Department of Mechanical Engineering

Quick Facts

Quick Facts about the Department of Mechanical Engineering

  1. The department has administered one of the largest mechanical engineering programs in the United States for more than 100 years and ranks in the top ten nationally in terms of bachelor’s degrees awarded.
  2. Iowa State University’s first diploma was awarded in the discipline of mechanical engineering.
  3. With 1,000 undergraduate students and 150 graduate students, mechanical engineering is the most popular major at Iowa State University.Our students come from the state of Iowa, 20 other states, and 20 foreign countries.
  4. Each year, the department awards more than 200 undergraduate scholarships, some 300 students participate in industrial internships and co-ops, and 50 students study abroad.
  5. The department boasts internationallyacclaimed research programs in biological and nanoscale sciences, clean energy technologies, complex fluid systems, design and manufacturing innovation, and simulation and visualization.
  6. Our research programs are sponsored by industrial partners; the National Science Foundation; the Air Force Office of Scientific Research; the National Aeronautics and Space Administration; and the Departments of Energy, Defense, Agriculture, and Transportation.
  7. Mechanical engineering faculty and student researchers collaborate across 24 departments on campus, all 7 university colleges, 17 research institutes and centers, and 150 organizations outside of Iowa State.
  8. Mechanical engineering faculty lead major research enterprises, including the Bioeconomy Institute, the CyberInnovation Institute, the Virtual Reality Applications Center, the Industrial Assessment Center, and the Center for Building Energy Research.
  9. Faculty members are regularly praised for their contributions to research, education, and professional service by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, American Society for Engineering Education, Department of Energy, National Science Foundation, and Society of Automotive Engineers.
  10. The department managesmore than50,000 square feet of modern research and teaching facilities, including the Caterpillar Mechatronics Laboratory, the Boyd Laboratory for Product Realization, and the Engle Manufacturing Laboratory.

Quick Facts about the College of Engineering

  1. Iowa State boasts the nation’s seventh largest engineering college, with 8 departments, 4,600 undergraduate and 950 graduate students, 220 faculty members, and annual research expenditures exceeding $60 million.
  2. More than 50 centers and institutes within the college facilitate interdisciplinary research.
  3. The college offersthe largest engineering career fair in the nation, drawingmore than 4,500 students and 1,000 recruiters representing 300 employers.
  4. Research throughout the college is directed at using engineering to solve major global and societal issues such as nonpolluting energy sources, clean water in underdeveloped countries, sustainable agricultural and manufacturing practices, expanding commerce, and universal access to information.
  5. By the time they graduate, 83 percent of engineering students have participated in an industrial internship or co-op, and 25 percent have had an international study experience.

Quick Facts about Iowa State University

  1. Iowa State was the nation’s first land-grant university, established when Iowa was the first to accept the provisions of the federal Morrill Act under the signature of Abraham Lincoln.
  2. The university is located in Ames, Iowa, which is ranked as the second most livable small city in the nation.The nearly 2,000-acre park-like campus comprises more than 100 buildings.
  3. Iowa State is notable for having developed the world’s first digital computer.It is the only university in the country to host a Department of Energy national laboratory on campus—the DOE Ames Research Laboratory.
  4. The university is ranked second nationally in R&D 100 awards, second in research licenses and options, and tenth in patents among all U.S. universities.The National Science Foundation identifies Iowa State University as a “licensing powerhouse” because of its record of technology transfer to companies.