University of Wisconsin Madison College of Engineering

Current curriculum

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Curriculum Flow Chart:
Effective for students entering ME Fall 2012 [PDF] or [TEXT]

 

General College Requirements (GCR)

 

  1. Fulfillment of Communications A General Education Requirement* — 0-3 credits
  2. Physics*: Either EMA 201 (3) or Phys 201 (5) — 3-5 credits
  3. Chemistry*: Either Chem 103 (4), Chem 104 (5) or Chem 109 (5) — 5-9 credits
  4. Introduction to Engineering**: One course from INTEREGR 160, or a course from the list pre-approved for this purpose — 1-3 credits
  5. Math*: Math221 (5), 222 (5) — 10 credits

*Credit will be given for appropriate advanced placement (AP), transfer work, or other advanced standing credits.
**May be waived for transfer students.

 

Department Requirements

 

  1. Liberal electives — 15 credits
  2. CS 302 — 3 credits
  3. Stat 224 — 3 credits
  4. Math 234 (3), Math 320 (3)
  5. ME 231 (3), ME 240 (3), ME 306 (3), ME 307 (1), ME 313 (3), ME 314 (3), ME 331 (3), ME 340 (3), ME 342 (3), ME 361 (3), ME 363 (3), ME 364 (3), ME 368 (3), ME 370 (3) — 42 credits
  6. ME 349 (3), 3 credits of Technical Elective, or ME 351 (3), ME 352 (3), and 3 credits of Technical Elective — 12 credits
  7. MS&E 350 (3), Phys 202 (5) — 8 credits
  8. ECE 376 (3), ECE 377 (3) — 6 credits
  9. EPD 397 (3)
  10. Minimum Degree Requirements — 128 credits

Notes

General College Requirements Credit Options

Requirement Number Minimum Plan Maximum Plan Typical Plan Recommended Plan
1 0 3 2 0
2 3 5 3 3
3 5 9 9 9
4 1 3 3 3
5 10 10 10 10
Credits to Meet 1-5 or General College Requirements 19 31 27 25
6 15 15 15 15
7 3 3 3 3
8 3 3 3 3
9 6 6 6 6
10 42 42 42 42
11 12 12 12 12
12 8 8 8 8
13 6 6 6 6
14 3 3 3 3
Total credits to satisfy requirements 117 129 125 123
Additional free elective credits 3 0 0 0
15. Minimum Required Credits 128 129 125 123

Curriculum — 128 Credits Required for Graduation

Freshman Year
First Semester Second Semester
Course Credits Course Credits
Math 221 5 Math 222 5
ME 231 2 EMA 201 3
Chem 103 A 4 Chem 104 A 5
EPD 155 F 2 Stat 224 3
INTEREGR 101, INTEREGR 102 or INTEREGR 160 B 2-3    
Total 15-16 Total 16
 
Sophomore Year
First Semester Second Semester
Course Credits Course Credits
Math 234 3 ME 361 3
Math 320 3 ME 306I G 3
ME 240 I 3 ME 307 G 1
MS&E 350 3    
CS 302. See notes. 3 Phys 202 5
Liberal Studies Elective D 3 Liberal Studies Elective D 3
Total 18 Total 17
 
Junior Year
First Semester Second Semester
Course Credits Course Credits
ME 363 3 ME 364 3
ECE 376 3 ECE 377 3
ME 340 3 ME 368 4
ME 331 3 ME 313 3
EPD 397 3 Liberal Studies Elective D 3
Liberal Studies Elective D 3    
Total 18 Total 16
 
Senior Year
First Semester Second Semester
Course Credits Course Credit s
Technical ElectiveE 3 ME 370 3
Technical ElectiveE 3 Technical ElectiveE 3
ME 342 3 ME 349 or ME 352 H 3
ME 314 3    
    Technical ElectiveE 3
Liberal Studies Electives D 3 Liberal Studies Elective D 3
Total 15 Total 15

  1. There are two options for the chemistry elective:

    Option 1 — Chem 103, 4 credits and Chem 104, 5 credits
    Option 2 — Chem 109, 5 credits. Note: If Chem 109 is taken, students may need free elective credits to meet the minimum number of credits (121) required for graduation. (See note C.)

