College of Engineering


NOTE: See also the College of Engineering's WWW site.

NOTE: This document was generated from the 1995-1997 UIUC Programs of Study. Every effort has been made to ensure accuracy, but be advised that requirements may have changed since this book was published. Errors may have also been introduced in the conversion to a WWW document. Thus for items of importance, it might be wise to seek confirmation in the paper version or from a live human being.


Engineering Hall
1308 West Green Street
Urbana, IL 61801
(217) 333-2280

Contents

Introduction

The College of Engineering prepares men and women for professional careers in engineering and related positions in industry, commerce, education, and government. The college provides training in the mathematical and physical sciences and their application to a broad spectrum of technological and social requirements of society. The engineering curricula, although widely varied and specialized, are built on a general foundation of scientific theory applicable to many different fields. Work in the classroom and laboratory is brought into sharper focus by practical problems that the student solves by methods similar to those of practicing engineers.

Although each student pursues a curriculum chosen to meet individual career goals, all students take certain common courses. Basic courses in mathematics, chemistry, physics, rhetoric, and computer science are required in the first two years. Although the curricula are progressively specialized in the third and fourth years, each student is required to take some courses outside his or her chosen field.

Nontechnical courses are included in each curriculum; they may be required or elective. Many nontechnical courses satisfy the broad objectives of the humanities and social sciences requirements of the engineering curricula, thus making the student keenly aware of the urgent problems of society and developing a deeper appreciation of human cultural achievements. The humanities and social sciences courses are usually drawn from the liberal arts and sciences, economics, and approved courses in fine and applied arts. A student who desires a broader cultural background should consider a combined engineering-liberal arts and sciences program.

The Grainger Engineering Library Information Center is a major resource center for students in all curricula. State-of-the-art resources include a digital imaging lab, computer and multimedia lab, instructional services lab, information retrieval research lab, and high-tech classrooms. It also contains the reference books, periodicals, catalogs, and technical publications that students need constantly and provides materials for general reading and private research.

Departments and Curricula

The College of Engineering includes the Departments of Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering, Civil Engineering, Computer Science, Electrical and Computer Engineering, General Engineering, Materials Science and Engineering, Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, Nuclear Engineering, Physics, and Theoretical and Applied Mechanics. The undergraduate curricula described later in this section are administered by these units. The work in chemical engineering is administered by the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. The curriculum in agricultural engineering is administered jointly by the College of Agriculture and the College of Engineering.

The listing by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology of the programs of the College of Engineering, required by the Engineering Accreditation Commission, is Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering bdC [1950] * ; Agricultural Engineering bdC [1950]; Ceramic Engineering bdC [1936]; Chemical Engineering bdC [1936]; Civil Engineering bdC [1936]; Computer Engineering bdC [1978]; Electrical Engineering bdC [1936]; Engineering Mechanics bdC [1960]; General Engineering bdC [1936]; Industrial Engineering bdC [1960]; Mechanical Engineering bdC [1936]; Metallurgical Engineering bdC [1936]; and Nuclear Engineering bdC [1978].

Each student entering the College of Engineering declares his or her choice of a curriculum. All first-year students follow the common program for freshmen shown here.

* b = bachelor's degree, basic-level accreditation; d = day; C = co-op feature meeting special requirements of the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology criteria

Requirements

Entering Freshmen ADMISSION

Students seeking admission to the College of Engineering who are recent high school graduates or who have earned fewer than 12 semester hours of credit at other collegiate institutions are classified as new freshmen and must meet the entrance requirements to the College of Engineering that are specified for new freshmen. Students are admitted to the college on a best-qualified basis as determined by ACT composite scores and high school percentile ranks supplied on high school transcripts.

Although new freshmen take a common, or similar, program (shown below), they are asked to choose a curriculum in which they wish to study. A freshman usually can change the curriculum of study during the freshman year. Some restrictions apply when differential admission procedures are used. Because the program of study is essentially the same for all freshman students, such changes can be made without loss of credit toward graduation.

