UM Mechanical Engineering:

Graduate Program Orientation

Katsuo Kurabayashi, Ph.D.

katsuo@umich.edu
Professor of Mechanical Engineering
Associate Chair for Graduate Education

Why Choose Grad School?

Increase technical knowledge
Expanded opportunities for your
future
Salary differences! Increased earning
potential:
Become part of a diverse intellectual
community
Be part of state-of-the-art research
endeavors
Life-long learning

Our hopes for you

M.S. Students:
The goal of the M.S.E. program is to add technical depth to
the Bachelors degree, provide exposure to interdisciplinary
breadth and create highly marketable leaders capable of
addressing 21st Century engineering challenges.

Ph.D. Students:
The goal of the Ph.D. program is to create a culture of
scholarship and high impact research that produces articulate
researchers who are called upon first to hold leadership
positions in society and academia.

Support Programs

M.S. Students seeking a job at industry:

Multidisciplinary Design Program (MDP)

Internship through Curricular Practical Training (CPT)
Face-to-face ME Alumni Career Advising Events
SearchLite Innovators-in-Residence Program

M.S. Students interested in PhD:

ME Independent Study ME590

Change of Program (COP)

PhD Students:

Future Faculty Workshop Series

Graduate Fellowship Workshop Series
New Graduate Course on Research Design, Paper/Proposal
Writing, & Presentation

Post-Graduation Career for

Masters

Post-Graduation Salaries for

Masters

Where do our students go after Ph.D.?

Academia

Michigan ME

Hae-Won Park
( PhD 2012)
Assist. Professor at UIUC

Tahira Reid
Julien Meaud
Kate Whitefoot
(PhD 2010)
(PhD 2010)
(PhD 2011)
Assist. Professor at Assist. Professor at Assist. Professor at
Purdue
Georgia Tech
Carnegie Mellon

Julianna Abel
(PhD 2014)
Assist. Professor at
U. Minnesota

Industry

Linda Chow
(PhD 2006)
Research Scientist at
Intel

Other

Greg Sommer
(PhD 2008)

Steve Truxal
Dibyadeep Paul
Katherine Avery
(PhD 2008)
(PhD 2015)
(PhD 2015)
Business Associate at Product Engineer at Research Scientist at
McKinsey & Co.
Lamb Research
Ford

Staff Scientist at Sandia

National Lab until 2012

Now Co-Founder and

CEO of Sandstone
Diagnostics, Inc
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UM College of Engineering

Outstanding Faculty
65 T&TT Faculty and 21 Research
Faculty
World Class Academic Reputation

Outstanding Graduate Students

From top undergraduate engineering schools
selected over ~1500 applicants each year.
Best Student Awards in ASME, AIAA, ASA,

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World-Class Research Facility

G.G. Brown Research Complex

New three-story world-class research

complex a $46 M, 63,000-square-foot
addition to the G.G. Brown
State-of-the-art facility for transformative
research activities where core mechanical
engineering intersects with emerging
micro-, nano-, and bio- technologies
Dedication Oct 10, 2014
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World-Class Research

High Impact Publications by ME Faculty

Featured in BBC, NPR, New York Times

How different from college?

Unstructured processes to solve more open-ended
problems and projects
Trial-and-error processes to discover or learn
something new leading to future technological
advancements
Lack of information about what you should spend
your time on
Interdisciplinary study that requires both depth and
breadth
A lot of reading to get an idea of whos doing what
where
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Misconceptions about Research

Research is always exciting. You should always feel
happy about your work
Working on homework and taking exams is the way
for you to gain problem-solving skills for research
Failing in your trail-and-error process without
producing desired results is a waste of time
Your research topic is ruined since you find new work
that seems to be doing exactly what you are working
on
Criticism is a sign of your poor performance

14

Finding an Advisor
Read research summaries by faculty members in the ME Website.
Go to talks they give, and attend or audit courses given by
professors of your interest.
Talk to other graduate students and recent graduates to learn about
advising style (hands-off vs. engaging)
average time their Ph.D. students take to finish
established or just starting as faculty
Introduce yourself and describe the area you are interested in.
Attend their research group meetings
Give them a copy of a research proposal if you have a good idea of
what you want to work on.
Ask them if there are any ongoing research projects that you could
get involved with.
Read their published papers, and the work of their students.
15

Discussing a Funded Project with Faculty

You will not fall through the cracks here: this is a fully funded
Ph.D. program (once admitted, your funding is guaranteed
throughout your Ph.D. program).
A funded project will enable you make your research progress
faster with focus.
A funded project will make your research more impactful.

