Mechanical Engineering at UTD

Colleges and Universities A-Z The University of Texas Schools (Other Than Austin
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<p>Does anybody here have any personal experience with the mechanical engineering program at UTD? I know it's brand new. And so far it's not accredited, because a school must produce a graduate from the program before they can get an accreditation for the program. And so, I'm very curious about how the program is going. How's the faculty? The labs? Any internships or special engineering experiences while there?</p>

<p>I'm thinking that it's so small (only 11 in the program the first year it was offered) that finding anybody here with first-hand experience would be like finding a needle in a haystack. But I thought I'd ask! Would love to hear anything you have to offer -- about all aspects.</p>

<p>Thanks!</p>

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<p>Not so hard finding a needle in a haystack, I guess.</p>

<p>I’m just the parent, but can definitely ask for answers to your questions. :)</p>

<p>Spring break just started, arrival at home - tomorrow, so give me a few days and I’ll see if I can answer any of your questions. Downside may be that I have a freshman, and a student completing a second year of ME would be more helpful, I’m sure.</p>

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<p>Hopefully this information helps:</p>

<p>Pros:</p>

<p>UT Dallas has strong programs in EE and CS. Math and science courses are in place, so the ME program rests on an already solid engineering foundation. UTD has a good engineering reputation that should extend to ME also. In other words, UTD knows engineering.</p>

<p>The ME program has the full support of the administration. Everyone wants the ME program to be successful and works toward that goal. The ME program generates lots of enthusiasm right now.</p>

<p>The program is small and the students get much attention. The ME program wants students to stick with ME and therefore actually pays attention to student input. Also, no TA’s teach classes (at UTD), so students can get to know the professor and vice versa, which can greatly help for recommendations.</p>

<p>The program keeps students up-to-date with offers of ME internships. ME majors receive emails re anything available in the ME field. </p>

<p>Cons:</p>

<p>Well, a pro and con both, I guess: the ME program can be completed in four years, but doing so pushes any core courses outside the engineering program back toward senior year. Little chance for exploration outside the ME major can happen the first years, and that’s not necessary good. For those students 100% certain of an ME major, finishing in four years can be a good thing, but for students who are just considering an ME major, maybe that’s not so good.</p>

<p>Some classes are only offered once during the calendar year as the newness of the program limits the necessity of offering the class multiple times during the calendar year. Ex.: A freshman in ME takes the second half of Intro to ME second semester. It won’t be offered again until second semester the following year. Intro to ME has a co-requisite which has a co-requisite and so on until the schedule fills with mainly required math/science courses. As mentioned above, some students may find such a schedule ideal while others don’t. Not following the sequence delays graduation at the four-year mark. (Many engineering programs take five years to complete anyway, so …) <em>However, please note that as the ME program grows this particular con may no longer exist. As more students sign up in ME, the availability of classes will expand. This year completes year two of ME at UTD, year three right around the corner. Judging by interested prospective students, the program will continue to grow.</em></p>

<p>Overall, my freshman recommends the program. When looking (senior year) into the (new) astronomy program at one of the big Texas universities, professors mentioned the excitement of a program just starting – how professors and students work together to make it a reality; how no long-standing way of doing something interferes. That same theory extends to ME at UTD.</p>

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<p>Hey SimpleLife, i was wondering the very same thing :slight_smile:
I’ll be majoring in mechanical engineering this fall as well!</p>

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<p>Hi. Thanks for your quick reply, ignatius. I fell off the face of the earth for a few months … but now I’m back. It’s been a busy, busy time around here.</p>

<p>Your answer to my question was very informative. My son and I both liked UTD a lot. We’ve visited a ton of schools. UTD is a little different – kind of quirky. But we really liked it. It does seem like a bit of a risk to sign on for a new, not-yet-accredited program. We noticed that there are, naturally, very few professors in the ME program – since there are relatively few kids and no graduates yet. Hopefully, those few professors are excellent teachers and good people. It would stink to see the same bad professor over and over again for a few years!</p>

<p>The one con you mentioned, about the inflexibility of the track they’re on, seems to apply to nearly all the small schools my son has researched.</p>

<p>How about the profs? Does your son like his teachers so far? Has he made any connections, on a more personal level, with any of his teachers or staff?</p>

<p>And, concerning the school itself, does he ever feel like he’s at a really large high school? My son brings up that concern a lot when he discusses UTD. He really, really likes the feel of the campus. He’s not into partying. He doesn’t mind that it doesn’t appear to be a party school or a sports school or a school with a huge social scene. He likes to just hang with his friends, play a little pick-up basketball, and hopes to spend a lot of his time playing for local orchestras. BUT, he does worry that he’ll feel like he’s in a huge high school rather than a college. He wants the “feel” of the place to be different than high school.</p>

<p>Can you shed any light on the UTD college scene?</p>

<p>Thanks so much, ignatius. Sorry to be so long in returning to this thread!</p>

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<p>I have two kids at UTD. It is a little quirky, but my kids love it. Not sure why, but there seem to be alot of misconceptions about UTD. </p>

<p>People think its …
*small - has over 15,000 students. </p>

<p>*all commuters - 5000 students on campus +many more in nearby apts and houses</p>

<p>*all science/engr -most degrees have a tech component, but art/lit/music are valued too</p>

<p>*non-social - the campus pub (which is often packed) has monthly open mic night, various clubs host late night games in the student union, there seem to be a lot of art showings, kids tend to gather at the apartment pools and activity center racquetball courts, and with that many students nearby its not hard to find a party if you’re looking.</p>

