 Dramatic changes to the undergraduate curriculum will be implemented at the start of the 1996-97 academic year. During the past decade significant changes have occurred in the role of the mechanical engineer. These shifts are the result of increasing reliance on teamwork in the design process, introduction of new tools into the workplace, and intensifying international competition. In response to these changes the faculty, under the direction of the Undergraduate Education Committee (UEC), is revising the undergraduate curriculum.
Many factors impacted decisions on the new curriculum. In autumn 1994 the College of Engineering voted to allow earlier admission into the college and to reduce the credits required for graduation from 192 to 180. Greater flexibility was also introduced in the choice of engineering fundamentals courses.
The department is involved in several programs which involve the introduction of new educational techniques into the classroom and which better relate engineering science with practice. These include ECSEL (Engineering Coalition of Schools for Excellence in Education and Leadership), MEEP (Manufacturing Engineering Education Partnership) and TIDEE (Transferable Integrated Design Engineering Education).
In addition, a number of factors have been considered, including the overall goals of the ME program (in terms of both knowledge and skills which our graduates should obtain), the guidelines of the Accredation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET, the national organization responsible for accrediting engineering departments), college and university requirements, and the impact of any changes on community colleges.
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