College of Engineering

Engineering Education

Overview

The Department of Engineering Education (ENGE) teaches first-year and second-year engineering courses, advises General Engineering (GE) students, and offers a graduate certificate and a Ph.D. in engineering education. The department offers second-year courses in engineering topics such as computer-aided design and programming.

At the undergraduate level, the department provides the foundation for students to complete a bachelor of science degree in one of the College of Engineering programs and move into degree-related employment or graduate studies. At the graduate level, the department prepares students to teach engineering and conduct research related to teaching, learning, and assessment in engineering contexts.

Accreditation statements may be found in the listings for individual undergraduate degree programs.

Special Facilities

The department has a student project laboratory, the Frith Freshman Engineering Design Laboratory, equipped for hands on engineering design and reverse engineering activities. The Frith Lab is reconfigurable for a number of different activities and has been used for purposes ranging from simple mechanical fabrication to using small fuel cells for experimental purposes.

The department also includes several research laboratories that focus on generating cutting-edge research in engineering education and translating that research into practice to enhance undergraduate education. Undergraduate students are welcome to join in research projects in these labs and centers. http://www.enge.vt.edu/facilities-labs.html

• The Center for e-Design is a nucleus for the creation and dissemination of a systematic body of knowledge in intelligent design facilitation and product realization. Its research objectives are to develop and test technologies, to provide a testbed to verify and validate the performance of vendors’ software, and to nurture and cultivate a new breed of engineers and business leaders. http://www.centerforedesign.org/
• The Design, Research, and Education for Additive Manufacturing Systems (DREAMS) Lab empowers future designers through the discovery of new tools, techniques, and technologies for improving design practice and through a better understanding of how design education affects learning and practice. DREAM lab members strive to improve design pedagogy by exploring new instructional methods and technologies, exploring students’ design cognition and behavior, and linking existing design methodologies to educational practice. http://www.dreams.me.vt.edu/
• The LabVIEW Enabled Watershed Assessment System (LEWAS) Lab integrates hardware and software components to develop learning modules and opportunities for water sustainability education and research. LEWAS brings real-time water data using wireless technology from the Webb branch of Stroubles creek, an on-campus stream, into our first year engineering classes for water sustainability education. http://www.lewas.centers.vt.edu/
• The Virginia Tech Engineering Communications Center (VTECC) brings faculty, students, and professionals together to explore, design, practice, and teach communication and collaboration in support of engineering work. The lab provides a creative think space for engineering students and faculty to break through disciplinary molds and collaborate across boundaries to drive innovation. http://www.vtecc.eng.vt.edu/
  

First Year Students and General Engineering

The General Engineering (GE) program of the EngE department serves first-year students in the College of Engineering. Through EngE courses, first-year students participate in problem solving and design exercises that represent the essence of the engineering profession. The courses emphasize team-based, design-oriented, hands-on experiences to develop students’ concepts of engineering and engineering methods, while reinforcing the role of concurrent required courses (e.g. mathematics, chemistry, English, physics). They also serve as a foundation for subsequent courses in the various engineering curricula. Coverage of engineering ethics instills a sense of the responsibilities of engineers to society. Algorithm development and computer programming develop logical thinking, provide the background for computer use in later courses, and support problem solving skills. Spatial visualization skills are developed through engineering graphics, a primary engineering tool. Through writing and presentations, students begin to develop professional communication skills, including audience analysis, visual rhetoric, effective writing styles, opportunities and problems posed by electronic writing environments, issues in collaborative writing, techniques of oral presentation, print and Web-based research, graphics for written and oral presentations, and editing.

All College of Engineering students must own 1) a convertible tablet PC or laptop and Windows 7 or 8 slate/tablet meeting current specifications, and 2) stipulated software used to analyze and solve problems in and out of class. Computer requirements for engineering students can be located at http://www.eng.vt.edu/it/requirement.

Transfer to Engineering Departments

Entering students are admitted to General Engineering, the first-year program for all engineering curricula. As noted, this program introduces students to foundational concepts and practices in engineering, allows time to adjust to the College, and provides opportunities to investigate the College’s individual degree programs and select the branch of engineering or computer science best suited to their skills and interests. At the end of the year – after academic advising, contacts with the various departments, and satisfactory progress – students select a degree program and, if academically eligible, are transferred to the appropriate degree-granting department.

Entry into a degree-granting engineering department requires that students successfully complete all required first-year courses. Students must also earn a minimum grade of C- in any ENGE prefixed courses required before transferring into a degree-granting engineering department.

