BACHELOR OF SCIENCE IN MECHANICAL ENGINEERING
Junior Year in Mechanical Engineering
Now it's time for discipline specific depth. In the junior year you begin to depart from your colleagues in Aerospace Engineering where you've spent your first two years in all the same classes. You still share many of the same courses as your AE counterparts some of those include Control Systems, Thermodynamics, Turbine and Rockets, Materials Science, Chemistry and Electrical Engineering. But you also now pick up a lab in controls, machine design, and numerical modeling which are unique to ME's
Robotics versus Propulsion?
The junior year is the time to make your choice between robotics and propulsion. All ME's take the same classes in the junior year however you are also exposed to both propulsion and robotics topics so you can choose wisely as you enter the senior year.
Machine Design, Robotics, Propulsion, and Thermal Science
It's the junior year where you start capitalizing on the engineering sciences courses you took in the sophomore year. In Machine Design you take on issues of fatigue and fracture and learn about gears and mechanical systems. Your robotics course introduces you to mechanisms. A strong background in dynamics is essential as you learn how robotic arms function and you analyze their range of motion. Rocket and Turbines introduces you to propulsion on both the spacecraft and aircraft side while studying the thermal sciences.
Hands-on Experience
In addition, multiple hands-on laboratories are introduced in the junior year. The controls lab, machine design, material science, electrical engineering, and chemistry are all courses associated with laboratory experiences. These labs are spread out into multiple facilities that include the Aerospace Experimentation and Fabrication Building (AXFAB) and the King Engineering and Technology Center. Both are state-of-the-art facilities.
Co-ops and Internships
Often the junior year is when students start thinking about jobs, or more correctly, this is when they should start thinking about jobs. One of the best ways to ensure employment upon graduation is to pursue a co-op experience or an internship with one of the many aerospace companies with which we have partnerships. Students spend a semester or a summer getting paid by what may end up being their future employer. It's a great way to get to know the industry and have a company get to know the student.
Below we list the junior year for Mechanical Engineering students:
Junior Year
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| AE 430 | Control System Analysis and Design | 3 |
| ME430L | Control Systems Lab | 1 |
| ES305 | Thermodynamics | 3 |
| ME300 | Machine Design | 4 |
| ME302 | Introduction to Robotics | 3 |
| AE408 | Turbine and Rocket Engines | 3 |
| ES 320 | Engineering Materials Science | 2 |
| ES 321 | Engineering Materials Science Laboratory | 1 |
| EE 335 | Electrical Engineering I | 2 |
| EE 336 | Electrical Engineering I Laboratory | 2 |
| PS 105 | General Chemistry I | 4 |
| ME415 | Modeling and Numerical Simulation of Energy and Environmental Systems | 3 |
| HU/SS | LL Elective | 3 |
| Total Credits | 33 |
