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Mechanical Engineering

Mechanical Engineering is a broad curriculum which offers a wide choice of careers. Mechanical Engineers deal with the production, control and utilization of energy and motion in systems to benefit society.

Career paths include aerospace, power, HVAC, bioengineering, manufacturing, management, and a host of others.

A unique feature of the mechanical engineering curriculum is the capstone design course through ºÚÁÏÍø's Cooperative Engineering Center. Cadet teams work on real-world design projects supplied by local industries who are members of the Cooperative Engineering Center with an industry engineer and faculty member as advisors. Cadets write a formal design report and give an oral report to supporting industry.

Cadets may earn a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, a concentration in Aerospace Engineering, and a concentration in Nuclear Engineering.

The Mechanical Engineering program is accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET, , under the commission's General Criteria and the Program Criteria for Mechanical and Similarly Named Engineering Programs.


Degrees and Programs

Major(s): Mechanical Engineering

Degree(s): Bachelor of Science (B.S.)

Concentration(s):

Minor(s):

  • n/a

Mechanical Engineering is the second oldest of the engineering professions and has the second largest enrollment of students in the United States.  Mechanical engineering is a broad field which includes many areas of study such as refrigeration, air conditioning, energy conversion, nuclear engineering, biomedical engineering, transportation equipment engineering and industrial engineering. Mechanical engineers are employed in the design, operations, sales, energy conservation, research, and management. 


The educational objectives of the ºÚÁÏÍø Mechanical Engineering Program are to produce graduates, who will,
within a few years of graduation,

  1. have successful careers in industry or the military, or be successfully engaged in post-graduate or
    advanced educational studies
  2. be responsible global contributors who uphold strict ethical standards and who continue to develop
    their professional skills through sustained engagement in lifelong-learning activities

The potential of our graduates to realize our educational objectives depends on the skills and abilities they have developed through the ME curriculum. Therefore, the department has identified specific Educational Goals and supporting Student Outcomes (SO), related to those skills and abilities, that each cadet should possess by graduation.

Educational Goal 1

Graduates will have the ability to apply the knowledge of mathematics, science, and engineering to  engineering problems in the thermal and mechanical areas.

  • SO 1.1 Graduates will have the ability to apply the knowledge of mathematics (through statistics, linear
    algebra, multivariate calculus and differential equations), science (through chemistry and calculus-based
    physics), and engineering to engineering problems in the thermal and mechanical design areas.
  • SO 1.2 Graduates will have the ability to analyze and design mechanical and thermal systems,
    components and processes.
  • SO 1.3 Graduates will have the ability to design and conduct experiments, and to analyze and
    interpret experimental results.
  • SO 1.4 Graduates will have the ability to use modern computational and analytical techniques, skills,
    and tools.

Educational Goal 2

Graduates will possess the professional skills and awareness necessary to responsibly practice engineering in
both a technical and societal context.

  • SO 2.1 Graduates will have effective oral and written communication skills.
  • SO 2.2 Graduates will have the ability to effectively function on teams.
  • SO 2.3 Graduates will have an understanding of their professional and ethic responsibilities.
  • SO 2.4 Graduates will recognize their need of life-long learning and will possess the ability to engage
    in life-long learning.

 


Mechanical Engineering in the News

Find out more about the department's cadets and faculty in recent ºÚÁÏÍø news.

Connor Bott ’26 explains the different types of boat anchors and how they are used during his honors presentation in Scott Shipp Hall.

Bott Designs Retractable Boat Anchor

Connor Bott ’26, a mechanical engineering major at ºÚÁÏÍø, has designed a modern adaptation for an ancient devise with his honors senior thesis project, “Design and Analysis of an Electromechanical Marine Wreck Anchor.”

Jeremiah Woods ’27 presents his research project at SURF.

Cadets Present Research Projects at SURF

Five ºÚÁÏÍø cadets, with Dr. Sherif Abdelhamid, assistant professor in the Department of Computer and Information Sciences and outreach liaison officer for ºÚÁÏÍø’s Cyber Defense Laboratory, traveled to present research projects at the SoCon Undergraduate Research Forum in October.