The emphasis in the MET program is placed on understanding how engineering principles are applied in practice rather than on the mathematical methods used in the derivation of new technologies. At the same time, the program goes beyond the teaching of current procedures, so that the graduates are enabled to adapt to the changing needs of industry. Graduates find careers in many technological fields, including plant operations and management, quality assurance, product and manufacturing systems design, testing and evaluation, technical sales, and environmental testing and enforcement. CSUS offers primarily the upper division portion of the MET program.
Most students take the first two years at a community college.
Building on a foundation in natural science, mathematics, computer science, drafting, manufacturing processes, and lower division technology courses, the student comes to CSUS to develop more fully an understanding of the properties of engineering materials, the design of mechanisms, the selection of machine components, energy and power technology, and the behavior of fluids and hydraulic machinery. Students may also take additional courses in either Business Administration or Computer Science toward a minor. A minor broadens the student's career base and offers the opportunity for continued learning through graduate study. The Mechanical Engineering Technology program is the only one of its kind offered by a state university in northern California. General Education advising for all students is done by the Academic Advising Center.