Core CoE Requirements

Planning the Student's Program

Students vary in their goals and objectives, in their level of achievement, and in their high school or pre-engineering preparation. Considerable variety and flexibility are provided to plan each student's schedule so that the individual may reach graduation as efficiently as possible. The objective is to place each new student in courses commensurate with his or her academic profile, previous experience, and potential for academic success.

Most courses have prerequisites. The completion of courses on schedule and with satisfactory grades is essential to the student's progress.

The appropriate schedule for each student in each term will depend on a number of factors such as: past scholastic record, placement test results, extracurricular activities, election of Co-op, international, or Military Office Education Programs, health, and need for partial self-support. A schedule of 12 to 18 hours is considered full-time.

All College of Engineering BSE and BS programs require successful completion of a program of 128 credit hours. An average of 16 credit-hours per term allows a student to complete these programs in 8 terms, generally requiring 4 years of study.

First- and Second-Year Programs

At the time of the first advising session, all of the high school and advance placement records may not yet be in the student's file. It is the entering student responsibility to make certain that all pertinent information is brought to the attention of an Engineering Advising Center (EAC) Advisor. Any changes in test scores or transfer credits will affect final course selection and need to be discussed with an advisor.

With complete information available, the advisor and the student will be able to make carefully considered adjustments in course elections for the first-term course schedule.

First Year

Assuming the necessary academic preparation and no advanced placement credit, each student will be expected to complete some combination of the following courses:

1. Mathematics 115 and 116 or one of the honors Math sequences.
2. Chemistry 130 and 125/126, or, for some, 130, 210, and 211.
3. Engineering 100
4. Engineering 101 or Engineering 151*
5. Physics 140 and 141
6. Additional course information will be available during the advising session.
   
   *Note: Engineering 151 is an approved alternative to Engineering 101 for all CoE programs.

Second Year

All students will continue with the mathematics, physics, humanities, and social sciences courses common to all programs. A second-term student who has selected a degree program should be meeting with that program advisor for third-term elections.

Students who have not selected a degree program should consult the EAC for their course selections.

Honors-Level Courses

A student whose record indicates qualifications to perform at an advanced level may discuss this option with an advisor in the Engineering Advising Center.

Minimum Common Requirements

Each of the degree programs offered by the College includes credit hours that are common to all programs, subject to appropriate adjustment for equivalent alternatives. See individual sample schedules for required programs in each program section of this Bulletin. Some programs may have a higher minimum grade requirement for some courses.

Mathematics

The mathematics courses of 115 (4 credits), 116 (4 credits), 215 (4 credits), and 216 (4 credits) provide an integrated 16-credit-hour sequence in college mathematics that includes analytic geometry, calculus, elementary linear algebra, and elementary differential equations. Students taking mathematics preparatory courses (currently Math 105 and Math 110) preparing them for the election of the first calculus course  may not use these courses as credit toward an Engineering degree; however, grades from these courses will be used in computing students' grade point averages.

All students with strong preparation and interest in mathematics are encouraged to consider the honors-level math sequence. Qualified and interested students should consult their engineering advisor about these options. It is not necessary to be in an honors program to enroll in these courses.

Engineering 100: Introduction to Engineering

Engineering 100 introduces students to the professional skills required of engineers and provides them with an overview of engineering at the beginning of their program. An important component of the course is the real-world engineering project. Important engineering skills developed in Engineering 100 include:

• Qualitative project-based work in an engineering discipline
• Written, oral and visual communication skills
• Team building and teamwork
• Ethical concerns in the engineering profession
• The role of engineers in society
• Environmental and quality concerns in the engineering profession.

Important Note: You must receive a grade of C- or better in Engineering 100 to fulfill the requirement. Note: A grade of "C" is required for EECS Programs. Transfer students must complete English composition as a prerequisite for transfer admission. Be sure to consult with the Office of Recruitment and Admissions if you have questions.