The advanced Mathematics Placement Test is required of all freshman students entering the College of Engineering. They are urged to take the examination during the spring testing period before enrollment.

The Chemistry Placement Test is required of all entering freshmen. This examination will be used to place a student in a background course for engineers, CHEM 100, or in the normal beginning course for engineers, CHEM 101. A student with a superior background in chemistry may take the chemistry proficiency test, which, if passed, will place the student in CHEM 102 and grant the student 3 hours of proficiency credit for CHEM 101; the additional 1 hour must be made up as a free elective. A student with advanced placement credit in mathematics, chemistry, or physics will receive credit toward graduation and will be placed in advanced course work consistent with academic preparation.

HOURS COMMON FIRST-YEAR PROGRAM
0-1 Engineering lecture
6-8 Chemistry see footnote 1
8-10 Mathematics see footnote 2
4 Physics
4 Rhetoric
0-6 Engineering electives
3-6 Electives
31-36 Total

footnote 1. The normal freshman chemistry sequence is CHEM 101 and CHEM 102.
footnotes 2. Entering freshmen who do not pass the Mathematics Placement Test will take MATH 112 and MATH 114 or MATH 116.

Transfer Student Admission

The College of Engineering admits qualified transfer students from both community and four-year colleges and has worked closely with these schools in Illinois to implement coordinated engineering programs.

Students may complete the first two years of study in other accredited institutions and transfer to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with little or no loss of credit, provided that they follow the proper program. A suggested list of courses that should be completed in the first two years before transferring is given below. A range of hours is given in each of these course work areas, because the major concern is that students have an adequate coverage of basic subject matter rather than specific numbers of hours in given areas. Ranges are given applicable to both quarter-hour and semester-hour systems.


RANGE OF HOURS SUGGESTED COORDINATED ENGINEERING COURSES
Quarter Hours Semester Hours
10-15 6-10 Freshman chemistry
15-18 10-12 General physics (taught using calculus)
6-9 4-6 English (rhetoric and composition)
20-24 15-17 Mathematics (total mathematics credits)
16-20 12-14 Calculus or calculus and analytic geometry
8-10 6 Differential equations, linear algebra
4-6 3-4 Engineering graphics (mechanical drawing and/or descriptive geometry)
3-4 2-3 Applied mechanics--statics
3-6 2-3 Applied mechanics--dynamics
3-4 3 Computer science (programming)
Quarter Hours Semester Hours Other courses
9-27 6-18 Social sciences and humanities

Students should complete as many of the suggested courses as possible and select additional courses from those in the Other Courses list above to complete full-time study programs. Normally, a student will complete all of the suggested courses and 8 to 10 additional semester hours of course work. This additional course work may include social sciences and humanities electives but could include work in computer science or advanced mathematics.

Before selecting social sciences and humanities electives, students should familiarize themselves with the elective requirements of the college. A list is available from the Office of the Associate Dean for Academic Programs, 207 Engineering Hall. Any student who wants to transfer to the college must have a cumulative grade-point average of at least 3.6 (A = 5.0) to apply, but competitive standards for admission are usually higher than the 3.6 level.

Students may transfer to the college for the fall, spring, or summer session provided they have met competitive grade-point average cutoffs and have completed 60 or more semester hours of work. Transfer students are required to have also completed the basic mathematics (through calculus), physics, chemistry, and English (rhetoric and composition) sequences in the 60 or more semester hours required for transfer. Transfer students starting their studies in the fall semester are allowed to advance enroll during the preceding summer. Students are informed of this opportunity after they are admitted. Questions are invited concerning this procedure.

A few sophomore-level technical courses may not be offered by most community colleges. However, junior-level transfer students can usually arrange their programs on the Urbana-Champaign campus so that all technical requirements can be completed in a four-semester period on this campus if they wish to do so. If the number of hours remaining to complete a degree requires more than four semesters, the student may enroll for an additional summer session or semester.

