Kish College EMSA program application deadline: January 31

The Kishwaukee College EMSA Program will be accepting applications for the 2017 – 2018 academic year through January 31, 2017. Students who are high school juniors currently enrolled in or have already completed pre-calculus and general chemistry at their high schools are eligible to apply.

EMSA is a program designed for students who will be entering their senior year in high school in the fall of 2017. Originally designed for students interested in pursuing a degree in engineering or physics, the program has expanded in recent years to accommodate talented students interested in pursuing a “pre-professional” major in college in addition to the engineering, physics and computer science majors. Pre- professional majors are programs that prepare students for studies in, for example, veterinary sciences, medicine, pharmacy, or physical therapy. All of these fields – engineering, hard sciences, computer science and pre-professional – have a math and science base that is more in-depth than other career paths.

Taking classes through EMSA allows area seniors to get a jumpstart on their college career by fulfilling science and math course requirements for a fraction of the cost of university tuition. The courses are compatible with the equivalent courses offered by the University of Illinois and Northern Illinois University, to maximize transferability of 23 – 26 credit hours, which is nearly one full year of college course credits. Students who have attended EMSA have transferred to University of Illinois, NIU, Embry- Riddle Aeronautical University, Case Western Reserve University, Cornell University, and Harvard, and many other four-year institutions.

Track One of EMSA is the Engineering-Physics track with the students taking Calculus and Analytic Geometry I in the summer prior to their senior year in high school. That fall, they will take Calculus II and Physics for Science and Engineering I. In spring 2018, they will complete the Academy with Calculus III and Physics II.

Track Two is the Pre-Professional Track. Students will begin with the same Calculus and Analytic Geometry I class in summer but in fall will take General Chemistry I and General Physics I, followed by General Chemistry II and General Physics II in spring 2018.

During the fall and spring semesters, students will attend classes at Kishwaukee College at 7:30a.m. and return to their high school at 10:00a.m. to attend their senior year classes there as well as participate in extracurricular activities.

For more information on applying to the EMSA program for 2017 -2018, please contact Kathy Mershon at 815-825- 9307 or email kathy.mershon@kishwaukeecollege.edu.