Mechanical Engineering (MME)

Description

The Mechanical Engineering graduate program is student-centered, providing high-quality instruction in both theory and the latest engineering developments. Graduate faculty members hold doctorates in engineering, and most bring significant industrial experience to the classroom. For the working person, our graduate classes are held in the late afternoon and evening.  The Department of Mechanical Engineering specializes in four focal areas:

  • Manufacturing Systems
  • Mechatronics Systems
  • Thermal/Fluid Systems and Alternative Energy Conversion
  • Vehicle Systems

Students may choose to concentrate several courses in one focal area or may select a variety of courses across multiple focal areas.

Two graduate degrees are offered:

  • Master of Mechanical Engineering
  • Doctor of Engineering with a major in Mechanical Engineering (for information about the doctoral program, click here.)
Mechanical Engineering Graduate Program Outcomes

Graduates from these programs will have:

  • an ability to apply knowledge of mathematics, science, and engineering principles to mechanical engineering; (Knowledge of mathematics encompasses advanced topics typically including differential and integral calculus, linear algebra, and differential equations.)
  • an ability to design mechanical systems, components, or processes to meet desired needs;
  • an ability to independently identify, research, formulate, and solve mechanical engineering problems, and effectively communicate results;
  • an ability to use the techniques, skills and modern engineering tools necessary for mechanical engineering practice.

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    Program Learning Outcomes

    Master of Mechanical Engineering graduates will have:
    1)   an ability to apply knowledge of advanced mathematics, science, and engineering principles
    2)   an ability to design and conduct experiments, as well as to analyze and interpret data
    3)   an ability to research, formulate, and solve mechanical engineering problems
    4)   an ability to use the techniques, skills, and modern engineering tools necessary for engineering practice
    5)   an ability to communicate effectively
    6)   an ability to model, analyze, design, and realize physical systems, components or processes 
    7)   an ability to synthesize existing knowledge
    8)   a mastery of their specific field of study
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    Admission Requirements for the Master of Mechanical Engineering

    Students may enter the Master of Mechanical Engineering program in one of two ways:

    Traditional Students

    Students who are not Detroit Mercy students, or Detroit Mercy students who do not enroll in the 5-year Bachelor/Master program, or Detroit Mercy alumni, must apply for graduate school online. Typical minimum requirements include an undergraduate GPA of 3.0 and a Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering or a closely related discipline from an accredited university. Although the Graduate Record Exam (GRE) is not required, a strong score on the GRE will strengthen the application. In addition, the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), if applicable, while not required as part of the application, is encouraged because its results can be useful in facilitating the admission process.

    5-Year Bachelor/Master Students

    The 5-year Bachelor/Master Degree program is designed to enable completion of both the Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering and the Master of Mechanical Engineering degrees in five calendar years. The program allows qualified Detroit Mercy Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering students to take up to three graduate level courses during their final three academic semesters that will meet undergraduate degree requirements while also accruing course credits toward their graduate degree.

    More information on the 5-year BME-MME program can be found here.

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    Master of Mechanical Engineering Degree Requirements (30 credit hours)

    The Master of Mechanical Engineering may be completed through either the thesis or the non-thesis option.

    MME Thesis Option

    The thesis option includes 24 semester-credit hours of course work and six semester-credit hours of thesis effort for a total of 30 semester-credit hours. The thesis effort is a research project conducted under the supervision of a faculty member and is typically spread across two semesters. After a final formal presentation to the College faculty and students, a properly formatted and duly-approved written thesis must be submitted.

    MME Non-Thesis Option

    The non-thesis option consists of 30 semester-credit hours of course work chosen according to the “Course Requirements” section below. An attractive option for students wishing to pursue a topic of their interest is the project-based design course Capstone Design (MENG 5980). This course is conducted under the supervision of a faculty member and the guidance of the departmental faculty. The course assesses the student's ability to synthesize material covered in the graduate curriculum, and culminates in a brief presentation to the departmental faculty.

    Course Requirements

    All Master students are required to take two types of courses: required and elective as follows:

    Required Courses

    • ENGR 5020 Design of Experiments OR EMGT 5470 Product and Process Improvement: Lean Six Sigma II (has a prereq of Six Sigma I) (3 credits)
    • ENGR 5300 Advanced Engineering Mathematics, or another advanced mathematics course approved by the department (3 credits)
    • Six elective courses (18 credits)
      • All six may taken in MENG, ENGR, or AEV.
      • Max of two ELEE or MTH courses.
      • Max of one EMGT class or one of the following: MPD 5050, MPD 5100, MPD 5750
    • Thesis option requirement: MENG 5990 Masters Thesis (6 credits) OR
    • Non-Thesis option requirement: Two additional electives from MENG or ENGR courses. Courses from other areas may be taken if approved by the department. (6 credits)

    Elective Course Options

    Students may choose to complete any of the following focal areas:

    Entrepreneurship

    • ENT 5500 Innovation and Creativity (3 credits)
    • ENT 5700 Front and Back Ends of Innovation (3 credits)

    Manufacturing Systems

    Mechatronic Systems

    • ENGR 5790 Mechatronics: Modeling and Simulation (3 credits)
    • ENGR 5520 Sensors and Actuators (3 credits)
    • MENG 5900 Robotics (3 credits)
    • AEV 5020 Controls Modeling and Design for Advanced Electric Vehicle (3 credits)
    • AEV 5050 Electric Drives/Electromechanical Energy Conversion (3 credits)

    Thermal/Fluid Systems and Alternative Energy Conversion

    • ENGR 5040 Conduction Heat Transfer (3 credits)
    • ENGR 5060 Convection Heat Transfer (3 credits)
    • ENGR 5080 Computational Fluid Dynamics and Heat Transfer (3 credits)
    • ENGR 5480 Advanced Fluid Mechanics (3 credits)
    • MENG 5810 Alternative Energy Systems (3 credits)
    • ENGR 5140 Intermediate Fluid Mechanics (3 credits)
    • AEV 5030 Energy Storage Systems (3 credits)
    • ENGR 5821 Intro to the Heating, Ventilating and Air Conditioning of Buildings (3 credits)

    Vehicle Systems

    • MENG 5340 Finite Element Analysis (3 credits)
    • MENG 5580 Internal Combustion Engines I (3 credits)
    • MENG 5720 Noise and Vibration (3 credits)
    • MENG 5760 Vehicle Dynamics (3 credits)
    • AEV 5010 Intro to Advanced Electric Vehicles (3 credits)

    Focus in Manufacturing Systems

    The Manufacturing Systems focus allows students to gain knowledge, skills, and practical experiences in modern manufacturing and quality systems, computer integrated manufacturing, and robotics; it may also increase employment opportunities in the manufacturing sector.

    Focus in Thermal/Fluid Systems and Alternative Energy Conversion

    The Thermal/Fluid Systems and Alternative Energy Conversion focus enables the graduate to make substantive contributions to the generation, use and conservation of energy. This focus educates students to deal effectively with the complex thermo-fluids topics including computational methods and in-depth topics related to heat transfer and fluid mechanics. Contemporary topics related to alternative energy sources and energy efficiency and sustainability are emphasized.

    Focus in Vehicle Systems

    The Vehicle Systems focus provides students with deep expertise in several key areas related to the application of Mechanical Engineering to vehicle systems. A focus in vehicle systems prepares students to design quality products in today's highly competitive international market.

    Other Courses

    Additional courses are selected (with approval of the student's advisor) from MENG, ENGR, ELEE, MTH, and CSSE.  Courses from additional departments may be permissible with approval of the advisor, but no co-op related courses may be used to meet the program requirements. A partial list of commonly accepted courses other than those listed above is:

Program Contact Information

Program Chairperson: Nassif Rayess, Ph.D.
Office: Engineering 214
Telephone: 313-993-1402
Email: rayesna@umdercy.edu  
Website

David Pistrui, Ph.D.
Graduate Recruiter and Coordinator
Office: Engineering 270
Telephone: 313-993-3378
Fax: 313-993-1187
Email: esgradprograms@udmercy.edu or pistruda@udmercy.edu