Mechanical Engineering (MS)

Helicopter design continues to evolve at a rapid rate, requiring employees to keep their skills sharp to meet changing design demands. WPI has partnered with Sikorsky to customize this Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering program to be uniquely relevant for its employees. Students will be exposed to state-of-the art research across a range of fundamental engineering sciences and special topics relevant to modern helicopter design principles. After completing the program, you will be prepared to:

  • Calculate, simulate and predict incompressible fluid and energy (heat) flow through a complex system.
  • Design mechanical systems that operate in demanding dynamic environments.
  • Select materials and structural design, taking material properties, quality and performance to optimize long term design reliability.
  • Demonstrate technical competence and teamwork by completing a capstone project on a complex engineering problem.

Contributing to advances in rotorcraft design requires a more detailed understanding of underlying multidisciplinary mechanical engineering subject matter. A means of obtaining this understanding is through continued formal education.

Joe Simonetti
Propulsion Technical Fellow

Plan of Study

Core Course

  • ME 5000. Applied Analytical Methods in Engineering (2 credits)
  • ME 593. Special Topic: Capstone Project (3 credits)

Dynamics & Control

  • ME 5200. Mechanical Vibrations (2 credits)
  • ME 5202. Advanced Dynamics (2 credits)

Fluid & Thermal Engineering

  • ME 5101. Fluid Dynamics (2 credits)
  • ME 513. Engineering Thermodynamics (3 credits)
  • ME 5108. Computational Fluid Dynamics (2 credits)
  • ME 5104. Turbomachinery (2 credits)
  • ME 593. Special Topic: Internal Combustion Engines (ICE) (2 credits)
  • ME 593. Special Topic: Design of Thermal Systems (3 credits)

Structures and Materials

  • ME 5303. Applied Finite Element Methods in Engineering (2 credits)
  • ME 5311. Structure and Properties of Engineering Materials (2 credits)
  • ME 593. Special Topic: Foundations in Elasticity (Appended to ME 5381.) (1 credit)*
  • ME 5381. Applied Elasticity (2 credits)

*This 1 credit course is intended as a lead-in to ME 5381 Applied Elasticity.  Selected topics will be chosen from the following: three-dimensional states of stress; measures of strain; thick-walled cylinders, disks and spheres; plane stress and plane strain; thermoelasticity. Students cannot receive credit for this course if they have taken ME 531.

Note: The order of the courses listed above does not indicate the order in which they will be taken. Students will be notified about course schedules upon registering.

  • Master’s degree is made up of a total of 30 credits.

  • Courses offer a blend of theoretical, numerical and experimental work.

  • Classes will be delivered in a blended format, with some delivered on-site at Sikorsky in Stratford CT, and some delivered online. More information about the delivery format will be posted in the coming weeks.

Prerequisites

Prospective students must have a bachelor of science from a regionally accredited university in mechanical engineering or a related field (e.g. other engineering disciplines, physics, mathematics, etc.) and have earned a GPA of 3.0 or better.

Please visit our enrollment and admission page to learn more about the application process.