General Information
The Nature of Engineering
Engineers solve real-life problems. They find the best solutions through the application of their combined knowledge, experience and judgment. Engineers help to shape our way of life by providing innovative, higher-performance, safer, cleaner and more comfortable solutions.
Engineers seek improvement through the processes of invention, design, manufacture and construction. Throughout all of these steps, they assess the impact of their work on society.
The by-products of discovery are sometimes positive, sometimes negative. Water, air and noise pollution result from the same engineering marvels of decades ago. Even in "benign" engineering, the effects of technology can be challenging, such as the burgeoning need for larger and more efficient information storage and retrieval systems in modern communication.
The engineer's problem-solving approach grows in importance as the world's social and technological problems become more closely related. For example, the problem of air pollution cannot be solved by analyzing the physical causes alone. What social, legal, political and ethical conflicts does it generate? How will available technological solutions affect individual and group interests and well-being?
In many ways, the study of engineering provides students with the modern "liberal education" of our technology-based future - an education which provides the technical understanding and problem-solving skills to address the complex challenges of tomorrow.
Michigan Engineering Mission
To be the place of choice for engineering education and research…A Michigan institution that challenges its students, faculty and staff to learn, to grow, to achieve and to serve the needs of society…A place where excellence, excitement, innovation and impact define the style and substance of its activities.
Michigan Engineering Goals
- To provide a continuously improving educational and research environment in which faculty, administrators, students and staff work together to educate our students to lead, to have impact, and to make significant contributions to their professions, industry, government, academia and society.
- To attract diverse, outstanding students, and to motivate and educate them to reach their full potential as leaders in engineering professions.
History
The University of Michigan began educating engineers in 1854, when fewer than a half-dozen other American universities were providing opportunities for a formal, degree-granting course of study in engineering. U-M was the first public university to award degrees in engineering.
As early as 1852, U-M President Henry P. Tappan proposed "a scientific course parallel to the classical course," containing "besides other branches, Civil Engineering, Astronomy with the use of an observatory, and the application of chemistry and other sciences to agriculture and the industrial arts generally." The early curriculum included mathematics, graphics, physics, natural science, elements of astronomy, language, philosophy, and engineering subjects including plane geodetics, railroad and mining surveying, leveling, the nature and strength of materials, theory of construction, architecture, machines (particularly the steam engine and locomotive) and motors, particularly steam and water.
The College of Engineering established itself as a significant engineering school with some of the nation's earliest engineering programs, in metallurgical engineering (1854), naval architecture and marine engineering (1881), electrical engineering (1889), chemical engineering (1898), aeronautical engineering (1916), nuclear engineering (1953) and computer and communication sciences (1966).
Michigan Engineering Today
Today, Michigan Engineering is the home of top scholars, making a difference in society, across a wide range of disciplines. The College is consistently ranked one of the top engineering schools. Nearly all of its undergraduate and graduate degree programs ranked by U.S. News are in the top ten nationwide. Approximately 1,200 bachelor's degrees and 1,000 master's and doctoral degrees are awarded annually to students who become entrepreneurs, public servants, doctors, practicing engineers and much more. Michigan Engineers, who can select from one of 11 academic departments and nearly 80 liberal arts minors, graduate with well-rounded skills, prepared to make an impact.
In the fall of 2008, there were more than 400 teaching and research faculty, and approximately 5,300 undergraduate students and 2,500 graduate students in the College of Engineering.
The University of Michigan is one of the nation's premier research universities, with nearly $900 million of research each year, more than $130 million of which is generated by the College of Engineering.
The College is home to a National Science Foundation Engineering Research Center among its numerous research laboratories.
Degree Programs
The College of Engineering offers undergraduate and graduate programs through the doctoral level. The undergraduate program consists typically of a four-year schedule leading to a bachelor's degree. There are 14 courses of study that lead to the Bachelor of Science in Engineering degree (B.S.E.) and one that leads to the Bachelor of Science degree (B.S.). By careful planning, an additional bachelor's degree (B.S. or A.B.) can be earned within the College of Engineering or in combination with another college within the University of Michigan in about one year beyond the time required for a single degree. Completion of both an engineering baccalaureate and a master's degree in approximately five years is also possible. A complete list of graduate programs is found in the Graduate Studies portion of this Bulletin.
Areas of undergraduate study at the College of Engineering include:
- Aerospace Engineering
- Atmospheric, Oceanic and Space Sciences
- Biomedical Engineering
- Chemical Engineering
- Civil Engineering
- Computer Engineering
- Computer Science
- Electrical Engineering
- Engineering Physics
- Industrial and Operations Engineering
- Interdisciplinary Program
- Materials Science and Engineering
- Mechanical Engineering
- Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering
- Nuclear Engineering and Radiological Sciences
Accreditation
The Computer Science program is accredited by the Computing Accreditation Commission of the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET), 111 Market Place, Suite 1050, Baltimore, MD 21202-4012, telephone (410) 347-7700.
The Aerospace, Biomedical, Chemical, Civil, Computer Engineering, Electrical, Industrial and Operations, Materials Science and Engineering, Mechanical, Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering, and Nuclear Engineering and Radiological Sciences programs are accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET), 111 Market Place, Suite 1050, Baltimore, MD 21202-4012, telephone (410) 347-7700.
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Last edited on 07/30/2009
