Florida Institute of Technology (FIT, Florida Tech) Academics and Admissions

Academics

Florida Institute of Technology is a private, four-year technical research university located in Melbourne, Fla. It offers 75 bachelor’s degree programs, 8 associate’s degrees, 85 master’s degrees, and 23 programs of doctoral studies. The institute enrolls a total of 8,985 students from all 50 states and more than 100 countries, with 4,146 students enrolled as full-time online students.

Florida Tech was founded in 1958 as Brevard Engineering College with the intention of providing advanced educational opportunities to employees in the United States space program, and it still maintains a strong core of engineering, science, and aeronautics offerings. Degree programs in those colleges include aeronautical science, aerospace engineering, biochemistry, space sciences – astrobiology, ocean engineering, and meteorology. The institute also features colleges of business, psychology and liberal arts, and an online university offering criminal justice, accounting, and more.

Recent construction at the school includes a 2008 groundbreakings for the Scott Center for Autism Treatment, Ruth Funk Center for Textile Arts, and Harris Center for Science and Engineering, and the installation of the Ortega reflecting telescope, the largest research telescope in Florida. In 2011, the institute merged with the Brevard Art Museum and applied a $1 million gift to establish it as the Foosaner Art Museum. Also in 2011, the Panther Aquatic Center was completed on the main campus.

Florida Institute of Technology is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS). In addition, the institute’s engineering programs are accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET). The computer science program is accredited by the Computer Science Accreditation Commission of the Computing Sciences Accreditation Board, and the chemistry program is accredited by the Committee on Professional Training of the American Chemical Society. Aeronautical Science and Aviation Management programs are accredited by the Council on Aviation Accreditation.

The institute also receives significant research funding, with $35,087,585 awarded in 2010. Projects include the National Science Foundation InStep Program, the Office of Naval Research Advanced Nontoxic Anti-Fouling Coatings Research, Phased Antenna- coupled Detector Arrays for THz and IR Imaging, Department of Homeland Security Detection of Heavily Shielded Nuclear Contraband, and National Institutes for Health Cell Cycle Assembly of Nucleoprotein Complexes.

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Information Summary

Ranks 11th in Florida and 349th overall. See the entire top 2,000 colleges and universities list
Overall Score (about)	89.2
Total Cost On-Campus Attendance	$59,530
Admission Success rate	N/A
ACT / SAT 75%ile scores	30 / 1340
Student Ratio Students-to-Faculty	16 : 1
Retention (full-time / part-time)	81% / 100%
Enrollment Total (all students)	6,271

Admissions

Florida Tech operates on a rolling admissions basis, which means students may apply and be accepted throughout the year. While the institute does not require a minimum GPA, class rank, or standardized test score, a high school diploma from a regionally accredited or state approved high school or a high school equivalency diploma (G.E.D.) is required by the date of first enrollment.

Applicants to science and engineering programs should have completed four of mathematics, the minimum level including trigonometry, mathematics analysis, analytical geometry or pre-calculus prior to enrollment. They are expected to have taken four years of science, including physics and chemistry.

Applicants to aeronautics, business, psychology and liberal arts programs must have completed at least three years of mathematics, with a fourth year of mathematics highly recommended. Applicants for these programs must also have completed at least three years of science, with a fourth year recommended.

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Financial Aid

All enrolling student seeking financial aid must complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form, and may also participate in the Panther Payment Plan to manage tuition and other payments.

Student Financial Aid Details

Ranks 1537th for the average student loan amount.
Secrets to getting the best scholarships and financial aid in Florida.

Students

Of the institute’s 8,985 students, about 1,700 live on campus in four complexes, the newest of which was opened in 2009 and features 382 beds in a three-building complex. The campus is centered around the Clemente Center for Sports and Recreation, the Denius Student Center, and Panther Plaza. Also, a new dining center was opened in 2011.

Florida Tech students can participate in intramural sports including flag football, volleyball, softball, basketball and golf, as well as more than 100 student organizations and clubs that are active on campus. In 2006, the institute also announced a Civic Engagement Initiative that provides opportunities for students to get involved in meeting the needs of surrounding communities with the goal of developing students who engage their studies beyond the classroom. Service hours are tracked, and an effort is made to match student skills and desires with community opportunities.

Florida Tech also has Greek life opportunities for students, including fraternities Alpha Tau Omega, Chi Phi, Delta Tau Delta, Lambda Chi Alpha, Beta Nu Zeta, Pi Kappa Alpha, Pi Lambda Phi, and Tau Kappa Epsilon, and sororities Alpha Phi, Gamma Phi Beta, and Phi Sigma Sigma.

Student Enrollment Demographics

Student Graduation Demographics

Athletics

Florida Tech’s teams are known as the Panthers and compete as a member of the Sunshine State Conference in NCAA Division II. Men’s sports include baseball, basketball, lacrosse, cross country, golf, rowing, swimming and diving, tennis, soccer, and football, which will begin competitive play in 2013. Women’s sports include basketball, cross country, golf, rowing, soccer, softball, tennis, track and field, and volleyball.

Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Tim Wakefield is a notable alum.

Local Community

Florida Institute of Technology is located in Melbourne, Fla., on the eastern coast of Florida, just south of Cape Canaveral. The city was founded in 1867 by former slaves and was named after its first postmaster, an Englishman named Cornthwaite John Hector, who had spent much of his life in Melbourne, Australia. The city has a population of about 78,000 and is home to six institutions of higher education. The area is also known as the “Space Coast,” and is considered a high-tech center, with employers such as GE Transportation Systems, Harris Corporation, Holmes Regional Medical Center, MIMA, Northrop Grumman Corporation, Nuance Dictaphone Training Center, Rockwell Collins, and Rossi Electronics.

The downtown district of Melbourne is split into two shopping districts, the downtown Eau Gallie arts district and historic downtown Melbourne. As a result of its coastal location, outdoor beach sports, including surfing, kayaking, boating, and swimming are popular in Melbourne. The Brevard Zoo is a popular tourist destination, as well as numerous fishing and sailing charters in the area.

Melbourne residents enjoy a subtropical climate, with humid summers tempered by the ocean, and mild winters.

Bibliography

Florida Institute of Technology. Web. 18 August 2011.
City of Melbourne, Florida. Web. 18 August 2011.

Florida Institute of Technology