duckering earned a bachelors degree in 1903 and his civil engineering degree in 1916 from the University of Washington. Afterwards, he taught engineering classes and ended his career at the University of Alaska as dean.
- The passing rate for CEM students who take the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) exam is over 90%.
- The Institute of Northern Engineering (INE) brings in over $12.5 million in external research annually.
- UAF engineering students have access to the only university-affiliated rocket range in the country.
- UAF Civil Engineering students have brought home two 1st place awards from the National Steel Bridge Competition in the past decade, and have placed at the regional and national level annually. CEM hosted the regional competition in 2007.
- INE hosted the 2008 International Conference on Permafrost in recognition of the International Polar Year (IPY)
- In 2018, the Engineering Learning and Innovation Facility (now Joseph E. Usibelli Engineering Learning and Innovation Building) opened its doors. The 120,000-square-foot building offers cutting-edge labs and classroom facilities, and provides much-needed room for an engineering program that has doubled its enrollment since the mid-2000s. The building also features a High Bay Structural Testing Lab with a reinforced floor that enables testing massive girders or simulate how bridges will stand up to earthquakes.
- In August 2022, the Engineering Learning and Innovation Facility was renamed Joseph E. Usibelli Engineering Learning and Innovation Building (JUB).