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what is studied in mechanical Engineering

#mechanical-engineering

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Rand’s Answer

CAD knowledge and experience is Huge! The big hitters are,: CATIA V5, Solidworks, CREO, and NX. Immediate response and Follow-thru with all your team members is a must....K.
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Glenn’s Answer

Mechanical Engineering is a study of applied physics. You start off with basics of Physics, Chemistry, and Calculus as general overviews. You continue on with Statics and Dynamics, Thermo Dynamics, Fluid Dynamics, and Heat and Mass transfer. It goes deeper from there.

To be a good Mechanical Engineer, you need to understand the fundamentals taught in college. You will have a variety of problems to address over your career. Recognizing the physics of the problem will help you solve the issue.
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Richard’s Answer

A first year engineering student was asked what (s)he thought was the greatest engineering achievement of all time... and answered "the thermos" . When asked why (s)he replied "because it keeps hot things hot and cool things cool! " puzzled, the student was asked to expand the though... (s)he replied "how does it know the difference?" .
....This is a budding mechanical engineer!

Mechanical Engineering is one of the oldest and most broad academic studies in engineering. Your "relationship" with mechanisms and machines usually tug you in this direction. I cant go a day without my motorcycle.

The very first class you will take is intro to engineering . Just remember "Righty-Tighty" and you will do fine. Ok... its a little bit more than that... if your a bad sketcher you will hate this class. When I was in engineering school <mumble> years ago we learned the slide rule in this class....dont ask.

Typically the engineering curriculum will start the first two years pretty much the same as other engineering types. You usually wont choose your discipline until your junior year.
Until then, there will be physics ( statics and dynamics, electromagnatism and such) , mathematics, chemistry and engineering principles (electrical, intro to engineering technology, and such ) studies which are the fundamentals needed to progress to applied technology. There will be some programming also, so get your basic and c++ books out.
These first two years can be brutal. Many colleges have pre-engineering or 5 year programs just to make these years practical. he better you know the first two years' studies the easier the next two years will be. Besides the rudiments, your going to get a taste of all the basic fields of engineering.
Plan on many many nights solving word problems that sharpen your basic academic skills. You are going to learn how to be a derivative thinker.

After two brutal years...If your still curious how a gyroscope works... perhaps your ready for mechanical engineering as a major.

As you enter your third year the fun starts. Materials science ( "Mechanics of Materials") will be difficult and fluid dynamics will make you wander if you will survive the next few years. Machine design introduces things which start building creativity and design. You study steam cycles and boilers and HVAC (energy transfer in general) , mechanisms, optics and acoustics, and start refining your interests. That chemistry class you thought you would never need comes back to haunt you as you learn combustion and how to design engine cycles and such.

Toss in some extra math like linear equations and perhaps a physics class for optics ... or whatever...

By the last year you start participating in design projects ans criteria issues ( project skills) .
It wont be unusual to integrate some specialties such as electro-mechanical or biology or acousto-optics , aerodynamics, and special design principles ( sensor technology or whatever ) . You may expand some acoustics to study stress analysis and specialize in areas such as earthquake technology. State machines and machine language accompany mechanisms and motors if you like servo mechanisms. These are the engineering electives.

Throughout your academic career, you will see your interests come together. My theme was photogrammetry after operating ultra fast cameras to see stress waves, which helped with a combination of optics, mechanics and special effects. I love literature and I went to art school to round out my education. I also studied culture ( appropriate technology and human factors engineering) and film and folklore extensively. SO your "minor" and non-engineering "electives" will sharpen you vision of what interests you.

que the marching band, streak the quad and pack your bags. Your a mechanical engineer! I swear there is nothing like that day when you get that title. B.S.M.E. baby!!!! Its not a goal, or a job title... its a legacy!

Now, the real engineering studies come after the degree.
Usually you start as a "associate" which introduces you to drafting, mechanisms, solid modelling, project management, finite elements, statistical process control , R&D principles, and manufacturing engineering . You may head into more advanced robotics. Embedded programming training will control anything from cars to pacemakers. Or you may study chemical and electrical combined with alloy technology to electroplate or produce battery technology.

But ultimately, the infinite combinations pretty much just mix and match the fundamentals you learn in the first two years... so get those rudiments down good if you want to stay sane.

In the workplace, the title of engineer demands respect. Its one of the toughest academic areas of study but you end up with a title that nobody can ever take away . Your parents will say "(s)hes and Engineer" . You are a master of technology and creativity!

In conclusion , mechanical engineers study the physics of things and apply them. If you grew up breaking every present you got out of curiosity of how it works... this may be the career for you!
As far as the academics go, think 1) the first two years is solving problems 2) the second two years is defining them.

Good luck!
Rich "honk if you passed P-Chem" Wolf
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