College Overview

Students in UTA’s College of Engineering are making an impact! They perform research with award-winning faculty in state-of-the-art facilities, apply their knowledge to hands-on senior projects and internships, and start businesses to bring their ideas to market. Their experience here prepares them to address important global issues, solve problems and develop new technology to improve the world around us.

With nearly 10,000 students from almost every U.S. state and 66 countries, ours is the fourth-largest engineering school in the state. This is one of the most comprehensive programs in the nation, with 12 baccalaureate, 13 master’s, and nine doctoral programs, and we are ranked in the top five among all engineering schools in Texas and its four surrounding states.

UTA is a Carnegie Foundation “Research-1: very high research activity” university and has access to Texas’s National Research University Fund. We spend more than $74 million per year in research covering key areas such as healthcare, security, energy, infrastructure and artificial intelligence, with funding from agencies such as the National Science Foundation, National Institutes of Health, the U.S. Departments of Defense and Energy, NASA, and the American Heart Association.

Thousands of our alumni work in industry in the Dallas-Arlington-Fort Worth Metroplex, and our influence is felt in dozens of Fortune 500 companies across the United States. We are an integral member of our community, and our efforts are leading to transformative change for people everywhere.

Majoring in Engineering

Majoring in Engineering at UT Arlington can provide preparation for an exciting and fulfilling career.  Here is information to guide

• admission to the college directly from high school or as a transfer student
• advising along the way.
• admission to the professional program in the chosen major
• cooperative education / career experience

Admission to the College of Engineering

Admission to the College of Engineering is based on the University's undergraduate admission requirements plus the following additional admission criteria for the College.

Students Entering Directly from High School

Students entering directly from high school or with less than 24 hours of transfer credit will be evaluated on the basis of the following admission criteria:

• meeting UTA admissions requirements.
• presenting a satisfactory SAT or ACT score 
• for all programs other than Construction Management, completing the prerequisites necessary to enroll in MATH 1426 and CHEM 1441 or CHEM 1465. Construction management does not require MATH 1426.

Students entering directly from high school or with less than 24 hours of transferable credit will initially be advised by the Division of Student Success (DSS). Transitioning to advisement by College of Engineering advisors will occur as the student accomplishes certain GPA and course completion milestones.

Students Entering with Transfer Credit

Transfer students include those from other units within UTA and those from other educational institutions. Transfer students with less than 24 hours of transferable credit are admitted under the criteria for students entering directly from high school.

Transfer students with 24 hours or more of transferable credit will be evaluated on the basis of the following admission criteria:

• meet UTA admissions requirements.
• for transfer to all programs other than Construction Management, at minimum, complete the prerequisites necessary to enroll in MATH 1426 with no more than three attempts in any prerequisite course.
• have earned a GPA of 3.0 or above in transferred courses applicable to the degree plan requirements.
• have an overall GPA of 3.0 or above in all transferred courses.
• comply with the C-grade rule (see Undergraduate Policies)  
• comply with the three-attempt rule (see Undergraduate Policies) 

Advising

First year Students: Students entering directly from high school and those with less than 24 hours of transferable credit are advised initially in the Division of Student Success (DSS). Students are transitioned to advising in the College of Engineering as they progress successfully in their degree programs.   See the College of Engineering website for details on transition.

Transfer Students: Students with 24 hours or more of transferable credit are advised in the College of Engineering. New transfer students who are undecided about their engineering major or who are conditionally admitted are advised in the Engineering Success Services Center; others are advised in their major department. New students will not be able to register for classes without first being advised and obtaining an approval to register.

Ongoing Advising: Continuing students in all engineering majors must receive advising by their major departments before registering. One period in October and another in March are designated for preregistration advising.  Students must be cleared (showing that they have been advised) before proceeding with registration.

The advising goal for students who have not yet attained professional program status is to strengthen their academic background sufficiently so that they are able to subsequently complete courses in their engineering degree plans. To this end, a student's advisor may require them to enroll in fewer courses than specified by the University and may require them to retake courses for which credit has already been received.  See individual department program descriptions for requirements.