<p>It definitely has a college feel with students and profs roaming campus at all hours. The one thing my kids complain about is the lack of local businesses open after 10pm. They spend a lot of late nights at whataburger during the week and all around Dallas on weekends. One cool thing is the free public transit pass they give, so you can easily take the train to uptown, downtown, sporting events, and even to Fort Worth if you really want to.</p>

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<p>If you go to the UTD website, near the center of the page is the Comet Calendar. Click it and you can see whats happening on campus.</p>

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<p>and utd is making its way up the us news ranking.</p>

<p>this is the first year it is on it at 140 something</p>

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<p>mmaaxx, have your kids formed any personal sort of ties to their profs? Do either of them participate in the honors programs? Either of them majoring in engineering? </p>

<p>My son is one of those early to bed, early to rise types. I doubt the “nothing open after 10pm” stuff would bother him. He’s up by 6:30 or 7 every day!</p>

<p>The cons that ignatius brought up are of some concern. There are definitely disadvantages to being part of a new program, I suppose. But the pros are pretty appealing!</p>

<p>Anybody partake in the string orchestra at UTD?</p>

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<p>

</p>

<p>I wanted to answer your question, but I’m not sure it fits under Mechanical Engineering at UTD. Oh well … I just posted this on a different thread and thought it fit your question also.</p>

<p>My kid lived on campus last year as one of 400 freshmen in the residence hall and came home for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Spring Break. No car, but both roommates owned one. No matter, off-campus sojourns were infrequent. My kid seemed satisfied with life on campus, and campus events are free for students.</p>

<p>The following are just one student’s activities freshman year and not by any means a complete list. Suffice it to say that each weekend had options from which to choose. Take another student and that list will reflect that student’s interests.</p>

<p>Residence Hall – common area in suites makes gatherings easy:</p>

<p>Impromptu gatherings with friends – i.e. spending time in others’ suites</p>

<p>Parties included birthday, Christmas, movies, pro football playoffs, and so on</p>

<p>Sponsored by Residence Hall:</p>

<p>Hall activities and parties - ice cream social, for example</p>

<p>Catered pre-Thanksgiving dinner (even for those going home) in the lobby</p>

<p>Hot chocolate in the lobby before Christmas</p>

<p>And so on</p>

<p>Can’t forget the freshmen and upperclassmen on-campus apartments:</p>

<p>Again, impromptu gatherings – at the swimming pool, in apartments</p>

<p>Again, parties – potluck dinners, movies, games night, Disney movie night</p>

<p>Some on-campus events attended:</p>

<p>Viva Volunteer - Faculty and students sign up to volunteer in the community - a welcome week activity</p>

<p>Movies</p>

<p>Performances – music, dance, comedy acts, magician</p>

<p>Carnivals</p>

<p>Convocation – open for everyone with fireworks and games</p>

<p>Halloween dance with Halloween carnival in another section of the student union - booths with caramel apples, palm readers, psychics, costume contests</p>

<p>Sounds of Class</p>

<p>Splatterbeat</p>

<p>Midnight Pancakes (during exams)</p>

<p>Volunteer opportunities (on and off campus)</p>

<p>CV sponsored events – barbecue, ice skating at nearby rink</p>

<p>Off campus:</p>

<p>An occasional movie</p>

<p>An occasional restaurant</p>

<p>Frozen yogurt outings</p>

<p>Shopping</p>

<p>Dallas Symphony (free tickets for students can be obtained)</p>

<p>Dallas Museum of Art</p>

<p>Texas State Fair</p>

<p>And to add a bit more info, my kids have friends involved in:</p>

<p>Campus activity center with pool, racquetball courts, … with yoga classes, salsa dance classes and such</p>

<p>Greek life – fraternity and sorority</p>

<p>Student government</p>

<p>Student ambassadors</p>

<p>Mock Trial</p>

<p>Model U.N.</p>

<p>Destination Imagination</p>

<p>Various clubs and organizations</p>

<p>Habitat for Humanity</p>

<p>Heath Fair with 5k run</p>

<p>UTD TV</p>

<p>Both student newspapers</p>

<p>Sports teams</p>

<p>Intramural sports</p>

<p>Ooze ball</p>

<p>Performance groups – instrumental, vocal, dance, theater</p>

<p>Volunteer organizations</p>

<p>Religious groups</p>

<p>Research and various internships</p>

<p>Study abroad</p>

<p>Archer Scholars program in D.C.</p>

<p>On-campus employment</p>

<p>Nearby off campus employment</p>

<p>The off campus music scene and sports scene are what you’d expect in a large city, and kids take advantage of the availability.</p>

<p>My freshman’s friends mainly lived on campus – a mixture of other freshmen and upperclassmen. Now with a move to the on-campus apartments, friends from freshman year are scattered across campus and currently reconnecting with each other along with meeting new people, of course. Life is good. :)</p>

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<p>^Thanks, ignatius! Sounds like your kid is really enjoying him/herself! Doesn’t that just make you happy? (I love hearing that my college kid is having a good time – different school.)</p>

<p>That’s a nice list of activities. All things that my low key son would enjoy. It’s nice of you to send it.</p>

<p>Maybe since I started this "Mechanical Engineering at UTD thread, I can get a free pass for going off-topic with one of my questions… ;-)</p>