Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering at Pennsylvania State University
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    Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering at Pennsylvania State University

    Pennsylvania State University
    Pennsylvania State University
    United States of America
    United States of America, University Park
    University Rank:#82
    Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering at Pennsylvania State University

    The Mechanical Engineering is a Bachelor degree offered by Pennsylvania State University across its Any Penn State Campus, Altoona, Erie, Berks, University Park, Harrisburg, and Scranton campuses in United States of America. The program is delivered on campus as a Full Time course in English and requires approximately 4 years to complete. Students study across its Any Penn State Campus, Altoona, Erie, Berks, University Park, Harrisburg, and Scranton campuses while gaining the knowledge and practical experience expected for this area of study. The next intake is available from June 1, 2027.

    About Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering

    Mechanical engineering is the largest and broadest engineering discipline. It uses a combination of physics, chemistry, mathematics, and materials science to study mechanical, fluid, and thermal systems. Mechanical engineers are problem solvers: They use their foundational knowledge to apply scientific and engineering methods to the design, construction, and testing of products and components to ensure that they are safe, reliable, and cost effective. Mechanical engineering differs from mechanical engineering technology in that it emphasizes the math and science behind the theoretical development of engineering analysis and design process principles rather than the application of these principles. Mechanical engineers design everything from athletic equipment, medical devices, theme park rides, and personal computers to engines and power plants.

    You Might Like This Program If...

    You think outside the box to develop solutions to everyday problems. Mechanical engineers contribute to our health, happiness and safety, and often change the way we think about the world.

    Mechanical Engineering is one of the broadest engineering disciplines and is central in many new technological developments. Mechanical engineers create things that help improve the health, happiness and safety of our everyday lives such as biomedical devices, aircraft and cars, and ways to store renewable energies. Mechanical engineering is divided into two broad areas: mechanical systems and thermal systems. Mechanical systems include the design of mechanisms and the analysis of the strength and wear of materials. Thermal systems include methods of energy conversions, heat transfer and fluid flow.

    Disciplines

    Penn State Altoona The Altoona College

    Requirements and Admission Criteria for Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering at Pennsylvania State University

    Entry Requirements

    Penn State requires the submission of specific academic credentials to complete your application. Review the secondary and post-secondary requirements for your country below.

    If you are a first year student applying to Penn State:

    Click Apply to start your Penn State application. Before starting, you can also review the Applying Online Worksheet for more details and helpful hints about the application.

    Your application work can be saved at each step of the process by clicking the Save and Continue button at the bottom of the page. This feature will allow you to move back and forth within the application or log off and return to complete your application at a later time.

    After completing your Academic History, you will need to provide your Self-Reported Academic Record (SRAR). As you begin the SRAR process, a new window will open allowing you to complete your SRAR. SRAR will focus on your high school coursework. It is important that this step is a complete and accurate representation of your school record. Therefore, have a copy of your secondary school records available as you complete your SRAR. You will need to enter every class and every grade earned for the last three years, as well as those classes in progress.

    After completing your SRAR, you will be directed back to the Penn State application in order to complete the Program of Study portion of the application. Here, you will indicate your desired starting semester, your intended program of study, and your starting and ending campus. For further details on how to complete this portion based on your applicant type, please see the steps to apply for first-year students.

    After completing this section of the application, you will provide some additional information, an activities resume, and a personal statement. You will be able to paste in this information from other sources, but note that the formatting may not always paste in as intended.

    If you are a transfer student applying to Penn State:

    All international transfer students will be required to submit official high school transcripts in order to complete the application. International transfer students will not complete the Self-Reported Academic Record (SRAR) for either their high school or college coursework.

    If you have accepted your offer of admission to Penn State:

    If you completed SRAR and are accepted to Penn State, please provide the following for grade verification:

    • Official transcript from years 9, 10, 11, and 12. If the transcript is issued in a language other than English, it must be accompanied by a separate line-by-line English translation.
    • Official copy of the Tawjihi, accompanied by a separate line-by-line English translation.