  2. INTEREGR 101 (2 credits), or INTEREGR 102 (2 credits), or INTEREGR 160 (3 credits) all satisfy the college requirement for introduction to engineering.

  3. Students fulfilling their course requirements with fewer than 121 credits must take additional free-elective credits to comply with the 128-credit minimum graduation requirement.

  4. LIBERAL STUDIES REQUIREMENTS: Students must take 15 credits that carry H, S, L, or Z timetable breadth designators. These credits must fulfill the following subrequirements:

    1. A minimum of 2 courses from the same department or program. At least 1 of these 2 courses must be designated as above the elementary level (I, A, or D) in the timetable.

    2. A minimum of 6 credits designated as humanities (H, L, or Z) in the timetable, and an additional minimum of 3 credits designated as social studies (S or Z) in the timetable. Foreign Language courses count as H credits. Retroactive credits for high school language courses may not be used to meet the Liberal Studies requirement.

    3. At least three credits in courses designated as ethnic studies (lower case "e") in the timetable. These courses may help satisfy requirements D1 and D2 as well, but they only count once toward the total required. Note: Courses may have "e" designation and may not have H, S, L or Z designation.

     

  5. TECHNICAL ELECTIVES

    The Mechanical Engineering curriculum requires a total of 15 credits of technical electives. A minimum of 12 of the 15 credits must be from formal courses. (A formal course is defined as a class which meets regularly in a lecture format to study a selected topic. The educational mission is assisted with homework and exams. Formal courses cannot be seminar, survey, or other similar courses.)

    A minimum of 6 (of the required 12) formal course credits must be for Mechanical Engineering courses with course numbers 400 or higher or for ME 351. (See note H.)

    Up to 6 technical elective credits may be earned for formal classes in courses outside of the Mechanical Engineering Department. These courses may be engineering, mathematics, physics, chemistry, statistics, biology, or computer science courses numbered 400 and above. The following courses are also accepted as technical electives:

    Comp Sci 354, 367
    Chemistry 341, 343, 345
    Math 321, 322
    Physics 311, 321, 322, 325
    Statistics 311, 312, 333, 349, 351
    InterEgr 301
    BSE 351, 364
    CEE 311, 315, 316, 320, 325, 330, 355, 356, 370, 375
    CBE 320, 326
    ECE 320, 330, 340, 342, 352, 353, 354, 355
    EPD 374, 375
    ISyE 323, 349
    MS & E 330, 332, 352, 370
    NEEP 305
    Bmolchem 314,Physiol 335

    Up to 3 technical elective credits may be obtained for non-formal courses or activities such as outreach and independent study courses (ME 491, 492). Up to 1 credit of Cooperative Education (ME 001) can be counted for technical elective credit.

  6. EPD 155 fulfills the Comm A requirement. If your GER communications Part A is satisfied you are exempt from this requirement. This requirement can also be fulfilled with: Ag Journ 100, Com Arts 100, Engl 100, Engl 118, or IES 200. (See note C.)

  7. ME 306 and ME 307 shall be taken concurrently.

  8. There are two options for the capstone design experience: ME 349 taken alone or ME 351 and ME 352 taken sequentially. Students completing ME 352 will satisfy the requirement for ME 349 and will receive 3 technical elective credits for ME 351.

  9. A minimum grade of C is required in ME 240, ME 306, and ME 361.

 

Special Notes

 

  • Students in their last semester before graduation taking less than 12 credits (part-time status) must have the Dean's permission to avoid probationary status.
  • Advisor listing on your grades, file, etc. can be officially changed by going to Rm. 3182 ME.
  • Problems and questions concerning this curriculum should be directed to: Student Services Staff, Rm. 3182 ME, or your Mechanical Engineering Advisor.
  • Mechanical Engineering's website is found at: http://www.engr.wisc.edu/me/