Bachelor of Science course requirements  

To graduate with a Bachelor of Science in Engineering, you must complete a total of 128 credit hours. This is broken down into:

• core courses
• mechanical engineering requirements
• liberal studies courses
• engineering breadth electives
• engineering depth electives

Find out further details in the academic catalog.

View our BSE program of study and prerequisite flowchart to see the required courses and prerequisites.

Design 4 Practice

Our Design 4 Practice program will prepare you to enter the real world. Check out our award-winning Design 4 Practiceprogram, which allows engineering undergraduates to learn the details of the product realization process by simulating a corporate engineering environment.

Core Courses

Check the following link to the general catalog to find out what are the core courses of the mechanical engineering program.

Mechanical Engineering Requirements

The mechanical engineering requirements include courses designed to give you an overview of mechanical engineering plus depth in the field and breadth in related fields.

Liberal Studies requirements

The following liberal studies requirements will be met concurrently by major requirements in the mechanical engineering program:

• Foundation English composition: ENG 105 (4)
• Foundation mathematics: MAT 136 (4)
• Distribution requirements:
• Science/lab science: PHY 161/L (4) and CHM 151 (4)
• Distribution elective:  PHY 262 (3)
• University requirements:
• Junior-level writing: EGR 386W (3)
• Major capstone experience: ME 486C (3)

The following requirements are not met by major requirements and must be met separately:

• Liberal studies distribution requirements (18)—Social and Political Worlds (6); Aesthetic and Humanistic Inquiry (6) and Cultural Understanding (6)
• University Diversity Requirement (6)—This requirement may be satisfied by taking liberal studies distribution courses that are cross-listed in the US Ethnic Diversity and Global Diversity blocks.

Electives

There are two categories of electives:

• breadth electives (9 units)
• depth electives (9 units)

Breadth electives

Breadth electives, totaling 9 credit hours, are upper division (300-400 level) courses from engineering, natural sciences, business, or mathematics. 

No more than one lower division course (100-200 level) can be used as a breadth elective, and only if the course is required by another major and approved by your adviser.

Suggested courses include (but are not limited to) PHY 263, MAT 226, MAT 316, MAT 461, BIO 360, EE 222, EE 280, ECO 284, MKT 303, MGT 303, etc.  These courses may also be used to meet minor requirements.  Adviser approval for all breadth electives is required.

Depth electives

Mechanical engineering depth electives, totaling 9 credit hours, may be selected from any of the courses listed below, or from other 300- , 400-, or 500-level mechanical engineering courses with approval of your advisor and department.  The courses below are grouped to encourage you to focus your electives in one of the two primary branches of mechanical engineering:  Mechanical Design or Fluid/Thermal Sciences.

Mechanical Design Emphasis
ME 454	Finite Element Analysis
ME 455	Vibrations
ME 467	Manufacturing Processes
ME 475	Adaptive Materials and Systems
ME 482	Advanced CAD/CAM
ME 484	Kinematics
EE 325	Engineering Analysis II
EE 458	Automatic Controls
CENE 376	Structural Analysis I
CENE 477	Structural Analysis II

 

Fluid/Thermal Sciences Emphasis
ME 435	Wind Energy Engineering
ME 441	Compressible Flow
ME 442	Aerodynamics
ME 451	Renewable Energy
ME 454	Finite Element Analysis
EE 325	Engineering Analysis II
EE 458	Automatic Controls
CENE 430	Air Pollution Controls Design
CENE 480	Environmental Transport Processes

Note: You can use also 500-level courses as depth electives, as a qualified senior with approval from your advisor.  For example, ME 520, ME 525, ME 530, ME 540, ME 550, ME 555, ME 560, ME 570, ME 580, ME 581.