What is Materials Engineering?
The materials engineering program applies materials science to engineer improved construction materials to build our infrastructure. These materials traditionally include asphalt concrete, portland cement concrete, steel and fiber reinforced concrete, unbound and chemically bound aggregates and chemically treated and stabilized soils.
The civil engineering curriculum at Texas A&M covers a wide spectrum of topics in materials engineering, including materials science, general construction materials, pavement design, pavement management, micromechanics, and microstructure characterization and modeling.
These courses provide undergraduate students with the scientific concepts and practical considerations underlying the selection, specification, and quality control of civil engineering materials. In addition, graduate students are provided with the knowledge necessary to advance in the practice and art of materials engineering.
During the past decade, the needs of the nation and the world have required civil engineers to also focus on the reuse of valuable materials and resources, which in turn has created exciting challenges in understanding how to chemically and mechanically stabilize these materials for reuse. Current challenges require the application of micromechanics, computer-assisted visualization tools, thermodynamics, kinetics and an appreciation of construction processes to solve problems. Civil engineers have adapted and applied multidisciplinary principles to solve problems and have used similar approaches to those used in solid rocket propellants, adhesives, metals and ceramics.
In our materials research program, we interact with and share the resources of the Texas Engineering Experiment Station, the Texas Transportation Institute, and several university-based national centers of expertise, including the International Center for Aggregates Research, the South Central Superpave Center and the Center for Asphalt Materials and Chemistry. These centers offer the opportunity to provide funding for outstanding students and to demonstrate the application of engineering principles and research on a field scale.
Degree Information
Students can earn M.S., M.Eng. and Ph.D. degrees in civil engineering in the materials engineering specialty area.
The civil engineering curriculum at Texas A&M covers a wide spectrum of topics in materials engineering including materials science, general construction materials, pavement design, pavement management, micromechanics and microstructure characterization and modeling. These courses provide undergraduate students with the scientific concepts and practical considerations underlying the selection, specification and quality control of civil engineering materials. In addition, graduate students are provided with the knowledge necessary to advance in the practice and art of materials engineering.
Master of Science
A minimum of 30 semester credit hours of approved courses is required for the Master of Science degree (MS). At least 23 semester credit hours must be coursework and the remaining made up of a maximum of 7 credit hours of CVEN 691 (research). A complete discussion of all university requirements is found in the current Texas A&M University Graduate Catalog. For example, university requirements include a final examination and submission of a thesis to the university.
Master of Engineering and Master of Science (Non-Thesis)
The Master of Engineering (M.Eng.) and Master of Science (Non-Thesis) degrees require 30 credit hours of coursework. These non-thesis degrees also require a professional report whose content is determined by the advisory committee. This report can include results of research conducted by the student, or it can be a report written for a specific course or as part of CVEN/OCEN 685 - Directed Studies. You must provide a minimum of 2 weeks for the review of the report and for the form to be signed. It is your responsibility to ensure enough time is provided in order to meet the deadlines by the university’s Office of Graduate Studies. A complete discussion of university requirements is found in the current Texas A&M University Graduate Catalog.
Doctor of Philosophy
The Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degree is a research-oriented degree requiring a minimum of 64 semester credit hours of approved courses and research beyond the Master of Science (M.S.) degree [96 credit hours beyond the Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degree]. The university places limitations on these credit hours in addition to the requirements of the Zachry Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and the Materials Engineering program.
A complete discussion of all university requirements is found in the current Texas A&M University Graduate Catalog. For example, university requirements include a preliminary examination, a final examination and submission of a dissertation to the university.