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Head of the Department: R. O. Buckius
Graduate Programs Committee Chairperson: P. M. Ferreira
140 Mechanical Engineering Building
1206 West Green Street
Urbana, IL 61801
(217) 244-3416
E-mail:
miegrad@uiuc.edu
Graduate Degree Programs
The Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering offers studies
leading to the Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering, the Master
of Science in Industrial Engineering, the Doctor of Philosophy in
Mechanical Engineering, and the Doctor of Philosophy in Industrial
Engineering. Details outlining specific degree requirements are included
in brochures available from the graduate programs coordinator, whose
address is listed above.
Admission
An applicant for admission to the Department of Mechanical and Industrial
Engineering must (1) be a graduate of an institution awarding a baccalaureate
degree equivalent to that granted by the University of Illinois at
Urbana-Champaign; (2) be adequately prepared for advanced study as
demonstrated by his or her previous program of study and scholastic
record; and (3) be recommended for admission by the Department of
Mechanical and Industrial Engineering. An unofficial minimum grade
point average of 3.25 (A = 4.0) for the last 60 hours of undergraduate
study is required. Scores on the Graduate Record Examination (GRE)
general test are required of all applicants. There is no language
requirement. The department requires a minimum paper-based Test of
English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) score of 610 (257 on the computer-based
test) for those applicants who have not completed at least two years
of full-time study in an institution in a country where English is
the primary language, and in a school where English is the primary
language of instruction. Based upon the previous preparation of the
student, prerequisite courses may be specified by the adviser, but
the credit may not be applied toward a degree.
Graduate Teaching Experience
Although teaching is not a general Graduate College requirement, experience
in teaching is considered an important part of the graduate experience
in this program.
Master of Science
A total of 32 graduate hours is required, of which 24 graduate hours
are formal graded coursework (including 8 graduate hours at the 500
level) and 8 graduate hours, minimum, are thesis credit. For those
students terminating their studies with the M.S. degree, a nonthesis
option is available by departmental petition. Those pursuing the nonthesis
option are required to complete a minimum of 32 graduate hours of
formal graded coursework (including two units at the 500 level) plus
one unit of a 500-level independent investigations course, since each
student is required to show evidence of the ability to do independent
research.
Doctor of Philosophy
For those students entering the program with a master’s degree,
a total of 32 graduate hours of formal graded coursework (including
16 graduate hours at the 500 level) is required in addition to 32
graduate hours, minimum, of thesis credit. Qualifying examinations
are required and should be taken no later than the second calendar
semester after initial enrollment.
A student entering with a bachelor’s degree has the option of
a direct Ph.D. program. A total of 56 graduate hours of formal graded
coursework (including 24 at the 500 level) is required in addition
to 40 graduate hours, minimum, of thesis credit. Qualifying examinations
should be taken as early as possible.
For both Ph.D. options, the preliminary examination is taken after
the qualifying examination. A minimum of six months should elapse
between the successful completion of the doctoral preliminary examination
and the doctoral final examination (oral dissertation defense).
Research Areas
Research in the Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering
is broadly based, following the traditional disciplines of mechanical
engineering and industrial engineering on the one hand and encompassing
areas that are at the cutting edge of the profession on the other.
The activities reflect not only the interests and creativity of our
faculty and students, but also their responsiveness to societal problems.
While the generation of new knowledge remains a basic function, a
number of ongoing research projects have been prompted by the current
needs of the state of Illinois and of the nation. Current studies
are conducted in automotive systems, bioengineering, combustion and
propulsion computational science and engineering, control systems,
design methodology and tribology, dynamic systems, energy systems
and thermodynamics, engineering mechanics, engineering statistics
and quality control, environmental engineering, fluid dynamics, heat
transfer, human factors, manufacturing systems, materials behavior,
materials processing, MEMS, operations research, and production management.
The areas associated with thermodynamics, heat transfer and fluid
mechanics address a wide range of problems, including novel energetic
materials for rockets, combustion studies in IC engines and gas turbines,
laser diagnostic methods for studying flow and combustion, behavior
of bio-fluids, micro-scale heat transfer, kinetics of chemical processes,
magneto-hydrodynamics, analytical and experimental studies of two-phase
flows, air-conditioning and refrigeration systems, and development
of computational tools such as meshless methods for simulating thermal
and fluid systems. Research progress is made in the study of solid
mechanics, materials behavior and processing includes casting processes,
composite materials, creep, fatigue, fracture, high-temperature material
behavior, phase transformations, polymer processing, ceramic-matrix
composites, thin films, deformation processes, crystal plasticity,
micro-scale phenomena, non-linear dynamics, and continuum mechanics.
In areas related to engineering mechanics, dynamics and control, the
department’s research includes chaotic dynamics and non-linear
phenomena, experimental and analytical modal analysis, and control
(including non-linear, adaptive, robust, optimal, and distributed)
theory with application to various mechanical and electromechanical
systems. In industrial engineering, studies are conducted in human
factors and engineering psychology, operations research, and production
engineering. Study in the areas of cognitive engineering, computer-aided
manufacturing, ergonomics, facilities planning, human-machine interaction,
large-scale systems analysis, machine tool systems design, mathematical
programming and optimization, production planning and control, and
project management is aimed at improving the design and implementation
of integrated systems of persons, materials, and equipment.
The department has a strong commitment to interdisciplinary research,
and works closely with other departments: the Department of Aeronautical
and Astronautical Engineering in the fields of fluid dynamics and
combustion; the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
in controls and MEMs; the Department of Materials Science and Engineering
in materials properties and processing; and the Department of Psychology
in ergonomics and human factors engineering. Cooperation with the
college’s Bioengineering faculty, the Coordinated Science Laboratory,
the Materials Research Laboratory, the National Center for Supercomputing
Applications (NCSA), and the Beckman Institute also lends diversity
to our research.
Research Facilities
The department has several center-based research activities, including
two NSF industry/university cooperative research centers: one in air
conditioning and refrigeration, and one in machine tool systems. The
University of Illinois is also the lead institution in the newly formed
NSF/DARPA Machine Tool Agile Manufacturing Research Institute. In
addition, the department has the Institute for Competitive Manufacturing,
the Fracture Control Program, the Continuous Casting Consortium, and
the DARPA-funded Mesoscale Cooler Program.
Research facilities include laboratories for advanced automation,
air conditioning and refrigeration, combustion, computer-aided design
and simulation, computer-integrated manufacturing, control systems,
design for manufacturing, flexible automation, gas dynamics, heat
transfer, human factors and simulation of human-machine interaction,
internal-combustion engines, laser diagnostics for combustion, laser
processing, machining and machine tool systems, mechanical behavior
of materials, metrology, operations research, precision engineering,
polymer and composite materials processing, propulsion, rapid prototyping,
robotics, solar energy, thermal processing of materials, thermodynamics,
tribology, vehicle dynamics, and welding and heat treatment. Special
facilities include a micro-fabrication facility with its own clean
room for silicon and CMOS-based micro-fabrication, test facilities
for refrigeration and air-conditioning systems and components, low-
and high-speed wind tunnels, and laboratories for study of combustion,
radiation, particulate and multiphase flow, complete specimen-scale
mechanical testing equipment including an environmental testing chamber,
thermomechanical and multiaxial loading capabilities, and laser processing
facilities. The department has a construction shop with instrument
makers and electronics technicians.
Financial Aid
Financial assistance is available to most students who are admitted
and includes fellowships, assistantships, and/or waivers of tuition
and fees. Assistantship stipends vary with one’s entry level
into the program.
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