    English Requirements

    • IELTSMin 6.5
    • TOEFLMin 80

    Career Opportunities after Completing Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering

    University Park: Penn State's mechanical engineering curriculum offers many opportunities to gain hands-on experience in the profession. At the University Park campus, our experiential laboratory components and design course sequence are tailored to prepare you to enter industry or graduate school. The design component of the curriculum culminates in an industry-sponsored senior design project, in which you'll work in a multidisciplinary team to solve a real-world issue. Our laboratory course encourages higher-order thinking skills. Students explore fundamental mechanical engineering knowledge through the lens of solving real-world problems in topics such as energy and sustainability, autonomy and robotics, and machine learning.

    Penn State Scranton: Penn State Scranton is one of only five campuses that offer the mechanical engineering major. The Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering provides students with the necessary training and education to become technical leaders in various industrial, commercial, consulting, and governmental organizations.

    University Park: Penn State's mechanical engineering program at the University Park campus has had a long and successful history. Mechanical engineering was introduced at Penn State in 1881. Graduates from our department go on to work in a diverse range of industries for large multinational companies and small local firms. Mechanical engineers are well prepared to work as managers due to their broad backgrounds and creative problem-solving skills. Historically, our graduates regularly accept positions at Fortune 500 companies, such as Ingersoll Rand, Boeing, Toshiba-Westinghouse, General Electric, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Dow Chemical, ExxonMobil, Procter & Gamble, United Technologies Corporation, and Johnson & Johnson.

    Penn State Scranton: The mechanical engineering program at Penn State Scranton prepares you for entering the mechanical engineering industry or going on to graduate school. Mechanical engineering is called "the mother of all engineering majors" for a reason; it gives the student exposure to many different disciplines. Mechanical engineering graduates get jobs in many different types of industries both locally, nationally, and globally. Examples of career opportunities for mechanical engineers are:

    • design engineers
    • research engineers
    • biomedical equipment
    • analyst
    • entrepreneur
    • test engineer
    • rocket engineer
    • project manager
    • sales engineer

    According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics mechanical engineers earn an average starting salary of $70,000 and mid-career salary of $100,000.

    MORE INFORMATION ABOUT POTENTIAL CAREER OPTIONS FOR GRADUATES OF THE MECHANICAL ENGINEERING PROGRAM

    Opportunities for Graduate Studies

    University Park: If you want to work with renowned faculty, scientists, and engineers, the Department of Mechanical Engineering located at the University Park campus is a great place for you. We are one of the nation's largest engineering departments with more than 60 full-time faculty, numerous research staff, visiting faculty, scientists, and more than 300 graduate students. Research funding comes from industry and government sources, including the Department of Energy, the National Science Foundation, the Army, the Air Force, and NASA. Our graduates are known for their ability to find high-level positions in national research centers and laboratories as well as postdoctoral and tenure-track positions in top-tier research universities.

    Penn State Scranton: Mechanical Engineering graduates of Penn State Scranton campus are eligible to continue for a master's degree at many US colleges and universities.

    MORE INFORMATION ABOUT OPPORTUNITIES FOR GRADUATE STUDIES

    Professional Resources

    • American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)
    • Professional Licensure/Certification Disclosures by State

    Tuition and Fee Information for Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering at Pennsylvania State University

    Application Fee 75

    How to Apply for Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering at Pennsylvania State University

    Step 1: Choose Your Application Method

    Apply through MyPennState

    The first step of the application process is to create a Penn State account, if you do not have one already. MyPennState is where future students can access the online application.

    If you are new to MyPennState, you will need to establish a Penn State User ID and password, which you will access during the MyPennState profile creation process. Once you have your log in information, you can sign in to begin work on your application.

    When creating the profile, please use the name that is on your passport. Because materials are filed alphabetically under the family name on the application, it is important that all correspondence and records consistently use the same name (family and given) and spelling. If this name does not match your academic records, please notify us of the difference. Please note: In the U.S., the family name is usually referred to as the last name, and the given name is referred to as the first name.

    Additionally, Penn State requires a current, valid email address, as that is our primary means of communication with international students. To ensure deliverability, please make Penn State (psu.edu) an eligible sender to the account.

    Applying through the Common App

    Applying to Penn State via the Common App is available to first-year (freshman) international students. If applying through the Common App, Penn State will create a MyPennState profile when the application is submitted and you will receive instructions on how to access your profile. If you intend to apply with the Common App, you do not need create a MyPennState profile prior to submitting your application.

