I am excited to announce that the College of Engineering at Texas A&M University has established a new department — the Department of Multidisciplinary Engineering. What an honor it is to pilot the first department of its kind! We feel the curriculum we are continuing to develop will train future engineers to overcome obstacles in a new way and propel us into a future that we cannot even imagine.
Engineering has always been multidisciplinary by its very nature; today, this truth is even more evident. We routinely hear from our industry stakeholders about the essential nature of multidisciplinary-minded engineers. Despite our engineering faculty regularly engaging in multidisciplinary research, the seamless and natural integration of multiple disciplines in an engineering curriculum has been slow. While we train talented mechanical engineers and electrical engineers and nuclear engineers — we don’t necessarily train people who can connect the dots among these disciplines as effectively as we should. That’s why we decided to transform our interdisciplinary engineering program into a full-blown department.
We have a multifaceted approach to our curriculum creation and degree plans. Undergraduate students can earn a Bachelor of Science in interdisciplinary engineering, following a degree plan that they work with us to develop. Nearly half of this degree is open to flexibility, meaning students can design about half of their curriculum to meet their specific interdisciplinary interests. By focusing on longterm career goals, we can help our students hone in on their interests and focus on the future. We also offer numerous pre-approved degree plans that span multiple disciplines or colleges.
For graduate students, we offer degrees with focus areas in subsea engineering, cybersecurity and systems engineering. Students can also choose to work with us to create a program that spans multiple traditional departments or colleges. Through our partnerships with the College of Medicine and Houston Methodist Hospital, we’ve established the Engineering Medicine program, through which students can earn an M.D. degree and a Master of Engineering degree.
This is just a small snippet of what we currently offer, and what we have plans to offer. We’re excited to be a part of our college’s mission to transform engineering education!
Thanks, and Gig ‘em!
Timothy J. Jacobs, Ph.D.
Professor and Steve Brauer, Jr. ’02 Faculty Fellow
J. Mike Walker ‘66 Department of Mechanical Engineering
Interim Department Head, Department of Multidisciplinary Engineering
Featured Podcast
Jacobs speaks about the innovative options for students who want to specialize in an engineering field that crosses traditional boundaries. The first department of its kind, multidisciplinary engineering students are uniquely trained to solve problems that span various engineering disciplines.