History and Quick Facts

History of the department

The Department of Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering enrolled its first class of undergraduate students in the fall of 1996 and moved into what is now Engineering West Hall in 1998. Two years later, in May 2000, M.S. and Ph.D. graduate degree programs in Engineering were established and the first graduate students joined the department.

VCU responded to the demand for qualified nuclear professionals in Virginia. In 2007, the department launched a new M.S. degree program in Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering and in 2009 began offering an undergraduate major concentration in Nuclear Engineering. In 2012, the department launched the nation’s first hybrid Ph.D. in Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering. The mechanical engineering department relocated to Engineering East Hall in January 2008 and in the fall of 2010 officially changed its name to the Department of Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering.

Brief History

1996– First class of students enrolls at the VCU School of Engineering

1996– Initiation of Mechanical Engineering Program

2000– ABET Accreditation of B.S. in Mechanical Engineering

2000– Establishment of M.S. and Ph.D. in Engineering

2007– Initiation of M.S. Track in Nuclear Engineering

2008– Establishment of M.S. in Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering (including online option)

2009– Initiation of B.S. Major Concentration in Nuclear Engineering

2010– Department name changed to Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering

2012– ABET Accreditation of B.S. Major Concentration in Nuclear Engineering

2012– Establishment of Ph.D. in Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering

Degrees Offered