You need to talk to Grad Chair when

You feel behind in class with the lack of familiarity
with course materials taught at UM.
You are considering switching your advisor.
You feel isolated or mistreated by peer students or
faculty.
You need technical feedback to your RFE (oral
qualifying exam) performance.
You feel your graduate life is extremely tough for any
reason.
You need to discuss a confidential matter.

You need to talk to Academic Services

Office (ASO) staff when
You have questions about your course selection,
degree requirements, visa-related requirements, CPT
paperwork, and etc...
You want to set up an appointment with Grad Chair.
You need information on TA/Fellowship support.
You seek general non-technical academic advices.
Learning Center

Friendly, Fun Staff!

Mechatronic and Design

Innovation Lab

U-M Diversity & Equity

Ms. Pamela Heatlie
Senior Associate Director for
Institutional Equity

ME Graduate Orientation
Linh Huynh & Kristel Briney
Senior Academic Advisors
Academic Services Office

August 23, 2016

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How We Can Help

Navigating rules and policies

Degree requirements/progress tracking
Course registration
Connecting with academic and general campus
resources
Services and resources for wellness
Related academic paperwork/letter requests
(Rackham, International Center, Registrars Office,
etc.)
Additional academic opportunities

Waitlist & Overrides

Handled by ASO. Please do not email course instructors
We try our best to get you into the courses you need
If waitlist is available, please add yourself. If on waitlist, no
need to email me-aso
If waitlist not available, complete Fall 2016 Override Request
Form
Being on the waitlist does *not* guarantee a spot
Arising registration issues
Have not taken prerequisite courses at UM

22

Contact Information
ME Academic Services Office
2350 Hayward St., 2380 GG Brown
me-aso@umich.edu
734-764-0863

23

ME Graduate Student Orientation:

Career Planning Information

ENGINEERING CAREER RESOURCE CENTER (ECRC)

230 CHRYSLER CENTER
ECRC-INFO@UMICH.EDU
HTTP://CAREER.ENGIN.UMICH.EDU

ECRC Overview
Student Career Services

Engineering & Computer Science students & alumni

Internship, Part-Time, Full-Time job searches
Comprehensive career advising
Employer Relations
Online recruiting system (ENGenius.Jobs)
On-Campus recruiting events

230 Chrysler Center http://career.engin.umich.edu ecrc-info@umich.edu

1. Activate ENGenius.Jobs
Michigan Engineering Career Services Portal
Request a career advising appointment
Job Search Resources
Search hundreds of active job postings
Upload resumes, cover letters, unofficial transcript
Register to attend workshops & events
Accept & schedule on-campus interviews
Research 3,700 employers
Career & job search resources + leads
230 Chrysler Center http://career.engin.umich.edu ecrc-info@umich.edu

2. Update Your Resume

Resume Resources
Review ECRC Career Manual
Schedule a resume critique
with an ECRC Career
Advisor
Industry Resume Critiques
Sept 12: General Electric
Sept 13: X by 2
Sept 14: Stryker
Sept 15: Ford
Sept 16: TI / Intel
230 Chrysler Center http://career.engin.umich.edu ecrc-info@umich.edu

3. Attend Workshops
Fall 2016 Workshops
US Job Search for

International Students
Career Fair Prep (2x)
ENGenius.Jobs
Resume + Cover Letter (2x)
Elevator Pitch Booth
Interview Preparation
LinkedIn Portrait Sessions
Secrets to a great PhD
Resume for Industry

230 Chrysler Center http://career.engin.umich.edu ecrc-info@umich.edu

4. Participate in Networking Events

Visit the ECRC Career

Events Calendar to learn

about fall recruiting events

Company Days
Industry Resume Critiques
Information Sessions

Attend the SWE/TBP Fall

Career Fair

Sept. 19 & 20
10 am-4 pm
Beyster, Dow, G.G. Brown,
EECS, FXB, Duderstadt,
Chrysler, Pierpont

230 Chrysler Center http://career.engin.umich.edu ecrc-info@umich.edu

QUESTIONS?
ENGINEERING CAREER RESOURCE CENTER

230 CHRYSLER CENTER

ECRC-INFO@UMICH.EDU
H T T P : / / C A R E E R . E N G I N . U M I C H . ED U

Projects for Mechanical Engineering Masters

Students
Multidisciplinary Design Program

Fast Facts
Two types of projects to choose from: Faculty
Research Teams (VIP), or Industry Projects
Small, diverse teams
All students enroll for academic credit
WN17 and FA17
Final grade is issued in FA17

Who are the Students?

