Mechanical Engineering Careers
Mechanical engineers are recruited in a variety of industries, including automotive, aerospace, power generation, environmental, electronics, bioengineering, food processing and consulting firms, among many others.
Because of the variety of fields relevant to this profession, UC Merced's undergraduate program covers areas in dynamics, materials, thermal/fluids, vibrations, controls, computer-aided engineering, design and manufacturing.
The innovative curriculum at UC Merced provides hands-on education that exposes students to engineering fundamentals, laboratory work and the use of computational tools to solve realistic engineering problems. The program also prepares students to pursue graduate work in engineering or other disciplines.
Mechanical engineering is an evolving discipline that adapts to the needs of society. Some of the exciting current areas of research include advanced energy systems, sustainable energy, autonomous vehicles, biomechanics and biosensors, nano/micro-technology, computational modeling, design optimization and complex systems.
Students in Mechanical Engineering can pursue a career as an engineer, consultant or researcher in industry and governmental agencies, or a teacher or professor in educational institutes. Examples include:
- Aerospace engineer
- Fluid dynamics engineer
- Materials engineering consultant
- Robotics engineer
- Thermodynamics and heat transfer engineer
- Automotive engineer
- Nuclear engineer
- Energy system engineer
- Acoustics engineer
- Engineering researcher
- Professor in engineering
*Please Note: Some of these careers require education beyond a Bachelor's degree.
You can find more information on careers and jobs opportunities in aersopace engineering at the ASME Career Center.
Aerospace Engineering Careers
Humans have always been fascinated by birds and successfully mimicked their flight behavior with the invention of airplanes. Since that first flight in 1903, the field of Aerospace Engineering has advanced leaps and bounds and taken us to significant heights not only within the earth’s atmosphere but even to another planetary bodies in our solar system and beyond.
The demand for Aerospace (that includes Aeronautics and Astronautics) engineers will continue to grow rapidly with the ever-growing emphasis on more efficient, faster, cheaper, and quieter airplanes. The entire world is also witnessing a surge in space exploration with the possibility of even space tourism becoming a reality within the next decade.
The Aerospace Engineering major is designed to provide a solid foundation and necessary skills to have a successful career in industry/government agencies. The program also offers the appropriate preparation to pursue graduate school and a career in research and development.
Because of the variety of fields that are relevant to this profession, the undergraduate program covers a broad range of subjects, including aerodynamics, structures, propulsion, and dynamics/ control. The innovative curriculum at UC Merced provides a rich educational experience that exposes students to engineering fundamentals, laboratory skills and advanced computational tools to solve realistic engineering problems by adopting the right balance between theoretical and hands-on learning approaches that will be appropriate for all kinds of learners. The programs at UC Merced emphasize a highly interdisciplinary approach; thus the curriculum offers several technical electives in topics inside and outside the Aerospace Engineering program, and a culminating design experience.
Students in Aerospace Engineering can pursue a career as an engineer, consultant or researcher in industry and governmental agencies, or a teacher or professor in educational institutes. Examples include:
- Aerodynamics engineer
- Propulsion systems engineer
- Flight systems analyst
- Aerospace structures engineer
- Satellite and spacecraft systems engineer
- Avionics engineer
- Research and development engineer
- Space mission analyst
- Systems integration engineer
- Aircraft performance engineer
- Professor in aerospace engineering
*Please Note: Some of these careers require education beyond a Bachelor's degree.
You can find more information on careers and jobs opportunities in aersopace engineering on the AIAA Career page.
