The Mesa State College/University of Colorado at Boulder Mechanical Engineering Partnership Program prepares students for careers in a wide range of industries through the rigorous study of mechanical engineering. Students participate in hands-on engineering design projects beginning in their freshman year and continuing through senior design projects. Residence at Mesa State provides CU-Boulder engineering students the unique option of small class size and more contact with faculty while experiencing an engineering program equal in quality to that delivered on the CU-Boulder campus.
The MSC/CU-Boulder Mechanical Engineering Partnership Program provides qualified students access to a degree that is fully accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET). The complete four-year program is offered in residence at Mesa State College (MSC) in Grand Junction, CO. Successful completion of the program requirements earns the student a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering (B.S.M.E.) from the University of Colorado at Boulder (CU-Boulder). The first two years of classes including supporting math, science, humanities, social sciences, writing and basic engineering classes are offered by Mesa State. Upper-level mechanical engineering classes are offered by CU-Boulder at MSC in Grand Junction.
CU-Boulder's fully accredited undergraduate degree program includes options in environmental and biomedical engineering. Air pollution control, environmental aspects of energy conversion, and pollution prevention through product and manufacturing process design are important areas in which mechanical engineers contribute to environmental protection. Students who select the biomedical engineering option take technical electives in areas such as biomechanics, neural systems, biomaterials, organic chemistry, and cardiovascular fluid dynamics. Alternatively, students may elect to use their technical electives to gain a broad undergraduate education.
Students gain relevant, hands-on design experience through working on design projects beginning their freshman year. As in all of the engineering majors, students also have excellent opportunities to become involved in discipline-related activities outside of the classroom through the student chapters of several professional societies, including the Society for Automotive Engineers, Society of Manufacturing Engineers, and American Society for Mechanical Engineering.
Mechanical engineering is one of the broadest engineering disciplines. The undergraduate program in mechanical engineering prepares students for careers in a wide range of industries through the study of engineering design, manufacturing, and systems engineering.
Mechanical engineers are employed in the automotive, aerospace, chemical, computer, electronic, industrial machinery, manufacturing, mining, oceanographic, petroleum, pharmaceutical, power, printing, publishing, and textile industries. Specific technical areas include biomedical engineering, micro- and nano-technology, environmental engineering, design and manufacturing, fluid mechanics, industrial engineering, materials science, solid mechanics, systems engineering, and thermal science.
The characteristics which best define mechanical engineering are breadth and flexibility. Mechanical engineering is a core discipline that encompasses the general areas of design and manufacturing, fluid and solid mechanics, and thermal and materials science. Many career directions are open to mechanical engineers. They work in industry, government, and universities, as well as in other professions, including business, law, and medicine.
Most mechanical engineers are employed in a wide range of industries, including automotive, aerospace, chemical, computer, electronic, industrial machinery, manufacturing, mining, oceanographic, petroleum, pharmaceutical, power, printing, publishing, and textile. Mechanical
engineers typically engage in one or more of the following: research, development, design, testing, manufacturing, operation and maintenance, and marketing, sales and administration.
Mechanical Engineers are expected to have an average growth rate with employment projected to increase 9-17% through 2014.
Average starting salary nationally is $51,732
