July 9, 2001

Nuclear Engineering Programs at NC State Meet New Industry Needs

After a long period of stasis, the nuclear power industry is experiencing a reawakening.  Government and industry are taking a fresh look at possible applications of nuclear power for energy generation, especially in light of the recent energy crises in California and elsewhere across the nation.

Currently, nuclear power provides 17 percent of the world’s electricity and 21 percent of the nation’s electricity, but the industry has not grown in the past few decades.  According to Dr. Paul J. Turinsky, professor and head of the Department of Nuclear Engineering at NC State University, no new nuclear power plants have been sold in the U.S. since 1979, and most of today’s nuclear engineers were trained during the boom years of the 1960s, when there was more optimism about the future of nuclear power as an energy option. 

This bubble of expensive, “baby boomer” talent is approaching retirement, and few young engineers are waiting to replace them.  According to a recent report by the Nuclear Engineering Department Heads Organization (NEDHO), Manpower Supply and Demand in the Nuclear Industry (see www.engin.umich.edu/~nuclear/NEDHO/), from 1990 through 1998 undergraduate enrollment in nuclear engineering programs decreased by 72 percent.  “Every bachelor’s or master’s student in nuclear engineering at NC State has an average of 3.5 potential jobs waiting upon graduation,” said Turinsky.

Developments in the past three years, as well as a proven track record of inexpensive, safe, efficient operation of existing plants, have brightened the picture for the future of nuclear power considerably.  A number of existing nuclear power plants are receiving 20-year lifetime extensions based on their good operation records.  Over the past several years operators have run U.S. nuclear plants so efficiently that the economic climate is now very favorable for competition in the energy marketplace.  According to Turinsky, nuclear power is again finding a place at the table during discussions of energy generation options as those individuals who are developing energy policies are coming to realize that all possibilities must be considered to solve today’s energy crises.

NC State is ready to participate in this nuclear energy renaissance.  U.S. News and World Report ranked the educational programs in the Department of Nuclear Engineering at NC State number 7 out of 35 accredited programs in the U.S.  Outreach programs are drawing young people to careers in this rejuvenated field.  The Young Investigators Summer Program in Nuclear Technology and Applications brings 15 to 20 students to campus for three weeks to learn about many aspects of nuclear engineering.  NC State conducts teacher workshops as well, and the department will soon hire its own outreach coordinator.  Scholarship money is available to help needy students. 

In addition NC State operates the primary university research reactor in the Southeast, which enables the university to attract top students and turn out well-trained professionals.  The power industry has expressed increased optimism for the future of nuclear power, exemplified by recent sizable gifts to the nuclear engineering program in the College of Engineering by Carolina Power and Light and Duke Energy.  Government, too, is recognizing the need for more training with such measures as Senate Bill S242, which almost triples funding for university nuclear engineering departments.  

All these efforts are beginning to pay off at NC State.  Four years ago there were 5 freshmen in the department; the following year there were 22.  Last year 11 students entered the program, and this year 19 freshman nuclear engineering students began their studies.  Turinsky is encouraged by these numbers and by the positive changes taking place.  “There is a strong employment market, not only today but in the future, for our graduates,” he said. “Our program is generally considered the best in the Southeast.”

Information about the Department of Nuclear Engineering and the outreach programs is available at www.ne.ncsu.edu.

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Media Contacts:   Dr. Paul Turinsky, 919/515-5098, turinsky@eos.ncsu.edu, Linda E. Rudd, 919/515-3848, linda_rudd@ncsu.edu