Students planning to transfer to the College of Engineering are encouraged to write to the Office of the Associate Dean for Academic Programs, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 207 Engineering Hall, 1308 West Green Street, Urbana, IL 61801, or to the head of the department to which they wish to transfer. A student should complete all sequences in mathematics, physics, chemistry, and English at one institution to maintain proper continuity. In cases where this is not possible, a student may enroll in a summer session to make up deficiencies. Individual program plans between most transfer institutions and the College of Engineering are available upon request.

Transfer students are not required to take freshman guidance examinations or any other examinations to qualify for admission to the College of Engineering, but all other admission regulations apply to them. Transfer students should consult Admission of Transfer Applicants for general information concerning transfer to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and students from community colleges should note especially the rules regarding community colleges.

GENERAL EDUCATION

The Campus Senate, the faculty General Education Board, and the colleges and departments are working to implement enhanced general education requirements. Thus, new students should confirm their general education requirements by consulting college and departmental offices, handbooks, or advisers.

Special Programs

Combined Engineering-Liberal Arts and Sciences Program

A five-year program of study permits a student to earn a Bachelor of Science degree in a field of engineering from the College of Engineering and a Bachelor of Arts or a Bachelor of Science degree from the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at the Urbana-Champaign campus.

This program affords the student the opportunity to prepare for a career of an interdisciplinary nature. By selecting an appropriate liberal arts and sciences major in combination with the desired engineering curriculum, it is possible for a student to qualify for new careers in industry, business, or government. A student who desires a broader background than can be provided in the four-year engineering curricula can develop a program that includes a well-rounded cultural education in addition to an engineering specialty. Each student must file an approved program with the College of Engineering and with the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.

Advisers in both colleges assist in planning a program of study to meet the needs and requirements for both degrees. Most combinations of engineering and liberal arts curricula may be completed in ten semesters if the student does not have deficiencies in the entrance requirements of either college.

Most engineering curricula can be combined with one of a variety of liberal arts and sciences majors including languages, social sciences, humanities, speech communication, and philosophy. This combined program operates under the following conditions:

-- Students entering the program must meet admission requirements for both colleges.

-- A student who starts in the program and decides to transfer from it is subject to the existing graduation requirements of the college of his or her choice.

-- The degrees of bachelor of science in engineering and bachelor of arts or bachelor of science in liberal arts and sciences are awarded simultaneously. No student in the combined program is permitted to receive a degree from either college before the completion of the entire program.

-- Participants must satisfy the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences foreign language graduation requirement.

-- Students electing advanced Reserve Officers' Training Corps and Naval ROTC programs are required to meet these commitments in addition to the combined program as outlined.

-- Students having 75 or more hours of transfer credit are not advised to enter this program, because they cannot ordinarily complete it in five years.

-- Students transferring from other colleges and universities must plan to complete at least one year in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at Urbana-Champaign and one year in the College of Engineering at Urbana-Champaign to satisfy residency requirements if both degrees are to be granted here. Other students should plan to spend a minimum of two years in each college.

-- A student is expected to maintain at least a 3.5 (A = 5.0) grade-point average to be accepted or to continue in the program. A higher grade-point average may be imposed.

During the first year, students are enrolled in the common freshman program for engineers, which is taken in the College of Engineering. Students are normally enrolled in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences for the second and third years and in the College of Engineering for the fourth and fifth years. A typical combined program follows:

Second Year
HOURS FIRST SEMESTER
4 Biological science
5 Calculus and analytic geometry
4 Humanities or social sciences
4 Language
17 Total
HOURS SECOND SEMESTER
4 Engineering subject
4 Language
3 Liberal arts and sciences major
4 Physics (heat, electricity, and magnetism)
15 Total
Third Year
HOURS FIRST SEMESTER
4 Humanities or social sciences
4 Languages
6 Liberal arts and sciences major
4 Physics (light, sound, and the structure of matter)
18 Total
HOURS SECOND SEMESTER
6-8 Engineering subjects
4 Humanities or social sciences
4 Language
3 Liberal arts and sciences major
17-19 Total
Fourth Year
HOURS FIRST SEMESTER
15 Engineering subjects
4 Humanities or social sciences
19 Total
HOURS SECOND SEMESTER
18 Engineering subjects
Fifth year
HOURS FIRST SEMESTER
15-17 Engineering subjects
HOURS SECOND SEMESTER
18 Engineering subjects

It may be necessary to adjust the above program to allow the student to take more hours in the liberal arts and sciences program.