Advanced Placement English Credit

Advanced Placement (AP) English Literature credit is assessed as English departmental credit and can be used toward your Humanities requirement. AP English composition credit is used as general electives and will not fulfill the Engineering 100 requirement. You will not receive credit for Sweetland Writing Center courses.

Engineering 101: Introduction to Computers and Programming

The objective of Engineering 101 is to introduce students in Engineering to the algorithmic method that drives the information age. Algorithms are an organized means to construct the solution of a problem, structured as a well-defined set of steps that can be carried out by a mechanism such as a computer.
 
Engineering 101 focuses on the development of algorithms to solve problems of relevance in engineering practice and on the implementation of these algorithms using high-level computer languages. It is centered on quantitative and numerical problems that are suited to computational solutions. These often arise as part of larger, more complex problems in engineering practice.

Engineering 101 also ties itself to the introductory physics and math courses, and provides concrete examples of some of the concepts being covered in those classes. Sample problem types might include: 

• Finding area and volume
• Simulating statistical processes
• Data analysis
• Physical simulation
• Simulating complex systems with simple rules
• Minimization and optimization
• Computer graphics
• Logic Puzzles

In addition to the problem-solving component, students who take Engineering 101 will learn aspects of the C++ programming languages and be exposed to the MATLAB programming language. C++  and MATLAB is used today in many fields of engineering. MATLAB is also popular and has powerful capabilities for handling computation involving matrices and for visualizing data using 2-D and 3-D graphics. It is important to note that MATLAB will be useful in future math and engineering courses. 

Students entering Engineering 101 are not expected to know how to program; this skill will be taught as part of the class.  Visit the Engineering 101 website for detailed information on specific sections of the class.

Engineering 151: Accelerated Introduction to Computers and Programming

This course has been approved for all first year students in engineering as an alternative to Engineering 101. It introduces students to the algorithm development and procedural programming concepts covered in Engineering 101, but at a faster pace. It also focuses on object-oriented programming, engineering analysis methods, and additional topics such as parallel computing or embedded systems. Students will learn aspects of C++ and Matlab programming languages. Engineering 151 provides an accelerated alternative to Engineering 101 for students either with previous programming experience or with strong motivation and natural intuition for algorithms.

Important note: You must receive a grade of "C-" or better in Engineering 101 or Engineering 151 to fulfill the requirement.

Chemistry

Chem 130 (3 credits) with laboratory Chem 125/126 (2 credits) is required by most degree programs. Students will normally elect these courses during the freshman year. The following degree programs require additional chemistry: Biomedical Engineering, Chemical Engineering, and Materials Science and Engineering. Students expecting to enter one of these degree programs would normally elect Chem 130 (3 credits), Chem 210 (4 credits) with laboratory, Chem 211 (1) during the freshman year depending on UM placement exam results.

Important Note: (1) If you have a satisfactory score or grade in Chemistry AP, A-Level, IB Exams or transfer credit from another institution you will have met the Chemistry Core Requirement for CoE. (2) Students who place into Chem 210/211 will not be given credit for Chem 130. 

Physics

The usual first year schedule includes Physics 140 (4 credits) with laboratory, Physics 141 (1 credit). This course requires completion of Calculus I. A second course, Physics 240 (4 credits) with laboratory, 241 (1credit), is required by all programs and is normally scheduled in the third term.

Important Note: (1) If you have a satisfactory score or grade in Physics AP, A-Level, IB Exams or transfer credit for Physics 140/141 and 240/241 from another institution you will have met the Physics Core Requirement for CoE. (2) All students with strong preparation and interest in physics are encouraged to consider the honors-level physics sequence. 

