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312
Glennan Building (7220)
phone
368-4436
fax 368-6939
James
W. Wagner, Dean
The Case School of Engineering was established on July 1, 1992, by an action of the Board of Trustees of Case Western Reserve University as a professional school dedicated to serving society and meeting the needs of industry, government and academia through programs of teaching and research. The Case School of Engineering continues the tradition of rigorous programs based on fundamental principles of mathematics, science and engineering that have been the hallmark of its two predecessors, Case School of Applied Science (Founded in 1880) and the Case Institute of Technology(1947). The formation of the Case School of Engineering (CSE) is a re-commitment to the obligations of the gift of Leonard Case, Jr., to serve the citizens of Northern Ohio. The establishment of the CSE as a professional school is in recognition that the future practice of engineering will have with blurred boundaries between the disciplines and between the undergraduate and graduate curricular programs.
At the core of its vision, the Case School of Engineering seeks to set the standards for excellence in engineering education. The Case School of Engineering is organized in seven departments, offering fourteen degree programs at the undergraduate level (fourteen engineering degrees plus the B.S. in computer science). In addition, the CSE offers the Master of Engineering program, fourteen Master of Science programs, and the Doctor of Philosophy. The faculty and students participate in a wide variety of research activities offered through the departments and the various interdisciplinary research centers of the University. The CSE has been a leader in many educational programs, being the first engineering school to offer undergraduate programs in computer engineering (1963), biomedical engineering (1972), polymer engineering (1967) and systems and control engineering (1963).
The major aim of engineering is the creation of new processes, products, materials, or systems that are useful to our society. This demands a high degree of creativity combined with broad knowledge of scientific principles, good judgment, a practical sense of economics, and an appreciation of the role and impact of engineering in society. Successful engineering therefore rests upon:
The mission of the Case School of Engineering (CSE) is to provide an educational experience that emphasizes fundamentals and fosters design creativity to prepare students for lifelong careers in engineering and related fields. To accomplish this objective, the CSE has designed the engineering curriculum to respond to advances in technology, the changing practice of engineering and its relationship to both business and society. Because such changes will continue to occur, learning and continuing education must be the lifelong responsibility of the engineer. The responsibility of engineering educators is to prepare students as engineers who keep pace with the developments of technology and changing societal needs. The practice of engineering has become more interdisciplinary and team oriented. Boundaries between the engineering disciplines are becoming less distinct and engineers are often called upon to deal with problems outside of their primary area of specialization as designated by their formal education. Complex engineering problems require a multi-disciplinary, systems-oriented approach, and engineers must have a broad understanding of all facets of engineering and the interrelationships between engineering, business, economics, society and the environment. Successful engineers will meet the technological and societal challenges of the 21st century by having a broad understanding of engineering and its interrelationships with business, economics, society and the environment. The CSE educates engineers who can effectively work in interdisciplinary teams; provide leadership, communicate their accomplishments both verbally and in writing to laymen as well as experts; and appreciate the diverse backgrounds of individuals with whom they interact.
To meet these challenges and to provide distinctive undergraduate education in engineering, the Case School of Engineering provides programs that integrate fundamental engineering, science and mathematics with engineering design and problem solving. These fundamentals constitute the Engineering Core which is the foundation for each of the engineering curricular programs. These programs are designed with a breadth in engineering topics to meet the diverse needs of the students and the engineering professions that they serve. Each curricular program includes a variety of educational experiences within the departments, including laboratory training, case studies and interdisciplinary design projects that bridge the gap between classroom theory and engineering practice. The engineering design projects and case studies are of sufficient scope to include safety, environmental, economic, ethical and professional issues and they also promote the development of leadership, team, communication and presentation skills.
In addition to the major department requirements, each engineering undergraduate degree program includes the Engineering Core which provides a foundation in mathematics and sciences for programs in engineering. The Engineering Core also is designed to develop communication skills and to provide a body of work in the humanities and social sciences. Requirements of the Engineering Core can be found elsewhere in this Bulletin.
An elective sequence is a set of preestablished sequences of courses designed to provide a focus within the major discipline, allowing the student to tailor a program of study within a broad field. For example, a student in mechanical engineering could take courses toward an elective sequence in mechanical design or heat power. A student in biomedical engineering could take an elective sequence in biomechanics, computers, biomaterials, or instrumentation. There is no set number of courses in such a sequence.
The Case School of Engineering may recognize academic work in a discipline other than the student's major as a minor. The proper designation will be recorded on the student's transcript on successful completion of the minor requirements. The minor normally consists of 15 to 18 credit hours of course work as specified by the department offering the minor, and no more than two courses taken for the minor sequence may be used to simultaneously satisfy requirements of the student's major field, i.e., courses required in the Engineering Core, department requirements, or technical electives.
