Engineering at Hartford

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Rensselaer at Hartford offers an engineering curriculum designed to accommodate the evolving needs of the practicing engineer.  The Master of Engineering in Mechanical Engineering curriculum helps students establish and build on a solid theoretical base while allowing them to practice their skills.  This blend of academic excellence and industrial experience creates a unique learning environment for engineering students at Rensselaer at Hartford.

A candidate for the master’s degree in Hartford must complete an adviser-approved Plan of Study consisting of:

• at least 30 credit hours beyond the bachelor’s degree with cumulative GPA of 3.0/4.0 or higher.
• at least 18 of the total credit hours presented toward the degree must have the suffix numbers 6000-6990 or 7000-7990.
• at least 21 of the total credit hours presented towards the degree must be from courses taken within the discipline.
• a 3-credit project (MANE 6970) as a culminating experience.

A student may transfer credits for two graduate-level (equivalent to 6000 or 7000 level in the Rensselaer Catalog) courses (total of six credit hours) taken at an accredited graduate school with the grade(s) of B- or better. The transfer/waiver process must be approved by the faculty adviser and the Dean of Graduate Education. Transfer courses must be relevant to the program of study being pursued by the student at Rensselaer.

Each student must prepare a Plan of Study together with an adviser and have it reviewed and approved by the adviser and the Graduate Program Director before completion of their second semester.  All the above requirements must be completed within three and one-half years of admission.

Culminating Experience (Engineering Project/Engineering Thesis)

The culminating experience is a requirement for the master’s degree as stipulated by the Board of Governors for Higher Education of the State of Connecticut.  It may be fulfilled by completing a 3-credit-hour master’s project along with 27 credit hours of appropriate course work thus leading to the Master of Engineering degree.

Mechanical Engineering

The Master of Engineering in Mechanical Engineering degree allows the student to increase his or her competence in a number of mechanical engineering subjects, or to specialize in depth in the areas of fluid mechanics, heat transfer, mechanical design, solid mechanics, or thermodynamics.

Admission Requirements

1.       Students who have received a B.S. degree in Mechanical Engineering from an accredited institution, a GPA in the upper quartile, and some work experience in a high-technology environment.

2.       Students with a B.S. degree in another engineering discipline, mathematics, or physics may be admitted subject to fulfillment of the following background requirements.

Mechanical Engineering Background Requirements

• Chemistry (one additional term)
• Dynamics (one term)
• Fluid Mechanics(one term)
• Machine Design (one term)
• Mechanisms (one term)
• Statics (one term)
• Strength of Materials (one term)
• Heat Transfer (one term)
• Thermodynamics (one term)

Students lacking any of the above courses must work closely with their adviser to devise a plan for corrective action.

Please contact Professor Theo Borca-Tasiuc at borcat@rpi.edu if you have any questions about the Mechanical Engineering program.

Faculty

Professors of Practice

Cunha, Frank J. – Ph.D., P.E. (NYU); design and development of aircraft engines, turbines, combustors, and afterburners for commercial and military engines. Land-based heavy duty gas turbines and power generation design and development.

Gutierrez-Miravete, E.—Ph.D. (Massachusetts Institute of Technology); modeling and simulation metal processing; Program Coordinator for Mechanical, Aeronautical, and Nuclear Engineering.

Lecturer

Hughes, M.—Ph.D.(Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute); heat transfer and alternative energy research.

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