In addition to requiring successful completion of the first-year courses, some degree-granting programs have additional restrictions and/or required courses before students may transfer from General Engineering. Please see the College of Engineering catalog section titled “Required Academic Progress” for details, and visit http://www.enge.vt.edu/Undergraduate/changing_majors/index.html for application dates.

First Year
First Semester
CHEM 1035: General Chemistry	(3)
CHEM 1045: General Chemistry Lab	(1)
ENGE 1215: Foundations of Engineering	(2)
ENGL 1105: Freshman English	(3)
MATH 1225: Calculus of a Single Variable	(4)
Curriculum for Liberal Education (CLE)	(3)
Credits	(16)
Second Semester
ENGL 1106: Freshman English	(3)
MATH 1226: Calculus of a Single Variable	(4)
PHYS 2305: Foundations of Physics I	(4)
ENGE 1216: Foundations of Engineering	(2)
Aerospace Engineering interested students: ECON 2005: Principles of Economics or CLE Course	(3)
Biological Systems Engineering interested students: CHEM 1036: General Chemistry	(3)
Chemical Engineering interested students: CHEM 1036: General Chemistry CHEM 1046: General Chemistry Lab	(3) (1)
Computer Engineering interested students: ECE 1574: Object-Oriented Engineering Problem Solving with C++	(3)
Computer Science interested students: CS 1114: Intro to Software Design or CS 1124 Intro to Media Computation	(3)
Electrical Engineering interested students: ECE 1574: Object-Oriented Engineering Problem Solving with C++	(3)
MATH 1114: Elementary Linear Algebra or MATH 2114: Introduction to Linear Algebra -- see http://www.enge.vt.edu/undergraduate/courses.html for recommendations by major	(2-3)
All other students: Curriculum for Liberal Education	(1-3)
Credits	(15-18)

Undergraduate Course Descriptions (ENGE)

1024: ENGINEERING EXPLORATION
Introduction to the profession and the College of Engineering.  Foundation material in:  problem definition, solution and presentation; design, including hands-on realization working in teams; modeling and visual representation of abstract and physical objects; scientific computation; algorithm development, computer implementation and application; documentation; ethics; and professionalism. Grade of C- or better required of all students attempting entry into College of Engineering programs.  Attempts to achieve grade of C- or better limited to two attempts, including attempts utilizing the W grade option. Co: MATH 1205. (2H,2C)

1104: EXPLORATION OF THE DIGITAL FUTURE
Builds on the principles and practice of engineering design introduced in 1024 and introduces various discipline-specific engineering tools.  Topics covered include: the engineering design cycle; patent application and search; basic project management; written and oral communications.  Basic computer organization and Boolean algebra.  Signal and information coding and representation. Introduction to networking.  For students planning to major in Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or Electrical Engineering.  Grade of C- or better required of all students attempting entry into College of Engineering programs. Attempts to achieve grade of C- or better limited to two attempts, including attempts utilizing the W grade option. Partially duplicates 1114. Duplicates 1204.  Prerequisite requires grade of C- or better. Pre: 1024. (2H,2C)

1114: EXPLORATION OF ENGINEERING DESIGN
Builds on principles and practice of engineering design introduced in 1024 and introduces various discipline-specific engineering tools.  Topics covered include:  engineering design cycle; patent application and search; basic project management; written and oral communications; computer assisted design and analysis; the graphics language; working in a team environment.  Requires successful completion of a team-based design project.  For students planning to major in Aerospace Engineering, Biological Systems Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Engineering Science and Mechanics, Industrial and Systems Engineering, Materials Science and Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Mining and Minerals Engineering, and Ocean Engineering.  Grade of C- or better required of all students attempting entry into College of Engineering programs.  Attempts to achieve grade of C- or better limited to two attempts, including attempts utilizing the W grade option.  Partially duplicates 1104. Duplicates 1214.  Prerequisite requires grade of C- or better. Pre: 1024. (2H,2C)

1204: DIGITAL FUTURE TRANSITION
Builds on the principles and practice of engineering design introduced in 1024 and introduces various discipline-specific engineering tools.  Basic computer organization and Boolean algebra.  Signal and information coding and representation.  Introduction to networking. For students who have successfully completed 1114 and are now planning to major in Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or Electrical Engineering.  Grade of C- or better required of all students attempting entry into College of Engineering programs.  Attempts to achieve grade of C- or better limited to two attempts, including attempts utilizing the W grade option.  Partially duplicates 1104. Prerequisite requires a grade of C- or better.
Pre: 1114. (1H,1C)

