Want to Be MechE?
Mechanical engineering is one of the broadest and most versatile of the engineering professions. This is reflected in the portfolio of current activities in the department, one that has widened rapidly in the past decade. Today, our faculty are involved in projects ranging from, for example, the use of nanoparticles to tailor the properties of polymers, to the use of active control to optimize combustion processes; from the design of miniature robots for extraterrestrial exploration to the creation of needle-free drug injectors; from the design and fabrication of low-cost radio-frequency identification chips, to the development of efficient methods for robust design; from the development of unmanned underwater vehicles, to the creation of optimization methods that autonomously generate decision-making strategies; from the invention of cost-effective photovoltaic cells, to the prevention of material degradation in proton-exchange membrane fuel cells; from the use of acoustics to explore the ocean of one of Jupiter's moons, to the biomimetics of swimming fish; from the development of physiological models for the human liver, to the development of novel ways for detecting precancerous events; and from the use of nanoscale antennas for manipulating large molecules, to the fabrication of 3-D nanostructures out of 2-D substrates.
The Department's mission is to be a leader in education and research. We seek to produce future leaders for industry, academia, government, and society -- leaders whose vision is founded upon fundamental knowledge, analytical skills, creativity, perspective, and ethics. We seek to advance technology and science by combining basic knowledge with the innovative application of engineering and scientific principles. And, we seek to enrich our educational and research programs, and ultimately society, through service.
Our educational mission is to prepare students for careers involving technological innovation and leadership. Our undergraduate educational program provides a broad base on which successful careers in engineering and a number of other fields can be founded, whereas the graduate program aims to prepare specialists, professionals, and scholars in mechanical engineering. The research mission of the Department -- which is to create knowledge, technologies and ideas through fundamental research and its application -- is closely intertwined with its educational mission. Our graduates go on to a vast array of careers in product design, research, management, medicine, government, teaching, public service, and entrepreneurship.