For further information about this program, students should write to the Office of the Associate Dean for Academic Programs in the College of Engineering or the Office of the Assistant Dean in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at UIUC.

Affiliations with Other Liberal Arts Colleges

Through a program of affiliation between the College of Engineering and a number of liberal arts colleges, a student may enroll in a five-year program, earn a bachelor's degree from one of these colleges, and at the same time earn a bachelor's degree in engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. In general, students spend the first three years at the liberal arts college and the final two years at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. At the time of transfer, students must meet competitive transfer admission requirements. Students must meet certain residency requirements to participate in this program. Students transferring from these programs must be residents of Illinois to qualify for admission to UIUC.

Increasing numbers of engineering graduates enter leadership roles in industry and government and require a greater understanding of the impact of technology on society. The five-year program encourages a student to develop a broad understanding of the social sciences and humanities while striving for excellence in technical studies. These affiliations have the added benefit of allowing students to take preengineering studies at liberal arts schools chosen on the basis of geographical location, prestige, religious principles, family circumstances, or other personal reasons. Students interested in this dual degree program should meet with advisers from both schools to develop an individual plan of study.

Colleges affiliated with the College of Engineering are:

Adrian College Anderson College Augustana College
Adrian, Michigan Anderson, Indiana Rock Island, Illinois
Beloit College Butler University Carthage College
Beloit, Wisconsin Indianapolis, Indiana Kenosha, Wisconsin
De Paul University Eastern Illinois University Elmhurst College
Chicago, Illinois Charleston, Illinois Elmhurst, Illinois
Grace College Greenville College Illinois Benedictine College
Winona Lake, Indiana Greenville, Illinois Lisle, Illinois
Illinois College Illinois State University Illinois Wesleyan University
Jacksonville, Illinois Normal, Illinois Bloomington, Illinois
Knox College Lewis University Loras College
Galesburg, Illinois Lockport, Illinois Dubuque, Iowa
Loyola University of Chicago MacMurray College McKendree College
Chicago, Illinois Jacksonville, Illinois Lebanon, Illinois
North Central College Northern Illinois University Olivet Nazarene College
Naperville, Illinois DeKalb, Illinois Kankakee, Illinois
Saint Ambrose College Saint Joseph's College Wartburg College
Davenport, Iowa Rensselaer, Indiana Waverly, Iowa
Western Illinois University Wheaton College Yankton College
Macomb, Illinois Wheaton, Illinois Yankton, South Dakota

Cooperative Engineering Education Program

A five-year program in cooperative engineering education is available to students in all curricula in the college. A student in the program alternates periods of attendance at UIUC with periods of employment in industry or government. The employment, which is an essential element in the educational process, is with the same company each work period and is related to the student's field of study. The assignment increases in difficulty and responsibility with each succeeding period off campus.

Students who wish to join the program must be enrolled in the College of Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. If accepted by a participating employer, the first off-campus educational assignment will be scheduled during the summer after the freshman year, or the student will attend the summer session and have the first off-campus assignment during the fall semester after the freshman year. Typical schedules and participating employees are shown in a brochure available from the Cooperative Engineering Office, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 207 Engineering Hall, 1308 West Green Street, Urbana, IL 61801; telephone (217) 244-4165; FAX (217) 244-4974; EMAIL axehunt@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu.

Sophomores, advanced undergraduates, and community college transfer students are eligible for the program. Advanced students will still require five years to complete the program, but they will have fewer off-campus assignments.

Students enrolled in the cooperative education program are registered in the University and are considered to be full-time students for the entire five years required by the program. Entries indicating participation in the program are entered on the student's official transcript each semester and summer that he or she is enrolled. Upon successful completion of the program, the student is awarded a certificate signed by the dean of the college and the off-campus coordinator and receives the regular diploma awarded for completing the degree requirements.


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