1214: ENGINEERING DESIGN TRANSITION
Builds on the principles and practice of engineering design introduced in 1024 and introduces various discipline-specific engineering tools.  Topics covered include computer assisted design and analysis and the graphics language.  For students who have successfully completed 1104 and are currently planning to major in Aerospace Engineering, Biological Systems Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Engineering Science and Mechanics, Industrial and Systems Engineering, Materials Science and Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Mining and Minerals Engineering, and Ocean Engineering.  Grade of C- or better required of all students attempting entry into College of Engineering programs.  Attempts to achieve grade of C- or better limited to two attempts, including attempts utilizing the W grade option.  Partially duplicates 1114.  Prerequisite requires grade of C- or better.
Pre: 1104. (1H,1C)

1215-1216: FOUNDATIONS OF ENGINEERING
A first-year sequence to introduce general engineering students to the profession, including data collection and analysis, engineering, problem-solving, mathematical modeling, design, contemporary software tools, professional practices and expectations (e.g. communication, teamwork, ethics), and the diversity of fields and majors within engineering. All engineering majors require a grade of C- or better in 1215-16 for transfer into the major. Each course can only be attempted twice, including attempts utilizing the W grade option. 1215: Corequisites MATH 1205 or MATH 1225. (1H,2L,2C)

1354: INTRO TO SPATIAL VISUALIZATION
Introduction to spatial visualization.  Training to improve three- dimensional visualization skills.  Does not count towards College of Engineering graduation credit. (1H,1C)

1434: FUNDAMENTALS OF ENGINEERING
Introduction to the profession and the College of Engineering.  Foundation material in: problem definition, solution and presentation; design, including hands-on realization working in teams; modeling and visual representation of abstract and physical objects; scientific computation; algorithm development, computer implementation and application; documentation; ethics; and professionalism.  Various discipline-specific engineering tools.  Requires successful completion of a team-based project.  Grade of C- or better is required of all students attempting entry into College of Engineering programs. Duplicates 1024, 1104, 1114, 1204, and 1214.  This course counts as an attempt at each of those courses.  Attempts to achieve grade of C- or better is limited to two attempts, including attempts utilizing the W grade option.  Enrollment restricted to external transfer students. Co: MATH 1205. (5H,5C)

2314: ENGINEERING PROBLEM SOLVING WITH C++
Algorithmic problem solving techniques for engineering problems for various fields; flowcharting, pseudo code, object-oriented program development, editing, compiling, and debugging using the C++ programming language. For Engineering students only. Must have a C- or better in ENGE 1104 and/or ENGE 1114. Pre: (1104 or 1114), (MATH 1114 or MATH 2114), (MATH 1206 or MATH 1226). (1H,2L,2C)

2344: COMPUTER-AIDED DRAFTING
Introduction to computer-aided drafting concepts, primarily in two dimensions.  Creation of two-dimensional system views utilizing lines, polygons, polylines, construction lines; creating drawing views principally applied to facilities design and layout. Must have C- or better in ENGE 1114. Pre: 1114 or 1104 or 1434. (1H,1C)

2514: INTRODUCTION TO ENGINEERING COMPUTATION AND CONTROL WITH LABVIEW
Introduces engineering computation and control using the LabVIEW graphical programming language and the text/matrix-based (and MATLAB compatible) MathScript programming language.  Topics include algorithm development, flowcharts, pseudo code, programming control structures, structured programming, object oriented programming (OOP), data-flow programming, data acquisition, analysis and device control.  Partially duplicates ENGE 2314. Pre: 1104 or 1114 or 1434. (1H,2L,2C)

2824: CIVIL ENGINEERING DRAWINGS AND CAD
Introduction to use of CAD in civil engineering, construction, and other land development projects. Read typical civil engineering drawings. Create land development plans, cross section and profile drawings, and detail drawings utilizing computer aided design and drafting tools. Create two and three dimensional visualizations of civil engineering, construction, and other land development projects. Partial duplication of ENGE 2344. CEE majors only. Pre: 1104 or 1434 or 1114. (1H,1L,1C)

2974: INDEPENDENT STUDY
Variable credit course.

2984: SPECIAL STUDY
I. Variable credit course.

4974: INDEPENDENT STUDY
Variable credit course. X-grade allowed.

4984: SPECIAL STUDY
Variable credit course. X-grade allowed.

4994: UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH
Variable credit course. X-grade allowed.

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