Engineering is a discipline and profession that serves the needs of society and economy. It is the profession in which a knowledge of the mathematical and natural sciences gained by study, experience, and practice is applied with judgment to develop ways to utilize, economically, natural and man-made materials and the forces of nature for the benefit of humankind. The intellectual activities of engineering are heavily based on synthesis, design, and innovation through the integration of knowledge.
Key to the ability of engineers to develop the products, systems, and services that are essential to national security, public health, and the economic competitiveness of the nation's business and industry is the knowledge base created by engineering research. The new knowledge generated through research drives technological innovation – the transformation of knowledge into products, processes, and services – which, in turn, is critical to competitiveness, long-term productivity growth, and the generation of wealth.
One of the main aim of the Faculty is to train students for this profession. The Faculty admitted its first 42 students in February 2009, but this number has now increased to 260, with 21% of the students being female students. About 33% of the student population comes from the SADC region, outside Namibia. On the other hand, the Namibian engineering students represent all the 14 regions in Namibia.
The Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology offers the degree of Bachelor of Science in Engineering with Honours in eight engineering disciplines. All the degree programmes have been approved by the Engineering Council of Namibia and by the Namibia Qualifications Authority (NQA) and are registered in the National Qualifications Framework (NQF) as professional engineering degrees with Honours at NQF Level 8. These degree programmes are offered in five academic departments which have a mix of Namibian and expatriate academic members of staff as well as Namibian administrative and support staff.
One of the success stories of the Faculty of Engineering and IT is that in 2012, the Faculty produced its first 30 graduate engineers. These were made up of Graduate Engineers in the following disciplines: Civil Engineering, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Electronics Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Metallurgical Engineering and Mining Engineering. These graduate engineers have been evaluated by the Engineering Council of Namibia and found to be registerable as Professional Engineers upon completion of their professional training. Of the 25 Namibian pioneer Graduate Engineers, 24 are already employed in Namibia and one is employed in Angola. During the 2013 academic year, the Faculty produced 40 Graduate Engineers.
