In teaching we seek to encourage our students to discover their individual talents, inspire them to work up to their potential, and prepare them for lifelong learning and successful lifetime careers. Our undergraduate education shall provide for study in the basic sciences, the liberal arts, and engineering analysis and design in accordance with national standards and be innovative in content and approach. In particular, our undergraduate program should benefit by enrichment from our research activities and ties to industry and our maintaining a strong co-op program with its opportunities for actual engineering experience. We recognize that because of our urban setting and size, some students may find it difficult to develop the satisfying, personal attachments to our department and university that come more easily at smaller, more intimate institutions. Accordingly, we must be conscious of the needs to create a departmental atmosphere that overcomes these handicaps and build on the benefits that accrue from our rich surroundings.
Research is an integral part of graduate education.
While our research program should be broad in scope it cannot cover all aspects of mechanical and industrial engineering. Rather, we should select research foci based on such factors as faculty members' capabilities and interests, long-range importance to mechanical and industrial engineering, leadership potential within the department, the ability to provide supporting facilities, potential for enriching the undergraduate curriculum, and relevance to regional needs. Furthermore, these focus areas should be chosen with regard to the obligation to obtain adequate, stable financial support and be confined to a size and scope within the means of available resources. We encourage collaboration among faculty and programs that crosses disciplinary and departmental boundaries. Our research programs should be in the forefront of their respective areas and we should regularly measure their productivity in terms of technological impact and the quality and originality of publications, patents, and graduate degrees granted.