BSME in Mechanical Engineering

Degree Program Description

The mechanical engineering curriculum provides students a foundation in mathematics, the basic sciences, and engineering. Students take core courses in the mechanical sciences (dynamics, engineering materials, manufacturing, dynamic systems and control, and machine element design) and the thermal-fluid sciences (thermodynamics, fluid mechanics, and heat transfer). In addition, students obtain laboratory experience through three lab courses focused on instrumentation and measurements, materials and manufacturing, and thermal-fluid systems. The Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering (BSME) prepares students for employment in industry or government or for further study toward other degrees such as the JD, MD, MS, and PhD.

Major Program Requirements

The MAE curriculum allows students to transfer among departments during the first two years. Students concentrate on departmental requirements at the beginning of the junior year. The senior year includes five MAE electives that allow students to develop individual programs of study. This flexibility enables students to complete a traditional program or create their own with special emphasis on areas such as materials, manufacturing, thermal-fluid systems, dynamics and control, or aerospace. Students are also required to complete one 3-hour cultural awareness course which is selected from an approved cultural awareness course list, created and maintained by the College of Engineering or which meets the Arts and Science (A&S) diversity intensive (DI) requirement.

Experience in design is distributed throughout the required courses in the curriculum and culminates in the senior capstone design course. The capstone design experience integrates earlier technical work with economic, safety, ethical, and environmental considerations. The projects are primarily obtained from industrial or private business clients. The presentations of project results are made to a review panel consisting of members of the faculty, the MAE Industrial Advisory Council, and representatives of the client firms.

Major Core Requirements

In addition to the University general education and graduation requirements, the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering requires the following courses:

CHEM 1400
CHEM 1401
College Chemistry I
and College Chemistry I Laboratory
4
MATH 1500Analytic Geometry and Calculus I5
MATH 1700Calculus II5
MATH 2300Calculus III3
MATH 4100Differential Equations3
PHYSCS 2750University Physics I5
PHYSCS 2760University Physics II5
ENGINR 1000Introduction to Engineering (*)1
ENGINR 1050Foundations of Engineering (*)2
ENGINR 1200Statics and Elementary Strength of Materials3
ENGINR 2100Circuit Theory for Engineers3
ENGINR 2200Intermediate Strength of Materials3
ISE 2710Engineering Economic Decision-Making3
STAT 4710Introduction to Mathematical Statistics3
MAE 1100Introduction to Computer Aided Design3
MAE 2100Programming and Software Tools3
MAE 2200WEngineering Materials - Writing Intensive3
MAE 2300Thermodynamics3
MAE 2510Manufacturing Practice1
MAE 3500Introduction to Manufacturing Methods2
MAE 2600Dynamics3
MAE 3100Computational Methods for Engineering Design3
MAE 3400Fluid Mechanics3
MAE 3600Dynamic Systems and Control3
MAE 3800Instrumentation and Measurements Laboratory3
MAE 3910Machine Element Design3
MAE 4300Heat Transfer3
MAE 4825Materials and Manufacturing Laboratory3
MAE 4834Thermal Fluids Laboratory3
MAE 4980WSenior Capstone Design - Writing Intensive3
Electives
Technical elective in approved area of Engineering, Science, or Math, 3000-level or above3
MAE 4000-level electives12
*

The required First-Year Engineering (FYE) courses, ENGINR 1000 and ENGINR 1050, will be waived for a transfer student pursuing Mechanical Engineering if the student enters MU with transfer credit for an acceptable course in Thermodynamics. The MAE Director of Undergraduate Studies may also waive the FYE courses in cases where the transfer student has demonstrated adequate progress in an engineering program.

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Semester Plan

Below is a sample plan of study, semester by semester. A student's actual plan may vary based on course choices where options are available.

First Year
FallCreditsSpringCredits
CHEM 1400
CHEM 1401
4PHYSCS 27505
MATH 15005MATH 17005
ENGINR 10001ENGINR 10502
ENGLSH 10003MAE 11003
US Hist./US Govt.3 
 16 15
Second Year
FallCreditsSpringCredits
PHYSCS 27605STAT 47103
MATH 23003MATH 41003
ENGINR 12003ENGINR 22003
ENGINR 21003MAE 21003
MAE 23003MAE 26003
MAE 25101Humanities/Fine Arts Elective3
 18 18
Third Year
FallCreditsSpringCredits
MAE 22003MAE 36003
MAE 31003MAE 39103
MAE 34003MAE 43003
MAE 35002MAE 48253
MAE 38003Technical Elective3
 14 15
Fourth Year
FallCreditsSpringCredits
MAE 48343MAE 49803
MAE 4000+ Elective3MAE 4000+ Elective3
MAE 4000+ Elective3MAE 4000+ Elective3
ISE 27103Humanities and Fine Arts3
Humanities/Fine Arts Elective3Behavioral/Social Science3
 15 15
Total Credits: 126

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Degree Audit

The degree audit is an automated report reflecting a student’s academic progress toward the completion of a degree. 

MU students can request a degree audit by logging in to myDegreePlanner. Students may also access myDegreePlanner via myZou, in the Student Center, click on the Academic Progress Tile, then select Request Degree Audit. The audit automatically pulls in the student’s MU course work, transfer courses and courses in progress. This is available to current students, admitted students, and those who last attended less than three terms ago.

Past MU students can request a degree audit by contacting the Academic Advising Unit of the division in which they were last enrolled at MU. For contact information, go to https://advising.missouri.edu/contact/.

Prospective students, can access a preliminary MU degree audit via https://www.transferology.com. Information on the college credits already earned will have to be manually entered before it can be evaluated against current degree requirements.

For additional details on degree audits, go to https://registrar.missouri.edu/degrees-audits/degree-audits/.

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Major and Career Exploration

The University of Missouri has many resources to assist you in exploring majors and career possibilities. For guidance, visit the Majors and Careers website or view specific resources below.

  • If you are considering a change of major or are exploring multiple majors, schedule an appointment with an advisor in the Discovery Center by calling (573)884-9700 or through MU Connect Discovery Center service in you success network.

  • If you have decided on a major, visit an academic advisor in the School or College that you are interested in to discuss the process of declaring the major

  • If you would like to learn more about your career interests, abilities, values and talents, visit the MU Career Center. No Appointment is necessary to explore career options with one of our staff members.

For additional major and career exploration resources, visit Major & Career Exploration in the catalog.

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