Seminar Requirement

Continuous registration in ME 590 or TAM 500 is required for all MS and PhD students. Seminar credit cannot be counted toward coursework requirements. Students are required to attend a minimum of 4 seminars per semester to receive a satisfactory grade. MS students must enroll during each semester they are in residence, and PhD students must enroll each semester until after they have successfully completed their Preliminary Exam. Three of the required four seminars must be MechSE department seminars. To receive credit for department seminars, attendance will be recorded via card swipe.

Students who are enrolled in a course that conflicts with ME 590 or TAM 500 must request a registration override, register for ME 590 or TAM 500, and attend alternate seminars. Students who arrive late or leave early from a seminar will not receive credit for attending.

To complete seminar registration with a conflict:

1. Request a registration override by contacting the Undergraduate Programs Office at mechse-ug-advise@illinois.edu. Include your name, UIN, and the course you are enrolled in that is in conflict with the seminar. 

2. You will receive an email when the override is entered.

3. You must register for ME 590 or TAM 500 after the override is entered.

Alternate Seminars

Alternate seminars include MechSE Fluids seminar series (TAM 539),  Manufacturing Interest Group seminar series (MFIG), any other MechSE seminars not within the MechSE Seminar Series (ME 590/ TAM 500) and any other seminars in Engineering, Math, or Physics. Students may attend as many alternate seminars as they choose; however, only ONE alternate seminar can be counted towards the seminar requirement each term. Students who intend to receive credit for alternative seminars MUST submit a  completed Seminar Attendance Verification form signed by the seminar's host to the Graduate Programs Office at mechse-grad@illinois.edu within 7 days of the seminar event. Since there will not be card scanning at alternative seminars, this is the only way of verifying your attendance. If a completed Seminar Attendance Verification form is not submitted within the 7-day period, no credit will be awarded. 

A weekly seminar calendar will be emailed to registered ME 590/TAM 500 students every Friday.