Best Mechanical Engineering Degree Programs

The Best Mechanical Engineering Programs

If you are interested in studying mechanical engineering, the following programs should be at the top of your list:

Stanford University

Location: Stanford, CA

Stanford University has been a leader in education since 1891. Their Center for Professional Development offers a 45-credit online Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering (MSME) for busy, working students who want to take their careers to the next level. The broad departmental themes incorporate design, energy, and multi-scale and computational engineering, while the program focuses on modern criteria of feasibility, usability, viability, and sustainability.

The curriculum includes courses in mathematics fundamentals, breadth and depth in mechanical engineering, as well as approved and unrestricted electives and a laboratory requirement. At least 24 units of coursework must be related to mechanical engineering. Additionally, two or three classes should be taken in a depth cluster, with options such as automatic controls, biomechanical engineering, mechatronics, fluid mechanics, energy systems, gas dynamics, and robotics and kinematics, among others.

Designed to be completed within three to five years with part-time enrollment, Stanford’s MSME is a highly challenging but rewarding professional program. It is important to note that not all courses or labs may be completed online; students must attend campus for certain sections, so this is not a 100% online option. The Mechanical Engineering Student Services office may be contacted at mechanical@stanford.edu for questions about on-campus course requirements.

To be admitted, candidates should submit GRE test scores and transcripts showing a Bachelor of Science in engineering, physics, or another related area.

Stanford’s tuition rate for the program is $1,352 per quarter unit, making the cost of this 45-credit program $60,840.

For more information, visit Stanford University’s Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering website, or contact them directly either at (650) 204-3984 or at mechanical@stanford.edu.

University of Florida in Gainesville

Location: Gainesville, FL

For 160 years, the University of Florida in Gainesville has pushed the educational envelope, striving to stay ahead of the innovational curve. Their 30-credit Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering is one excellent example. Offered by the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, this program is available both on-campus and asynchronously online. Students have the option to complete a thesis as part of the degree program. If the thesis track is selected, 24 credits of coursework must be done, 18 credits of which relate to the major. Students have the flexibility to take their other 12 credits in graduate-level technical courses of their choosing. The thesis project completes the remaining six credits required to graduate. Students may also select a six-credit minor.

Non-thesis students are automatically scheduled to take a comprehensive final examination related to one of the three general subject areas: program dynamics, systems, and control; solid mechanics, design, and manufacturing; or thermal science and fluid dynamics. This exam must be passed in the graduation term, or the term prior.

For online students, classes may be taken via EDGE (Electronic Delivery of Gator Engineering). For information on registering for classes via EDGE, visit their handy instructions page.

Students can expect their first year to involve taking up to three courses per semester, which include core courses plus a mix of electives related to the specialization.

Graduate tuition for 2019-2020 is listed as $12,740 per year. For details, please connect with their Office of Student Financial Affairs.

If you’re ready to join the Gator Nation, admission into University of Florida’s Grad School involves submitting transcripts of undergraduate degrees and personal biographic information.

For more information, visit University of Florida’s Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering website, or contact them directly at (352) 392-0961.

Georgia Institute of Technology

Location: Atlanta, GA

The Georgia Institute of Technology, or Georgia Tech, has specialized in mechanical engineering since its inception. Now, via the George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering, the university offers an online, 30-credit Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering.

Fully asynchronous, the program allows students to access course content whenever they want and to engage with classmates and instructors via discussion boards, emails, and phone.

Designed with flexibility in mind, this rigorous MSME is available for part-time or full-time students who are ready to dig into the complex worlds of engineering design, computer-aided design, metrology, conduction heat transfer, nonlinear control systems, robotics, wind engineering, acoustics, and combustion. The full curriculum is available here.

To apply to the Georgia Tech Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering program, students will need to submit proof of a bachelor degree in mechanical engineering or a related field and their GRE scores. They must also express which particular research area they wish to pursue. A maximum of six qualifying credits are eligible to transfer. The program’s resource pages offer useful information on its academic calendar, library, policies, and registration.

Tuition for the MSME is $1,100 per credit hour, or $33,000 in total.

For more information, visit Georgia Tech’s Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering website, or contact them directly either at (404) 385-3500 or at Students Services. You can also try “Ask BUZZ,” their instant answer service.

Columbia University

Location: New York, NY

Under the Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, the Mechanical Engineering Department utilizes the school’s #1-ranked Columbia Video Network to offer a top-tier, online 30-credit Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering.

With the aim of producing career-ready graduates capable of analyzing and designing objects and systems with motion, Columbia grad school advisors work closely with incoming students to plot out a custom course of study with options in multiple specializations in the field. From robotics and thermodynamics, to manufacturing and power generation, Columbia’s MSME requires a curriculum consisting of a minimum of six points’ worth of 6000-level courses; one course in mathematics or statistics; and five classes on mechanical engineering. Remaining courses must have a strong focus on technical work. Such courses may include Principles of Applied Mathematics, Partial Differential Equations I, Functions of a Complex Variable, or Introduction to Probability and Statistics. However, interdisciplinary study is also welcomed.

Led by world leaders in their respective fields, the ten-course online program is taught by the same award-winning faculty who teach on-campus classes.

In order to graduate, students must maintain a minimum 2.5 GPA. Applicants may transfer up to six applicable credits, and they should possess a bachelor degree in either engineering, physics, math, or computer science, with an undergraduate GPA of at least 3.0. Additionally, GRE scores are required.

Per their tuition page, the estimated tuition for the program is $64,595.

For more information, visit Columbia University’s online Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering website, or contact them directly at (212) 854-6447.

Johns Hopkins University

Location: Baltimore, MD

John Hopkins University is one of the world’s foremost centers of education. Their prestigious school of engineering features an ever-growing list of degree programs that are available online in order to meet the needs of non-traditional, working students.

As one of the largest online providers of its kind, the school now offers its impressive 30-credit Master of Mechanical Engineering degree program, with the flexibility to finish at a distance or via a hybrid method. Specialization options include manufacturing, robotics and controls, solids/mechanics of materials, and thermofluids.

As one can imagine, all tracks have a heavy emphasis on mathematics for engineers, but the curriculum varies widely depending on the chosen area of focus. From applied finite element methods to structural dynamics and stability, participants in this demanding graduate program will leave well-equipped to face the challenges in their future engineering careers.

The curriculum involves a core in mathematics, two core classes in the respective focus area, three core classes selected from list for the focus area, and a final four courses, making a total of ten classes. Students must maintain at least a C grade for every class taken.

Classes can be taken part-time, but the ten courses have to be finished within five years. Courses are taught some of the most respected faculty in the field, which is one reason that entry into the Johns Hopkins program is slightly more difficult. Per the program website, “Enrolled students typically have earned a grade point average of at least 3.3 on a 4.0 scale (B+ or above) in their undergraduate studies.” For a full list of admissions requirements, visit their general admissions page.

Tuition is $4,440 per course, for a total of $44,440 to cover the ten required program courses.