4+1 BS in physics / MS in mechanical engineering

How Does It Work?

To complete the 4+1 BS in physics / MS in mechanical engineering program, students complete the requirements for a BS degree in physics (applied physics track) and the MS degree in mechanical engineering (project option). 

In the third year of their undergraduate studies, students take one mechanical engineering undergraduate course. In the fourth year of their undergraduate studies, students combine physics bachelor's- and master鈥檚-level mechanical engineering courses. In the fifth year, students are admitted to the Graduate School and focus solely on the mechanical engineering graduate work. Up to three graduate-level (5XX) courses may be applied to both degrees. (Note that these do not count toward the Graduate School residence requirement.)

Timeline

First Year through Senior Year (Year 1-4)

  • Take courses for a BS in physics (applied physics track)

Junior Year (Year 3)

Fall

  • Complete the 4+1 Intent Application in the my.binghamton portal to declare intent to join the 4+1 Program

Spring

  • Take one of the following mechanical engineering undergraduate courses as a technical elective

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Senior Year (Year 4)

  • Take three 500-level mechanical engineering courses (technical electives)*
    • Two ME 500-level (graduate-level) mechanical engineering courses will be chosen from the MS ME Core Courses or Specialization courses.
    • One ME 500-level (graduate-level) course will be chosen from the Specialization courses. 

* Counted for credit requirements in both BS in Physics and MS in Mechanical Engineering

  • Apply to the Graduate School on the my.binghamton portal

Graduate Year (Year 5)

  • Complete the required MS ME coursework and project requirement

(ME 535 requirement is waived and satisfied by the required undergraduate physics course PHY271 Math Methods in Physics)

MS Curriculum

The MS degree requires students to complete 30 credits of coursework and a project. Up to 9 graduate-level credits are double-counted towards BS in physics and MS in mechanical engineering.

Students must complete a minimum of 18 graded (A-F) credits after completion of the BS degree to meet the residency requirement. The student must maintain at least an overall B average (GPA 3.0/4.0) for his or her graduate coursework to be eligible for the MS degree.

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See available courses.

MS Project Option and 4+1 BS/MS Program

  • Classes common between core and specialization areas will only satisfy one requirement, not both.
  • Classes may be taken in any order, provided that all prerequisites are met.  

One of the following mechanics core courses

Students who have taken ME 211 are recommended to take one of the following:

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Students who have taken ME 421 are recommended to take:

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Students who have taken ME 351 are recommended to take:

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One of the following computational core courses

Students who have taken ME 211 are recommended to take:

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Students who have taken ME 421 are recommended to take:

  • ME 537: Advanced Numerical Methods, Optimization and Statistics

    ME 537: Advanced Numerical Methods, Optimization, and Statistics

    Credits: 3

    This course covers numerical algorithms for simulation-driven engineering, including (1) practical statistics for computational results (estimators, confidence intervals, bootstrap), (2) scalable linear and nonlinear solvers (Jacobi, CG, Newton methods), (3) gradient-based optimization for engineering design (steepest descent, BFGS/L-BFGS), (4) Monte Carlo and variance-reduction techniques for uncertainty quantification, and (5) numerical solution methods for ordinary and partial differential equations that arise in mechanical engineering, such as diffusion/heat equations and elasticity problems, using finite-difference and related discretization schemes.

    Prerequisite: Ordinary Differential Equations, Engineering Computational Methods or equivalent.

    Offered in spring.

Students who have taken ME 351 and ME 550 are recommended to take:

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Four courses must come from one of the following specializations

Students who have taken ME 421 are recommended to choose:

Students who have taken ME 211 are recommended to choose

Students who have taken ME 351 are recommended to choose 

AND

Three advisor-approved technical electives (one of these may be taken outside ME but it should be a 5xx graduate-level Watson College course).

AND

3 credits of ME Project (ME598) or Industrial Internship (ME594).