I typically has 10 teams or 30 students total in each class. MEL II and III have 6 teams and 18 students per class. Experiments are connected to lecture courses where possible. MEL II primarily focuses on Strength of Materials and Fluid Mechanics courses. As small systems are developed with these topics, students specializing in various disciplinary majors and specialties begin to understand the commonalties in and relationships between their disciplines.
Students work in multidisciplinary teams of three to perform the experiments.
The topics, devices, and skills chosen for MEL II provide fundamental engineering concepts and systems for the more sophisticated systems that graduates will experience in industry. This sequence also moves students from a controlled engineering science laboratory to less controlled engineering design environments. MEL is designed to improve student success in the senior capstone design course by making a careful transition between science and engineering design. The introductory experiments bridge basic science and engineering science. The second course transitions between engineering science and engineering design, and the third laboratory prepares students for industrial projects they might see in their first full time employment.