School of Music, Theater and Dance
Stamps School of Art & Design
School of Information
Ross School of Business
College of Engineering
College of Literature, Science & Arts
Taubman College of Architecture
School of Kinesiology
School of Social Work

Kellogg Eye Center

2016 Team
1 CE
1 EE (graduate)
2 Computer Science
1 BME (graduate)
1 Biology

E-Nable
2016 Team
1 EE (Graduate)
3 Computer Science
2 Biomedical Engineering
1 S.I. UI/UX (Graduate)

What are the projects?

See all 52: mdp.engin.umich.edu

Industry Pre-Approved for ME 590

Automotive

1.5L Turbo SGE Stochastic Pre-Ignition Project (GM)

Cold Start Transmission Optimization (GM)
Wheel Shutter Design for Aerodynamic Improvement (GM)
Cooling System Modeling (Isuzu)
Marine
Marine Pump Design for race boats (Ilmor)

Manufacturing

Robot/Cobot Design for Manufacturing (P&G)

Medical Device Test Apparatus Design (Stryker)
Heatstake Assembly Design (Johnson Controls)
Kelloggs 3D Chocolate Printer

What are the projects?

See all 52: mdp.engin.umich.edu

Research Projects Pre-Approved for ME 590

Automotive

V2V Communication & Fuel Economy for Class 8 Trucks (Prof. Gabor Orosz & UMTRI)
Manufacturing

Robotics & Cloud Control of Manufacturing Systems (Profs. Dawn Tilbury & Kira Barton)
Space

MiTEE Cube Satellite Design: NASA Launch December 2017 (Prof. Brian Gilchrist)
Time Capsule Design: Launch Scheduled 2018 (Prof. Thomas Zurbuchen)
Space Mission Launch: Satellite Design: NASA Launch October 2019 TBD (Prof. Justin Kasper)

How does it fit in my schedule?

Course Enrollment Options for ME Masters Students
WN 17

FA 17

ENGR 599 (2 credits)

ENGR 599 (2 credits)

ENGR 599 (1 credit)

ME 590 (3 credits)

Summers with MDP

MDP offers up to $4k Summer Research Stipends (application in Feb)
Most sponsors offer Guaranteed Internship Interviews, some guarantee Internships

Life of an MDP Student

Industry Project
2 Hours with Faculty Mentor
1 Hour with Sponsor Mentor
4 hours on your project
Research Project
3 Hours with subteam
5 Hours on your project
Faculty Interaction Varies

Must apply THIS SEMESTER

No Interviews
Apply Online (Resume + Paragraph)
Offers go out in November
Course Override sent in December
Projects begin in January!
mdp.engin.umich.edu

Questions?
joyadams@umich.edu
mdp.engin.umich.edu

ME PhD Ghana Internship

Make global education a core part of your
doctoral education
Funded two-month research internship
Application deadline: Rolling
Applicants notified: Within approximately two
weeks of application submission
Apply at:
https://sites.google.com/a/umich.edu/me-ghana/
Questions? Email sienko@umich.edu or
MEGhanaPhDinternship@umich.edu

http://me.engin.umich.edu/Gradcncl

MechE Grad
Council (MEGC)

@MichiganMEGC

Mechanical Engineering
Grad Council

Steph Crocker Ross

Membership Chair

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About GradSWE
Mission
Create a supportive and fun community for women across
U of Ms engineering departments
Currently we have ~130 members!

45

GradSWE Organization
We host four types of events

Social Activities
Professional Development
Networking
Outreach

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GradSWE Organization
Social Activities

47

GradSWE Organization
Networking
Events that promote connections between faculty members, local
industry engineers, and GradSWE members
Upcoming events:
o Female Faculty Student Mixer
o American Women in Science Conference

Professional Development
Events that improve GradSWE members workplace skills
Upcoming events:
o Strategies for Equality Series, co-hosted with the Center for Entrepreneurship
o Post-Doc/Researcher Panel
o Work Smarter Not Harder Workshop

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GradSWE Organization
Outreach

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YOU ARE INVITED to GradSWEs Welcome Dinner!

Tuesday, September 13th from 6 7:30 PM
Johnson Rooms on the 3rd Floor of the Lurie Engineering Center
RSVP Required Email me (Steph) at sjcrock@umich.edu

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Connect with us!

Join our email list
Email me (Steph) at sjcrock@umich.edu
Or enter your info on our website (find by googling GradSWE at umich)

Join our Facebook group

Find us at GradSWE at UM

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ME Graduate Student Panel

Q & A Style
Mr. Shantonio Birch, Mr. Jeff Plott
Ms. Kim Ingraham (Ph.D.)
Mr. Andrew Stephens,
Ms. Devyani Kalvit (Masters)