Bachelor of Science Degree in Mechanical Engineering

Summary: The undergraduate Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering (BSME) curriculum consists of 127-128 credit hours of course work and is multifaceted, rigorous, communications intensive and hands-on. In addition, opportunities exist to establish an area of specialization through one of the Minors to the BSME (e.g. Aero Minor, Materials Minor, Nuclear Power Minor) and others offered through other programs.

Project Management: Their Mechanical Engineering education is the first challenging project aspiring engineering students face, and in true engineering fashion, it is best to plan and manage it in order to maximize the benefits while minimizing costs (monetary and otherwise).

Timing: The curriculum is designed for a four year program under the condition that the student approaches it as a full-time job. Students who need to work their way through college or have time commitments to other activities (e.g. LSU Band, Athletics, a double major, etc.) are advised to plan a longer stay, adding one or two years depending on external work-load. This is much preferable than risking a decrease in performance and Grade Point Average (GPA) because of overload, which may inhibit them from accessing employment opportunities. 

Added Value - Practical Experience: The MIE Department faculty also strongly recommends the pursuit of industry internships and co-ops as a means of developing practical skills, exploring potential employers and earning money to defray cost of living and education expenses. Most engineering employers use their pool of interns as the primary source for filling full-time, entry-level engineering positions. All students are advised to pursue such opportunities through LSU Career Services.

Added Value - Minors: If their educational plan calls for a prolonged stay, students are also encouraged to pursue one or more areas of specialization through Minors to the BSME that are offered through the MIE Department or other programs. Currently Minors are offered through MIE in Aerospace, Materials, Nuclear Power and International Automotive areas. These typically require at least 6 credit hours in addition to the plain BSME credit hour count.

Summary of the Curriculum

The general breakdown of course work in terms of credit hours is as follows:

English	6 hours minimum
Humanities and the Arts	18 hours
Mathematics and Computing	20 hours
Life Sciences	3 hours
Physics and Chemistry	13-14 hours
Basic Engineering	21 hours
ME Thermal Science	15 hours
ME Design	19 hours
ME Materials	6 hours
ME Electives	6 hours

 

This rigorous program culminates in the year-long Capstone "Senior" Design course sequence that requires student teams to conceive, design, manufacture and test an engineered system, piece of equipment or apparatus. Often these projects are sponsored by persons or organizations outside the University, and especially so by industry. Many of the projects are multi-disciplinary in nature and are undertaken by interdisciplinary teams. Some designs have resulted in the issue of patents to the students. This design experience brings together in a practical way all of the theoretical training that the students have received throughout the curriculum. It is a holistic experience because it  hones other important attributes such as leadership, project management, teamwork, responsibility, accountability, oral and written communication skills, and in some cases entrepreneurship.

BSME Curriculum Core Courses and Suggested Schedule (Full Time)

The course rubrics appearing in bold red are considered from experience as the most challenging in the ME curriculum and require a considerable time investment from the student.

 

 

A grade of "C" or better is required in Chemistry 1202, Mathematics 1552, and Physics 2101 (or equivalent courses) before a student may enroll in Mechanical Engineering 2334. ROTC is optional.

**Arts/Humanities/Biological or Social Sciences Course.

 

Approved Technical Electives

Effective Spring 2016

Petitions to deviate from these requirements must be submitted through the me undergraduate coordinator for consideration by the ME Faculty.

