B.S. in Engineering (B.S.E.)

The Bachelor of Science in Engineering (B.S.E.) degree is a unique program designed to produce creative engineers who can meet the challenges facing society today, such as improving the quality of life for humankind, designing new innovative products, and preparing for potential catastrophes. The structure of this degree program is flexible and responsive to emerging engineering fields.

The program integrates a broad knowledge base with study in multiple concentrations, providing both breadth and depth. This provides a greater flexibility in curricular and career pathways allowing for multidisciplinary experiences and novel combinations of expertise.

Focus Areas

The B.S.E. program features four in-depth focus areas. Click on each focus area for detailed information.

• Robotics
• Mechanical Engineering Systems
• Electrical Engineering Systems
• Civil Engineering - Land Development

To apply for any of these focus areas, please select B.S. in Engineering at the Polytechnic campus when applying to ASU. The individual focus areas are not listed on the application.

Objectives and Outcomes

The engineering program provides an immersive experience-based education for success in a high technology-oriented world. We help students lay the foundation for achievement of the objectives and outcomes described below. Objectives are goals that we expect our graduates to achieve some time after graduation. Outcomes are goals that we expect our students to achieve at the time of graduation.

• Graduates will successfully transition into a broad range of career options, including industry, government, and graduate engineering and professional education.
  
  
• Graduates will be agile engineers: lifelong learners with a comprehensive set of skills appropriate to the needs of the dynamic global economy.
  
  
• Graduates will be capable of leadership in engineering and non-engineering settings.
  
  
• Graduates will have the skills and knowledge necessary to attain their desired levels of financial security, entrepreneurial success, and post-baccalaureate education while being well-rounded human beings that participate in a rich spectrum of human activities.

• Design: An ability to design a system, component, or process to meet desired needs.
  
  
• Engineering Practice: An ability to use the knowledge, techniques, skills, and modern tools necessary for engineering practice.
  
  
• Critical Thinking and Decision Making: An ability to think critically, clearly identifying and using evidence, criteria, and values in the decision making process.
  
  
• Professionalism: An understanding of professional and ethical responsibility, a commitment to on-going professional competence and possession of basic professional and organizational success skills.
  
  
• Perspective: An understanding of the role and impact of engineering in contemporary business, global, economic, environmental, and societal contexts.
  
  
• Problem Solving: An ability to identify, formulate, and solve engineering problems.
  
  
• Communication: An ability to communicate effectively.
  
  
• Technical Competence: An ability to apply knowledge of mathematics, science, and engineering as well as collect, analyze, and interpret data.

Curriculum

The curriculum for the B.S.E. degree program is designed to let individual students focus on their individual needs in a fashion that is virtually unique inside the United States. The curriculum offered is designed to be a part of a fully accredited engineering program that meets the national standards for engineering education.

The net effect of the B.S.E. curriculum is that students must take:

• 48 hours of engineering courses
• 32 hours of math and science
• 15 hours of humanities and social science
• 12 hours of courses that emphasize communications
• 21 hours of secondary area of focus and unrestricted electives

The curriculum is categorized into the following course types:

Project Courses

Every semester there is a three- to four-semester-hour project course. In these project courses, students work in teams to design products and solve realistic engineering problems.

Module Courses

Modules, which are a distinguishing feature of our program, are one-semester-hour "chunks" of standard engineering topics such as mechanics or electrical signals and instrumentation. In each semester of the sophomore year, students will five modules. One module is packaged in with the project course, as it is the module that is of most importance to success in the project. The other four modules are taken as a package that supplements the self-study modules with regular in-class activities that build on the topic coverage of the four modules. The actual module selection varies from semester to semester as we make the selection guided by the chosen project topic. The project experience culminates in an oral examination of the team conducting the project. Each team member is expected to be able to answer technical questions about the project. People from industry have noted that the effect is that our students practice job-interviewing skills every single semester.

Program of Study Courses

Program of study courses are part of the General Education program but they are created and staffed by the faculty of the Department of Engineering. In the first semester, we have a course that studies the historical development of globalization and industrialization. These two on-going historical processes are likely to significantly affect our students' professional lives and careers, and we wish to help students gain an historical perspective that will increase their professional career agility. Other program of study courses are in Critical Inquiry and Literacy. In these courses we work with students in the development not only of communication skills but more importantly in critical thinking skills, another important part of professional career agility.

Focus Area Courses

In the junior and senior years, students will select a primary area of focus. The focus areas for the degree are Robotics, Civil Engineering-Land Development, Electrical Engineering Systems, and Mechanical Engineering Systems. In addition, you will select a secondary area of focus. This secondary area is intended to be a focused set of 12 semester hours in some specific topic. This could be in engineering. You could study both electrical and mechanical systems, one as a primary and the other as a secondary focus. The secondary also could lie outside of engineering. It could be in business, or a foreign language, or even automotive engineering technology.

Math/Science or General Studies Courses

Math and science courses or General Education courses satisfy university-wide degree requirements. The math and science content of our degree satisfies the same accreditation requirement for math and science that all ABET-accredited programs in engineering, no matter the specialty, are asked to meet. Our program is not a "math-lite" program.

Elective Courses

The program allows nine semester hours of unrestricted electives, which could be used to study even more engineering, to ease transfer issues for transfer students, or just to intellectually explore.