Program Overview
Prepare for an exciting career in Electro-Optics.
Students apply to the program during high school to enter the first level of the 2+2+2 Program. During their senior year, students enroll in four Electro-Optics courses at Lenape Technical School in Armstrong County, and in Westmoreland County, at Northern Westmoreland Career and Technology Center. Upon successful completion of these courses and an Advanced Placement Equivalency Course, students can earn a certificate from Lenape for the 15 plus credits which can be articulated into IUP’s Associate degree program in Electro-Optics.
The second level of the 2+2+2 Program involves coursework at Indiana University of Pennsylvania’s state-of-the-art facility at Northpointe. Students have the option of earning Associate in Science in Electro-Optics (A.S.E.O.) or an Associate in Applied Science in Electro-Optics (A.A.S.E.O.). After completing this high-tech training, students may exit the program to move into senior technical positions in the Electro-Optics industry or continue to the third level. After completion of the second level and an appropriate GPA, students can further enhance their career opportunities by receiving additional training in nanotechnology at Penn State-University Park Campus.
The third level of the 2+2+2 Program takes place at at IUP’s Indiana Campus where students will work toward a Bachelor of Science degree in Applied Physics/Electro-Optics Track. After completing the third level, students can enter the workforce into highly skilled positions in the electro-optics industry or continue on to graduate study.
List of Electro-Optics classes  View Brochure
Examples of Careers in Electro-Optics
Director of Optics Business Development, Electro-Optics Manufacturing Engineer, Electro-Optics Technician, Fiber Optics Technician, Field Service Engineer, Instrumentation Technician, Laser Production Engineer, Laser Technician, Optical Design Engineer, Optics Group Manager, Opto-Mechanical Engineer, Optics Manufacturing Engineer, Program Manager/Optics, Research Assistant
Outreach Activities
To increase awareness of Electro-Optics at the high school level, IUP has begun offering The Electro-Optics Science Experience, inviting high-school students with an interest in math or science to IUP Northpointe Regional Campus for a 2.5 hour visit. The Electro-Optics Science Experience encompasses two components: 1) The Science of Electro-Optics, which is comprised of presentations and activities to explain the science, and 2) Lab Experiments, which involve hands-on activities including: wave measurement (interferometers), chemical identification (spectroscopes), telescopic resolution, and diffraction measurement of human hair.
Industry Day is another event held at IUP Northpointe Regional Campus, which invites industry leaders, state and local representatives, and secondary school partners for a demonstration and poster session presented by the Electro-Optics students enrolled in the 2+2+2 Integrated Workforce Leadership Program from the various academic levels. The students provide an overview of their projects and are available for questions and suggestions for further research. The event is intended to provide the opportunity for industry leaders to meet IUP Electro-Optics students and to learn about the types of projects that they are working on in their programs. The event also provides networking and career-related opportunities for the students.
In addition to these, outreach has expanded to presentations in the High Schools, Counselor and Teacher Workshops offering Act 48 credit, and an annual Summer Camp.
2+2+2 Electro-Optics in the News
The 2+2+2 Electro-Optics Program was featured in the "Leader Times" article: IUP gives students a leg up on electro-optics program
Student Testimonial
I spent two years in the Electro-Optics program at the Armstrong Campus. The program seemed great to me, as I have always been skilled and interested in the sciences. The program possessed many specific courses in lasers and optics, each one with its own lab. The labs were extremely hands-on, which I believe led to a better understanding of the subject. IUP is one of the a very few colleges nation-wide that offers Optics-related degrees at the undergraduate level.
In the Spring of 2005, I graduated with an Applied Associate in Science degree in Electro-Optics with High Honors. At this time, I committed myself to continuing with my college education. I decided to continue to obtain a Bachelor of Science Applied Physics degree with a concentration in Electro-Optics. At the same time, I decided to pursue a second Bachelor of Science Applied Physics degree concurrently, with an concentration in Nano-Manufacturing Technology. After completion of my two bachelor degrees, I plan to continue on to a Doctoral degree in Nano-Photonics. I believe that this combination of fields will become an area of much research in the years to come.
Joseph Baccanti, 2007
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