TECH A (Minimum of 6 Credit Hours Required)

Thermal/Fluid Systems

ME 4443 - Combustion

ME 4633 - Internal Combustion Engines

THERMAL/FLUID SYSTEMS
	ME 4813 • Interd. Fluids: Physical Concepts
ME 4633 • Internal Combustion Engines	ME 4823 • Interd. Fluids: Comp. Methods
ME 4643 • Thermal Environmental Engr.	ME 4843 • Gas Dynamics
ME 4663 • Renew. & Nuclear Pwr Plt Engr.	ME 4853 • Turbomachinery
	ME 4863 • Fluid Power Systems
MECHANICAL SYSTEMS
ME 4143 • Mechanical Vibrations ***	ME 4273  •  Stress Analysis in ME
ME 4193 • Vehicle Dynamics	ME 4293  •  Microsys Fab & Design
ME 4213  •  Welding Engineering I	ME 4673 • Intro to Modern Control Theory
ME 4223  •  Welding Engineering II	ME 4683 • Sensors & Actuators
MATERIALS ENGINEERING
ME 4723 • Advanced Materials Analysis	ME 4763 • Fundamentals of Corrosion
ME 4733 • Deformation & Fracture ME 4743 • Kinetics in Materials Processes	ME 4783 • Composite Materials: Mfg, Prop & Design
AEROSPACE & NUCLEAR ENGINEERING
ME 4913 • Aerodynamics	ME 4953 • Nuclear Reactor Engr. Design
ME 4923 • Jet & Rocket Propulsion	ME 4963 • Nuclear Reactor Systems Engr.
	ME 4973 • Space Systems
ROBOTICS ENGINEERING      **To count towards Tech A, the following robotics engineering courses must be taught by an ME faculty member** ENGR 4100 • Industrial Robotics ENGR 4200 • Autonomous Wehicles ENGR 4103 • Assistive Robotics
SPECIAL TOPICS
ME 4903 • Spec Proj for Undergraduates	ME 4943 • Special Problems in Aero. Engr.
ME 4933 • Special Problems in Mech. Engr.
*Semester may vary, depending on faculty availability and student demand. ***  Students must have taken ME 3143 Sys Dynamics to use ME 4143 as Tech Elective ME CURRICULA PRIOR TO AY 2012-2013 REQUIRE THREE (3) TECH ELECTIVES OF WHICH ONLY ONE (1) CAN BE A TECH B TAKEN FROM THE APPROVED LIST BELOW.

 

TECH B (Maximum of 3 Credit Hours)

ME 3249/3250 • Engineering Practice

BE 4342 • Sugar Process Engineering

BE 4347 • Sugar Factory Design

CHE 4253 • Intro to Indust Pollution Control

CHEM 3491-3492 • Physical Chemistry

CE 4440 • Advanced Mechanics of Materials

CE 4450 • Finite Element Methods

CSC  2252 • Assembly Language Prog.

CSC 3102 • Adv. Data Struct & Algor. Anal.

CSC 4362 • Advanced Numerical Methods

CSC 4444 • Artificial Intell. & Pattern Recog

CSC 4356 • Computer Graphics

CSC 4357 • Applied Computer Graphics

EE 3232 • Solid State Devices I

EE 4232 • Solid State Devices II

EE 4730 • 3D Graphics & Geom. Modeling

EE 4740 • Discrete Struct. for Comp. Engr.

EE 4750 • Microprocessor Interfacing Tech

EVEG 3110 • Water and Wastewater Treatment

EVEG 4120 • Design of Solid & Hazardous Waste Management Systems

EVEG 4153 • Hazardous Waste Management

IE 3201 • Principles of Engineering Economy (or PETE 3025, not both)

IE 3302 • Engineering Statistics

IE 4453 • Industrial Quality Control

IE 4461 • Human Factors Engineering

IE 4462 • Safety Engineering

IE 4785 • Extreme Environment and Habitat Design

Most 4000 level Math courses are also acceptable, including MATH 4031, 4032, 4036, 4055, 4056, 4060, 4065, 4066 or MATH4038/ME 4563.

NS 3411 • Fund of Nuclear Radiation Science

NS 4570 • Nuclear Faility Safety

PETE 3025 • Econ Aspects of Petr Prod

PETE 3036 • Well Logging

PETE 4045 • Drilling Engineering

PHYS 4125 • Thermo & Statistical Mech.

PHYS 4261 • Intro to Solid-State Physics

RNR 4036 • Forest Management

RNR 4038 • Forest Resource Economics