    Step 2: Access the Application and Review Important Dates

    While you can create a MyPennState profile at any time, the application for admission becomes available on the following dates:

    Fall/Summer Admission: August 1

    Spring Admission: June 1

    The application submission dates vary by applicant type and intended program of study. Some programs have specific deadlines or admissions requirements. Please refer to our Dates & Deadlines for more information about application deadlines, as well as our Admissions Requirements to review information about any additional materials required for your intended program of study.

    Step 3: Start Your Penn State Application

    If applying through MyPennState:

    Click Apply Online to start your Penn State application. 

    Your application work can be saved at each step of the process by clicking the "Save and Continue" button at the bottom of the page. This feature will allow you to move back and forth within the application or log off and return to complete your application at a later time.

    After completing your Academic History, you will need to provide your Self-Reported Academic Record (SRAR), unless otherwise directed. You will be directed to enter information about your secondary school coursework. Please have a copy of your secondary school records as you complete SRAR. It is important that this step is a complete and accurate representation of your school record. You will need to enter every grade for every course you have taken in the last three years, as well as your current schedule of classes.

    Students educated in South Korea will not complete SRAR. The document requirements for South Korea can be found by reviewing our International Credential Requirements.

    After this section, you will be directed back to the Penn State application to complete the Program of Study portion. Here, you will indicate your desired starting semester, your intended program of study, and your starting and ending campus. For further details on how to complete this portion based on your applicant type, please see the steps to apply for either first-year students or transfer students.

    After this portion, you will provide some additional application information, an activities resume, and a personal statement. You will be able to paste in this information from other sources, but note that the formatting may not always paste in as intended.

    If applying through the Common App:

    Complete the Common App, which will then direct you to MyPennState to complete SRAR. Applicants using the Common App may feel that they provided their high school record via the Common App, but Penn State requires the completion of SRAR via MyPennState. We strongly encourage you to obtain an official copy of your high school transcript to ensure accurate entry of your coursework completed and grades earned. The SRAR will include all of your high school coursework from your last three years of work and your current year schedule. If your final year grades are available when you enter SRAR, you can enter them at that time.

    Step 4: Submit Your Application

    The application requires a nonrefundable application fee of $75 for international students. Be sure to complete the last step after Summary and Review, which finalizes payment of your fee, and be certain it is successfully submitted. Once the application is submitted, you can verify its completion by accessing your MyPennState profile.

    Step 5: Submit Required Application Materials

    In order to complete your Penn State application, we need the following materials:

    • Application
    • Secondary school record
    • Post-secondary school records (if applicable)
    • First-year applicants only: Official test scores: SAT (code #2660) or ACT (code #3656)

      Writing Component and Subject Tests

      Please note: The writing component of standardized tests (SAT or ACT) is not required. The writing component will not be used as part of our evaluation. If your test scores include the writing component, by all means, have those scores sent to Penn State. Additionally, we do not require SAT Subject Tests.

    • English language proficiency, if your native language is not English

    Please see the admissions requirements for international students to review the details about the required application materials. Some programs require additional items to complete your application. Please review our Admissions Requirements for those details.

    Penn State does not require letters of recommendation, nor are they used in a student’s evaluation (unless required for a specific program).

    Step 6: Check Your Application Status in MyPennState

    You can always check the status of your application in MyPennState. We will communicate with you via MyPennState and through a series of emails regarding the missing items for your application. When everything has arrived, you will see a status in MyPennState confirming the completion of your application.

    Please note: It is your responsibility to check on the status of your application and send us any missing materials.

    Step 7: Receive Your Admission Decision

    Once we have reached a decision regarding your application, we will update your status in MyPennState and provide a printable PDF of your decision letter. Review our Dates & Deadlines to see when you should expect your decision.

    If accepted, you can accept your offer of admission in MyPennState to begin the process of becoming a Penn State student. Visit our Accepted Students section to review the next steps in this process. Once you accept your offer of admission to Penn State, those students completing SRAR will submit their official records for validation purposes as soon as possible.

    Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering at Pennsylvania State University
    Pennsylvania State University
    Pennsylvania State University
    United States of America

    United States of America, University Park

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