Cockrell School of Engineering

The Mechanical Engineering Department is part of the Cockrell School of Engineering at the university. The first degree in engineering at the university was awarded in 1888, and six years later, in 1894, the Department of Engineering was established as a part of the University of Texas at Austin, with the Mechanical Engineering department being formed in 1914. Since then the School of Engineering has grown and developed and is today an integral part of the university.

The Cockrell School of Engineering is recognized for its academic excellence nationwide. In the 2008 US News & World Report, it was ranked ninth best engineering program in the nation, among both undergraduate and graduate programs.

Faculty

Senior faculty include the fourth highest number of members in the National Academy of Engineering, the nation's highest honor for engineers. Junior faculty have received more than 80 National Science Foundation awards for professional potential, generally considered the nation's top honor for young faculty.^*

Students

The school also has top-notch students. Fall 2007 entering freshmen had an average SAT score of 1316. Seventy percent are from the top 10 percent of their graduating class and 9% were valedictorians or salutatorians. Undergraduates enrolled in the Cockrell School in fall 2007 received a total of more than 2,500 scholarships, totaling $7.8 million. The Cockrell School awarded just over $2 million to more than 300 graduate students from endowed fellowships during 2007-2008.^*

Enrollment Breakdown in 2008⁺

• Undergraduate: 5,328
• Master's: 816
• Doctorate: 1,055

Research

The school also produces some of the best research in the nation. Here are few of the recent findings by the school:

• Livestock manure could be converted into a fuel source, and alleviate 3% of North America's consumption needs.
• A laser can be used as a microscalpel to destroy single cells in precision surgery.
• A new chlorine-tolerant membrane can be used to simplify the water purification process.
• A graphene-based material helps solve the structure of graphite oxide.

^[*] Cockrell School of Engineering Fact Sheet
^[+] Statistical Handbook 2007-2008, p. 45 (pdf)