Engineering the future of future engineers
Engineering of the future must reflect large-scale impact on people and sustainability, and cover a spectrum of activities from environment to systems to infrastructure. At MIT CEE we define a new way forward for educating the civil and environmental engineers of the future.
Nano is today, big engineering is tomorrow
We believe that civil and environmental engineering will become one of the most important engineering disciplines of this century. As we manage to control the world of the small – manifested in the nano-age – the defining challenge of human progress is the scale-up towards a sustainable future. Our educational model in engineering must prepare our students to become the leaders to shape this new era of civilization. Several critical strategic thrusts define areas of activity in life & living systems, resources & energy, infrastructure, smart cities, and global systems.
The challenges of our time have huge scales, and require radically new approaches in thinking across disciplines, and a focus on human lives and their conditions, everywhere.
The philosophy of MIT Course 1 engineering education implemented in our new 1-ENG curriculum rests on the pillars of fundamental tools, basic engineering skills, and hands-on experience. Through these pillars, the 1-ENG engineering curriculum trains students to become leaders in big engineering.
Recognizing the changing world, CEE@MIT is innovating the engineering curriculum and has designed General Departmental Requirements and Cores that build on the deep history of the department while growing to meet the challenges in the world today & tomorrow.
One of the founding departments of the Institute, MIT CEE is a leader in the professional and academic evolution of civil and environmental engineering education that fosters a unique combination of hands-on learning & theory, or hand & mind, the motto of MIT.
MIT CEE undergraduate education explores the sources of strength, defines the impacts of small-scale changes on global systems, uses massive data, fosters speed and a achieves a swifter path. We find new ways to explore resources and energy, and understand life on Earth under changing conditions. It's about human systems, everywhere, and about human lives and their conditions.
Why 1-ENG?
Engineering for impact requires a strong foundation in math, computation, probability and statistics, data analysis, and design, in addition to fundamental engineering skills such as fluid mechanics, ecology & environmental chemistry.
The design of 1-ENG into General Department Requirements (GDRs), selection of one of three cores, and branch subjects facilitates this ambition. A student can pursue a civil or environmental engineering track, or enter new tracks of study that focus on foundational themes such as systems engineering, air and water quality, or energy resources. These opportunities, serving traditional disciplines but also providing students with new options, is the basis to the design of the curriculum.
Advising is a critical part of the 1-ENG curriculum. We believe that engineering education must start with a close inspection of the aspirations, to connect education to the passion, and to open opportunities for our students to discover their future.
Inspiring a new generation of engineers to dream big
Students enter 1-ENG in a cohort of other students who will focus on the General Department Requirements (GDRs). There are ample opportunities to build a community, get to know the students and faculty, and to engage in hands-on research projects, from the moment the students join our community.
The students define the future
Our alumni
Our alumni inspire us. Our broad alumni base offers an exceptional network of current students, alumni & friends, & faculty leaders across the globe that is at the students' fingertips.
Connect with us via one@mit.edu, or follow us on Twitter @MIT_CEE and @ProfBuehlerMIT.
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