Dear Prospective Graduate Student:

Thank you for your interest in the Graduate Program in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of California at Santa Barbara.

The Department offers programs leading to the degrees of M.S./Ph.D and Ph.D. with a specialization in any of the following five areas: Computational Science and Engineering (CSE); Dynamical Systems, Control and Robotics (DCR); Micro- and Nanoscale Engineering (MEMS); and Solid Mechanics, Materials and Structures (SMMS); and Thermal Sciences and Fluid Mechanics (TFS).

The Department features outstanding faculty. Ten faculty members hold membership in the National Academy of Engineering, which reflects an exceptionally high national standing. Further, several faculty members have been awarded the most prestigious prizes and awards in their respective fields, including the NSF Career Award, the Sloan Fellowship, the Humboldt Senior Scientist Award, the APS Fluid Dynamics Prize, the ASM Gold Medal, and the SIAM Dahlquist Prize.

Faculty in the department look forward to the opportunity to collaborate with talented and motivated graduate students. Important goals we envision for our PhD students include: (1) a thorough understanding of current literature and the identification of fundamental research problems; (2) the development of a strong theoretical and experimental background and the proposal of innovative solutions to challenging problems; (3) the presentation and publication of research in the most prestigious journals and conferences; and (4) the development of teaching, laboratory, personal communication, team work and presentation skills.

The Department invites applications from keen students and offers a number of attractive fellowships and teaching and research assistantships. All applicants will be considered for financial aid during the review process. Our Department strives to create an environment attractive to all students, independently of race, gender, age, religion, socioeconomic status, and more. We strongly encourage underrepresented minorities and people with different cultures and backgrounds to apply.

It is our experience that students enjoy UC Santa Barbara's tradition of open collaboration and interdisciplinary research. Santa Barbara is a beautiful coastal campus with many cultural and recreational opportunities to augment student life. The overall environment is very supportive of scholarly and creative work.

We wish you the very best in your upcoming graduate studies!

Graduate Admission Committee
Mechanical Engineering Department
UC Santa Barbara

Research Areas and Centers	Mechanical Engineering Graduate Student Directory
Optional Emphasis Computational Science and Engineering	Integrative Graduate Education and Research Traineeship Program
College of Engineering Announcement 2007-08 [PDF]	UCSB Graduate Division