Programs of Study Spring 2005 illinois home
 

General Engineering

Interim Head of Department: Mark W. Spong
117 Transportation Building
104 South Mathews Avenue
Urbana, IL 61801
(217) 333-2732
E-mail: ge-grad@uiuc.edu

Graduate Degree Program

The Department of General Engineering offers graduate study leading to master of science and doctor of philosophy degrees. The program offers an approach to systems engineering, engineering design, and entrepreneurial engineering that crosses disciplinary lines. Graduates of the program are prepared to enter professional engineering positions in industry, government, and private practice. Graduate study and research may be pursued in the following fields: computer-aided design, optimization, design systems, manufacturing systems, nondestructive testing and evaluation, robotics, real-time decision making, reliability, entrepreneurial engineering, control, system dynamics and simulation, operations research/management science, and biomechanics.

Admission

Applicants who have completed degree requirements in an accredited engineering program or its equivalent are eligible to apply for admission. Qualifications for admission include a minimum grade- point average of 3.0 (A = 4.0) for the last 60 hours of undergraduate work. The Graduate Record Examination (GRE) is not required but is highly recommended. For students whose native language is not English, the department requires a minimum paper-based Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) score of 600 (250 on the computer-based test).

Master of Science

The program consists of a core of required courses, a thesis or design project, and supplementary courses selected by the student and adviser. Minimum requirements for the degree are 32 graduate hours of credit with a thesis or 36 graduate hours with a project. Each candidate must successfully complete at least 28 graduate hours of graduate coursework. Three of these must be departmental courses, two of which are required to be at the 500 level. The remaining 16 graduate hours are chosen by the student with the help of his or her adviser. In addition to these 28 graduate hours, either4 graduate hours of thesis credit or 8 graduate hours of project credit must be completed.

It is possible to pursue the M.S. in General Engineering and the M.B.A. degree simultaneously. The total time required is less than that needed to obtain both degrees independently. A total of 84 graduate hours of credit is required, including 16 graduate hours of engineering coursework and a project or thesis. The M.B.A. requires 44 graduate hours of core coursework plus 16 graduate hours of business electives. Separate admission to both programs is required, although only one application is necessary.

An extramural M.S. program is available to off-campus students in videotape and telecommunications formats.

In addition, many students who graduate with a B.S. and/or M.S. in General Engineering pursue master’s or doctoral degrees in related departments such as civil engineering, computer engineering, computer science, electrical engineering, and mechanical and industrial engineering. Many faculty in the Department of General Engineering also hold joint appointments in other engineering departments at the University, enabling them to supervise Ph.D. students directly in these departments.

Financial Aid

Qualified students may apply for financial aid in the form of teaching and research assistantships and waivers of tuition and service fees.