Department of Engineering

Professors Lape (Chair), Bahena, Bassman, Brake, Cha, Dato, Fowler, Furuya, Harris, Helmns, Krauss, Leichter, Mendelson, Mohanty, Nembhard, Plata, Ritz, Santana, Spencer, Tsai, Yang, and Zorman.

Program Educational Objectives

The philosophy of the engineering program at Harvey Mudd College is based on the recognition that there is a professional component that is best addressed through practice gained by working on real problems. The engineering program philosophy is adopted to produce generalists, able to communicate across disciplines through the use and understanding of mathematics and systems-based analysis, who can design effective and innovative solutions to discipline specific problems. Our goal is to graduate students capable of solving real problems that span multiple engineering disciplines. This goal is realized through our three main curricular areas of focus (design, systems, and engineering science), as well as through our emphasis on professional practice. We teach a rigorous theoretical and broad background in these three areas of focus. Layered on this broad-based education is a professional practice component, which is realized through hands-on experiences in the classroom throughout the program, research opportunities, and our junior/senior capstone industry-sponsored clinic projects.

The Department of Engineering adopted the following program education objectives (PEOs) that are reviewed by our constituencies on a regular basis. Our program educational objectives are consistent with the college mission, our department philosophy, and are broad statements that describe what graduates are expected to attain within a few years after graduation. Program educational objects are based on the needs of the program’s constituencies.

Harvey Mudd College seeks to produce exceptionally competent engineers who will:

Demonstrate breadth and technical excellence in professional activities
Engage in the lifelong process of independent, reflective learning
Lead responsibly through their engineering judgment and practice
Show an awareness of the impact of their work on the world

Achievement of PEOs is based on student outcomes (SOs) that are adopted from ABET Criterion 3. SOs describe what students are expected to know and be able to do by the time of graduation. These relate to the knowledge, skills, and behaviors that students acquire as they progress through the program. These are:

An ability to identify, formulate, and solve complex engineering problems by applying principles of engineering, science, and mathematics.
An ability to apply engineering design to produce solutions that meet specified needs with consideration of public health, safety, and welfare, as well as global, cultural, social, environmental, and economic factors.
An ability to communicate effectively with a range of audiences.
An ability to recognize ethical and professional responsibilities in engineering situations and make informed judgments, which must consider the impact of engineering solutions in global, economic, environmental, and societal contexts.
An ability to function effectively on a team whose members together provide leadership, create a collaborative and inclusive environment, establish goals, plan tasks, and meet objectives.
An ability to develop and conduct appropriate experimentation, analyze and interpret data, and use engineering judgment to draw conclusions.
An ability to acquire and apply new knowledge as needed, using appropriate learning strategies.

Engineering Clinic

Pioneered by the Department of Engineering at Harvey Mudd College in 1963, the Engineering Clinic brings together teams of students to work with faculty advisors and external liaison engineers on carefully selected, industry- and government-sponsored design and development projects. The students plan and execute their projects; the faculty advise, coach, monitor, evaluate, and provide feedback; the sponsors’ liaisons ensure that the sponsors’ goals are achieved and that the design experience corresponds as closely as possible to what engineers encounter in actual practice. Thus, the questions and problems that student teams face are typical of those regularly confronted by practicing engineers, and the solutions they devise must work in practice, not just in theory.

We believe that our broad engineering program graduates engineers capable of adapting changing technologies to expanding human needs, while at the same time being sensitive to the impact of their work on society. In this context, an engineering major may choose to emphasize a particular engineering specialty by appropriate choice of elective courses and Engineering Clinic projects. Specific programs tailored to individual needs are developed in consultation with an engineering faculty advisor.

Course Descriptions

Engineering Courses

Programs

Engineering