Mechanical Engineering at Illinois now ranks No. 5

In the recently released 2013 undergraduate rankings from U.S. News and World Report, the MechSE Department improved to No. 5 in mechanical engineering.

"This is indeed good news," said Michael Philpott, associate head for undergraduate programs and associate professor emeritus. "Our faculty and our students have been working particularly hard in recent years to enhance the quality and atmosphere of our undergraduate programs."

These undergraduate rankings, published each fall, are based solely on a survey of engineering deans and senior faculty at all ABET-accredited programs, conducted during the spring.

"It has been a joint effort," Philpott said. "We have challenged our student leaders to help us understand where we can do better, and I think we have worked well together in a number of areas; from improving faculty advising and mentoring, to increased undergraduate research opportunities, and support of extra-curricular activities that provide hands-on and entrepreneurial experience."

Overall, Engineering at Illinois ranked 5th for engineering schools whose highest degree offered is a doctorate, with many specialty areas rising in their respective categories. Eight of U of I’s engineering specialties ranked in the Top 5, and 10 are in the Top 10 nationally.

"While this is only one measure of excellence, we are pleased to be counted among the nation’s elite programs," said Michael Bragg, interim dean for the College of Engineering.

This summer, Engineering at Illinois was ranked 4th worldwide in the "2012 Academic Ranking of World Universities in Engineering/Technology and Computer Sciences." Illinois is No. 1 on "The Most-Cited Institutions in Engineering, 1999-2009," a list of the top 20 institutions worldwide with the highest total citations to research papers published in Thomson Reuters-indexed engineering journals from January 1, 1999 to October 31, 2009.