The Case School of Engineering, with the participation of the Weatherhead School of Management and major northeastern Ohio industry, offers a practice-oriented Master of Engineering Program to equip engineers in industry to continue along a technical career path but adds the dimensions of business, management, and teamwork skills. The program differs from a traditional Master of Science degree in engineering by concentrating on current industrial practice rather than on research and differs from a traditional Master of Business Administration degree by focusing on the business and technical environment of engineering industries.
Participants can complete a master's degree within a two-year (six semester), part-time, program of study. Core courses aim at equipping participants with knowledge on how engineering is practiced in contemporary industry. Core courses are videotaped to accommodate unexpected absences and travel. Technical elective courses are held in the evening hours or provided on videotape through CWRU's Instructional Television Network (ITN) to minimize disruption at the workplace and home. The program targets currently employed engineers who lend diversity, experience, and richness to the classroom environment. Because the program makes extensive use of computers, participants need to have access to computer facilities.
The program consists of a set of five core courses and a five course technical elective sequence (a total of 30 credit hours are required). The core courses provide a common base of study and experience with problems, issues, and challenges in the engineering business environment. The technical course sequence provides an opportunity to update disciplinary engineering skills and to broaden interdisciplinary skills. An in-residence retreat is required of all students on the weekend prior to the summer semester. Up to six transfer credits may be approved for graduate-level courses taken at CWRU or another accredited university.
These courses are described elsewhere in the bulletin.
Four courses from the chosen technical concentration area and one from outside of this area are required. The following technical concentration areas are offered currently:
Recognizing the different needs and objectives of resident and non-resident graduate students pursuing the master's degree, two different plans are offered. In both plans, transfer of credit from another university is limited to six hours of graduate-level courses approved by the student's advisor, the department chairman, and the dean of the School of Graduate Studies.
All Master of Science degree programs require the submission of a program of study which must be approved by the advisor, department chairperson and the dean of engineering and which must be submitted before registering for the last 9 course credits of the program.
Minimum requirements for the degree of Master of Science in a major field under this plan are:
A student with research experience equivalent to a thesis may petition the Graduate Committee of the Case School of Engineering for substitution of nine hours of course work for the thesis requirement. In this case, the thesis examination above is replaced by a similar examination covering the submitted research work and publications.
Eighteen hours of course work, including the thesis, must be at the 400 level or higher.
Minimum requirements for the degree of Master of Science in a major field under this plan are:
A student working toward an undesignated Master of Science degree in engineering must select a department. The student is responsible for submitting a program of study which must have the approval of the student's advisor and department head and the dean of engineering and which must contain a minimum of nine semester hours of course work in the department approving the program. A minimum of 18 semester hours of course work for the degree must be at the 400 level or higher. The student must meet all the requirements of the designated Master of Science degree in engineering.
The student's Ph.D. program should be designed to prepare him or her for a lifetime of creative activity in research and in professional engineering practice. Often this may be coupled with a teaching career. The mastery of a significant field of knowledge required to accomplish this purpose is demonstrated by an original contribution to knowledge embodied in a thesis and by satisfactory completion of a comprehensive course program which is intensive in a specific area of study and includes work in other areas related to, but not identical with, the major field. The necessity for breadth as well as depth in the student's education cannot be overemphasized. To this end, any engineering department may add additional requirements or constraints to ensure depth and breadth appropriate to its field.
No student may be admitted to candidacy for the Ph.D. degree before approval of his or her program of study by the Advisory Committee, the department, and the dean of engineering. After this approval has been obtained, it is the responsibility of the student's department to notify the dean of the School of Graduate Studies of his or her admission to candidacy after the student has fulfilled any additional department requirements. Minimal requirements in addition to the university requirements are:
The student must pass a qualifying examination relevant to his or her area of study as designated by the curricular department with which he or she is affiliated. For students who obtain the M.S. degree from Case Western Reserve University, the qualifying examination should be taken preferably before the end of the student's fourth semester of graduate study but no later than the end of the fifth semester at the University. For students entering with the masters degree the examination should be taken no later than the end of the third semester at the University.
Each student is required to submit a program of study, detailing his or her course work, thesis schedule, and qualifying examination schedule and indicating that all the minimum requirements of the University and the faculty of the Case School of Engineering are satisfied. This program of study must be approved by the advisory committee, the department chairperson and the dean of engineering before registering for the last 18 credits hours of the program.
If the student is pursuing the Ph.D. degree without acquiring the M.S. degree, the program of study should be accompanied by a petition to the dean of engineering to waive the requirement of the M.S. degree. All required courses taken at the University beyond the B.S. degree should be shown on the program of study with the grade if completed. If the requirements are to be fulfilled in other than the standard ways described above, a memorandum requesting approval should be attached to the program of study.
The program of study must be submitted within one semester after passing the qualifying examination.
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