Foreign Languages

A student may take an examination in a foreign language regardless of how the language skills were developed; however, credit by examination for foreign languages, either at the University of Michigan or Advanced Placement, IB and A-levels will be granted up to a maximum of eight credit hours. If the language credit earned is at the first-year level, then the credit hours may be used only as general electives. If the language credit earned is at the second-year level, then the credit hours may be used as humanities or general elective credits. Students earning language credit by completing qualifying courses at the University of Michigan, or by transfer credit of equivalent courses from any other institution of higher learning, may apply all credits earned towards humanities requirements.

Humanities and Social Sciences

The Humanities and Social Sciences Requirements offer a variety of academic choices for all students working toward an undergraduate Engineering degree. It is designed to provide the students with social, cultural, political and economic background crucial to fulfilling the College of Engineering's purpose of "preparing our graduates to begin a lifetime of technical and professional creativity and leadership in their chosen field".

To provide a breadth of education, each program in the College identifies a certain number of credit hours of elective courses (a minimum of 16) concerned with cultures and relationships--generally identified as humanities and social sciences. Students are encouraged to select a cluster theme for their humanities/social science electives. This is a unifying theme (such as psychology, economics, or history) that focuses the student's HU/SS electives.

Requirements:

The specific requirements for all students are listed below:

1. Humanities (6 credit hours):
   At least two courses totaling at least six credit hours.
2. At least one 300- level or above humanities or social science course, totaling at least three credits. This requirement may, of course, overlap requirement I.
3. The remaining credit hours may be satisfied with elective courses in either humanities or social sciences.

Definitions and Exceptions:

These requirements can often be satisfied by a number of courses from the College of Literature, Science and the Arts (LSA), or in part by Advanced Placement, A levels or IB credit or by courses taken at another university. For purposes of this College of Engineering requirement a course is defined as being a humanities or social science as follows:

1. Any course that is designated as "HU" or "SS" by the College of Literature, Science and Arts meets this requirement as humanities or a social science, respectively.
2. Language courses, except those designated in (3), are counted as humanities. However, advanced placement credit, A levels, IB or University of  Michigan placement credit for language courses at the 100-level and below are not to be used to satisfy this requirement. These may be counted instead as General Electives. 
3. Courses that are designated  as "BS", "CE", "MSA", "NS", "QR", "experiential", "directed reading or independent study", or course titles that include the terms or partial phrases "composition", "conversations:", "intro composition", "math", "outreach", "performance", "physics", "practice", "practicum",  "statistics", "studio", "tutor" may not be used to satisfy this requirement.
4. For the purposes of this requirement, courses not covered by items 1, 2 & 3 above will be defined as humanities courses if they are offered by the following departments or divisions:
   
   
   • American Culture
   • Architecture (non-studio)
   • Art (non-studio)
   • Classical Archaeology
   • Classical Studies
   • Comparative Literature
   • Dance (non-performance)
   • Film and Video Studies
   • Great Books
   • History of Art
   • Asian, English, Germanic, Romance (French, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish) and Slavic Languages and Literatures
   • Music (non-performance)
   • Music History and Musicology
   • Philosophy
   • Religion
   • Theatre and Drama (non-performance)

Similarly, courses not covered by items 1, 2 & 3 above will be defined as social sciences if they are offered by the following departments:

• Afro-American and African Studies
• Cultural Anthropology
• Communication Studies
• Armenian, Judaic, Latin American and Caribbean, Latina/Latino, Middle Eastern and North African, Native American, Near Eastern, Russian and East European Studies
• Economics
• History
• Linguistics
• Political Science
• Psychology
• Sociology
• Women's Studies

General Electives

General electives may be selected from the offerings of any regular academic unit of the University and from the Pilot Program, with the following exceptions:

• Courses that require tutoring of other students enrolled in courses are limited to a maximum of 3 credits, with the exception of Physics 333 & Physics 334 which are both allowed for a maximum of 6 credits;
• All undergraduate degree programs in the College of Engineering will accept credits earned in 200-, 300- and 400-level courses in military, naval, or air science.
• Tutorial courses are not acceptable for credit of grade points but will be included on the student's official record.

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Last edited on 07/30/2009