The Office of Engineering and Technology Outreach in the College of Engineering and Northern Illinois University in dedicated to professional development. We assume that our service assists working professionals, our alumni, staff, companies, organizations and our retirees. We plan the following kinds of programs for purposes of professional development:

• Conferences, Certificates, Workshops and Seminars. Programs such as these, scheduled for professional public enrollment, allow our audiences to update their skills, interact with colleagues, discover the problems and challenges of various industries, and stay updated with information and technology.
  • These programs offer CEUs or PDHs, which may be important to PE licensure in the State of Illinois: "Effective July 16, 2003, Administrative Rules (Illinois Department of Professional Regulation) were adopted for the implementation of Professional Development (PD) requirements...Beginning with the November 30th, 2005 renewal and every renewal thereafter, or in order to renew a license as a professional engineer, a licensee shall be required to complete 30 professional development hours (PDHs) relevant to the practice of professional engineering..." ("A renewal period is the 24 months preceding November 30 in the year of the renewal.")
• On-Site Training. Special training is often requested by companies and organizations that have a group of participants and would like the training at their site. They may be interested in the workshops and seminars offered to the public, but they want them for an employee group at their site; OR they may want special design of presentation and materials to meet their training needs. On-Site training occurs after a serious request, discussion of needs, development of a proposal and signature of a letter of agreement for delivery. Delivery and content is often applied to needs and evaluation of impact is often requested and budgeted.
• Senior Design Presentation Days, which showcase projects of our seniors who are about to step into the professional world. On that presentation Day, many alumni, students, faculty, staff, visitors, and corporate representatives involved in applied projects interact. The presentation experience, which summarizes a capstone project and is judged by professionals, is similar to a professional workplace presentation which includes project completion expectations.