American University of Beirut

The Department of Mechanical Engineering offers one undergraduate degree program that leads to a bachelor of engineering with a major in mechanical engineering (BE in ME) and a minor in applied energy.

The mechanical engineering program extends over a four-year period and is offered exclusively on a daytime, on-campus basis. The program is offered in 11 terms whereby eight terms are 16-week fall/spring terms given over four years, and three terms are eight-week summer terms taken during the first three years of the program. In the summer term of the third year (Term IX), students are required to participate in a practical training program with a local, regional, or international organization. The entire program is equivalent to five academic years but is completed in four calendar years with three summer terms.

The undergraduate program also provides students with options to pursue minors in the following:

The mechanical engineering faculty members have agreed that the undergraduate program mission is as follows:

The undergraduate program in mechanical engineering seeks to empower students to pursue successful careers and to create a learning environment in which they can develop their creative and critical thinking skills, grow into lifelong learners in light of ever-increasing challenges of modern technology, and commit to the ethical and professional responsibilities required in their calling at the global level while focusing on the needs of Lebanon and the region.

The program is based on the following educational objectives that were approved by the mechanical engineering faculty members on May 27, 2010:

Our graduates will be able to advance successfully in their careers as reflected in continued employment, job satisfaction, leadership responsibilities and professional recognition.

Our graduates will be able to succeed in graduate studies as reflected in admission to highly ranked programs, timely completion of degree requirements and recognition by competitive fellowships and other awards.

The undergraduate curriculum for the degree of bachelor of engineering (BE), major: mechanical engineering is a five-year program. It consists of 180 term credit hours of coursework of which 30 credits are completed in the freshman year while the students are enrolled in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences and 150 credits are completed in four years while the students are enrolled in the Maroun Semaan Faculty of Engineering and Architecture. Students admitted at the sophomore level will be required to complete 150 credits in four years to earn the degree as outlined here:

The core courses in the mechanical engineering program are offered in the following track areas:

The students may opt for any track (thermal and fluid engineering; mechatronics; or design, materials and manufacturing) by taking at least three technical electives in the selected track. Normally one technical elective is allowed from outside the mechanical engineering major.

The ME concentration in control and robotics provides a coherent academic framework between the ECE and ME departments in the areas of control, instrumentation, and robotics. This track is open to all undergraduate ME and ECE students. 

Students choosing to enroll in the control and robotics concentration should satisfy the following course requirements:

The minor in applied energy is open to all MSFEA students who are interested in the energy domain and in renewable energy applications. Students seeking professional careers that will focus on energy, the environment, sustainable applications in buildings and energy systems may find this minor attractive. The minor in applied energy is administered by the Department of Mechanical Engineering.

Students who have completed at least 60 credits at the sophomore level and higher and who have a cumulative GPA of 2.3 or more may apply by completing a minor application. The minor will be indicated on the transcript of the students who complete all the requirements described below. A minimum grade of C+ is required for a course to count towards the fulfillment of the minor.

Students wishing to complete the minor are required to complete a minimum of 18 credits: 6 credits from the list of core courses and 12 credits from the list of elective courses.

The first are two core courses (6 credits) that provide a foundation for the understanding of energy science and technology and its economy.

The second component is a number of elective courses (12 credits), selected by the students in close consultation with their academic adviser for the applied energy minor.

Integrated product design is an interdisciplinary minor, located at the intersection of design, engineering, business, art, humanities, and social sciences. The minor in integrated product design is open to all AUB students who are interested in expanding their knowledge of design and obtaining a deeper understanding of the design process of goods, systems, and services from research and conceptualization, to design development and prototyping, and to marketing and branding. It is a minor for students who are inspired to become social entrepreneurs to design and develop products that can be implemented and scaled to trigger positive systemic change. Through the minor, students are exposed to a range of design skills and methods, from visualization of ideas to creative problem-solving, and transformative design thinking. They also learn to work with multidisciplinary teams on hands-on projects and in a studio environment.

Students must earn 18 credits to satisfy the requirements for the minor in integrated product design. These are distributed as follows:

Students will follow AUB’s regulations while pursuing the minor. University minimum requirements for a minor are as follows: