Graduate Student Handbook
K-State Mechanical and Nuclear Engingeering Graduate Program
The Alan Levin Department of Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering (MNE) at Kansas State University offers separate graduate programs in Mechanical Engineering and Nuclear Engineering both leading to M.S. and Ph.D. degrees. Our award-winning faculty are engaged in exciting and cutting-edge research projects in state-of-the-art laboratories and research facilities, while our graduate students are excelling inside and outside of the classroom. Research areas and courses include a broad range of both traditional and emerging fields of Mechanical Engineering and Nuclear Engineering. Many graduate students in the department receive graduate research assistantships (GRA). Several of our students receive graduate teaching assistantships (GTAs) with tuition assistance for duties that may include classroom or laboratory teaching, proctoring exams, grading exams, papers or other assignments, preparing instructional materials or other general assistance in the instructional process.
An applicant must have a bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution. Although students with bachelor’s degrees in Mechanical and/or Nuclear Engineering make up the bulk of our graduate student body, the department welcomes applicants from other fields including other engineering disciplines, mathematics, physics and chemistry.
Programs of study are flexible and tailored to the interests, backgrounds and career goals of each student. Courses from outside the department are often added to programs of study to enhance the student’s experience.
Degrees Offered
The department currently offers the following graduate degrees:
Mechanical Engineering
- Doctoral (PhD - ME)
- Master of Science (MSME) - Thesis Option
- Master of Science (MSME) - Report Option
- Master of Science (MSME) - Course Work Option
Nuclear Engineering
- Doctoral (PhD - NE)
- Master of Science (MSNE) - Thesis Option
- Master of Science (MSNE) - Report Option
- Master of Science (MSNE) - Course Work Option
Kansas State University is fully accredited by the North Central Accrediting Association (NCAA). All undergraduate engineering programs in the College of Engineering are accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET). The same K-State engineering faculty and departments that are associated with the accredited undergraduate programs offer the graduate programs, thereby maintaining the excellent accredited quality of instruction at the graduate level.
As part of NCAA’s university-level accreditation, the MNE Department has developed a self-assessment and evaluation plan for the MNE Graduate Program. At the heart of this plan is a list of Graduate Student Learning Outcomes which define the abilities, skills, attributes, etc. that MNE graduate students should have attained by the time of graduation. The faculty-approved list of MNE Graduate Student Learning Outcomes is documented below.
MS Program: The mission of the Masters program in Mechanical Engineering and in Nuclear Engineering is to provide: 1) an excellent education to the Masters student, 2) the opportunity to conduct research or generate new designs in mechanical and nuclear engineering (optional), and 3) training students to serve our professional communities, the state of Kansas, and Nation effectively.
Ph.D. Program: The mission of the Ph.D. program in Nuclear Engineering and in Mechanical Engineering is to provide: 1) an excellent education to the student, 2) conduct research that generates new knowledge in mechanical and nuclear engineering, and 3) provide opportunity to serve our professional communities, the state of Kansas, and Nation effectively.
Graduates of K-State’s Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering Graduate Program will possess the following traits:
1. Ability to solve engineering problems using advanced mathematical, scientific, computational, and analytical methods appropriate to the Mechanical (Nuclear) Engineering discipline. (All M.S.; Ph.D.)
2. Ability to synthesize and critically evaluate information pertinent to the Mechanical (Nuclear) Engineering discipline. (All M.S.; Ph.D.)
3. (a) Demonstration of advanced knowledge in one or more areas of specialization within the Mechanical (Nuclear) Engineering discipline. (All M.S.; Ph.D.)
3. (b) Demonstration of expertise in one or more areas of specialization within the Mechanical (Nuclear) Engineering discipline. (Ph.D.).
4. (a) Ability to plan and conduct scholarly activities in one or more areas of specialization within the Mechanical (Nuclear) Engineering discipline. (M.S. Thesis and M.S. Report; Ph.D.)
4. (b) Ability to plan and conduct scholarly activities that make original contributions to the knowledge base in one or more areas of specialization within the Mechanical (Nuclear) Engineering discipline. (Ph.D.)
5. Preparation for leadership and teamwork through enhanced independence, initiative, and responsibility. (All M.S.; Ph.D.)
6. Ability to communicate effectively both in written and oral forms (All M.S.; Ph.D.)
7. Understanding of the importance of the ethical, safety, socio-economic, and environmental issues related to the Mechanical (Nuclear) Engineering profession. (All M.S.; Ph.D.)
8. Recognition of the importance of life-long learning and professional service to the Mechanical (Nuclear) Engineering profession. (All M.S.; Ph.D.)
MNE student mailboxes are located in Rathbone 3008. The mailboxes are for business related mail only, not personal mail. Please check your box frequently.
Email and eID
All students and faculty have e-mail addresses and communicate by electronic mail. Students must use their official K-State e-mail address and eID (electronic ID) for access to the network and university on-line resources. In order to save paper, many announcements from university college and department offices will arrive in your electronic INBOX. Please check your INBOX frequently.
Computer accounts
Please refrain from putting large media files on your account. This includes not only downloaded music and videos, but course lectures as well. Also beware that some software packages generate large data files. An example of this is Ansys – the files it generates can get very large (over 1GB).
Graduate students are limited to 200 prints per week. In addition, you should keep your account space below 1000MB.
The software installed in the majority of the labs is listed below:
Mathcad
Matlab
Microsoft Office
Microsoft Project
Microsoft Visual Studio
Solidworks
Visio
MNE Intranet
KSIS
To enroll in courses, view your semester schedule, look up semester grades, view your student account and check the status of your financial aid go to K-State KSIS Use your eID and password to log-in.
Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering Faculty
Our award-winning faculty are committed to teaching and researching in the classroom, labs and beyond. The faculty routinely win undergraduate teaching awards, in addition to national distinction for research contributions.
View the faculty directory