SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING
Mechanical Engineering: Program Objectives and Outcomes
Objectives
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Educate students to be problem solvers who are especially strong in basic sciences, mathematics, and engineering sciences.
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Have graduates capable of solving unstructured problems that are typically found in mechanical engineering.
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Prepare students for a lifelong productive career in professional practice, which may include graduate studies, or some other career path.
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Graduate students who know how to act in a professional manner, learn on their own, have the skills necessary to function as a leader, and are capable of adapting to a continuously changing work environment.
Outcomes
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Students should be able to determine which fundamental physical law, including those from chemistry and calculus-based physics, applies to a given problem and express that law in mathematical form.
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Students should be able to solve mathematical expressions of physical laws using differential and multivariate calculus, matrix algebra, differential equations, and numerical methods.
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Students should be able to describe how systems typically found in mechanical engineering (such as machines, engines, and heat exchangers) work, and be able to work professionally in both thermal and mechanical systems areas, including the design and realization of such systems.
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Students should be able to take a real system, develop a mathematical model of the system, discuss the assumptions behind and limitations of the model, and solve the model for the values of parameters of concern using mathematical or computational techniques.
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Students should be able to define objectives and requirements for an engineering problem, develop a plan for solving the problem, propose solutions to the problem, make and defend decisions about the problem, and manipulate models for the problem in order to find an optimum solution.
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Students should be able to design and conduct experiments using modern data acquisition equipment; analyze and interpret experimental data using statistical methods; demonstrate a fundamental understanding of the principles of electrical engineering, and apply computer or other technology appropriately to an engineering problem.
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Students should be able to identify social, economic, safety, quality, reliability, ethical, global and other contemporary issues in an engineering problem and demonstrate that their solution to the problem addresses these issues.
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Students should be able to communicate their ideas and solutions effectively to a wide range of audiences, both orally and in writing.
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Students should be able to demonstrate an ability to work as a professional in a multi-disciplinary team environment, including team leadership.
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Students should be able to recognize the need for life-long learning, be prepared to continue their education through formal or informal study, be open-minded with regard to different opinions and cultures, and be able to adapt to a continuously changing work environment.