Admission into the MAJOR'S Professional Program

Students who have successfully completed the initial program of study may apply to their department for advancement to the professional program. Prior to admission to the professional program, students are required to demonstrate their intellectual talent, work habits, and professional ethics to warrant acceptance for study toward a College of Engineering degree.

The term "pre-professional courses" is used for the set of courses, as specified by the degree plan, required for entrance into the professional program. The term "professional courses" is used for the later courses in the major, generally 3000- and 4000-level courses. See each program’s requirements for the degree in this catalog for specifics. The professional program includes students who have been accepted by a College of Engineering department into the professional program course sequence. An official degree plan is filed upon acceptance into this category. For advancement to a department's professional program, students must meet the following requirements:

•  Academic performance: Students must have completed all pre-professional courses with a grade of C or better, completed at least 12 hours of math, science and engineering courses required for the degree and taken at UTA, complied with the Three-Attempt Rule, and met other departmental transition requirements, including the program's three-calculation GPA minimums.  Refer to the College of Engineering Academic Regulations and individual department program descriptions for specific requirements in the desired program.

Cooperative Education

The Cooperative Education Program is a partnership between the University and business, government, and industry that provides students the opportunity to obtain experience in their chosen engineering discipline by alternating periods of formal study with periods of work or through a parallel program which allows students to work part-time while taking courses. This program enhances a student’s education through work-related experiences and by association with participating professional engineers, and also provides a competitive salary when working.

Students who successfully complete the Co-op Program will receive a cooperative education certificate and have this accomplishment entered on their transcripts. Co-op Program students are expected to register each work term in an engineering course (ENGR 2100, ENGR 3100, ENGR 4100, ENGR 3000) specified by the Director of the Co-op Program. For enrollment reporting purposes only, students registered for one of these four courses will be considered full-time students. ENGR 2100 will be designated as the part- time co-op course.  Students classified as full-time students under the Co-op Program are not eligible for financial aid but can use this designation for enrollment reporting for other purposes.  Students requiring financial aid must meet state and federal enrollment guidelines for enrollment in the required minimum semester credit hours each semester where aid is sought. The College of Engineering provides assistance in placing students with companies that are related to their specific needs and program of study.

Information on prerequisites for application and requirements for acceptance are available in the Kelcy Warren Career Experience Center, 231A Nedderman Hall, and on the College of Engineering web site.

College of Engineering Undergraduate Policies

Work at UTA

• Academic Honesty: The College of Engineering takes academic honesty and ethical behavior very seriously. Engineers are entrusted with the safety, health, and well-being of the public. Students found guilty of academic dishonesty will be punished to the full extent permitted by the rules and regulations of the University, up to and including dismissal from the College and/or the University.  
• C-Grade Rule: A grade of D or lower in a pre-professional course indicates unsatisfactory preparation for further engineering education. Any such course in which a D or lower is earned must be repeated before enrolling in any course for which it is a prerequisite. This requirement is subject to the Three-Attempt Rule. Students unable to raise their grade to at least a C in a pre-professional course within three enrollments (attempts) are required to change their major to a field outside of the College or to a College of Engineering program that does not include that course. 
• English as a Foreign Language: Courses in English as a foreign language will not substitute for either ENGL 1301 or ENGL 1302.
• Academic Load: Students may not enroll in more than the University’s maximum permitted academic load without receiving the permission of their department and the Dean of Engineering. The College of Engineering considers 12 semester hours in the fall and spring terms and nine semester hours in the 11-week summer term to be a minimum “full load” for undergraduates.
• Three-Attempt Rule:  Students may attempt a course (at UTA and/or at any other institution) a maximum of three times and apply that course toward an undergraduate degree in the College of Engineering.   The "course", in this context, is any course which is a degree requirement or preparatory to a degree requirement. Enrollment in a course for a period of time sufficient for assignment of a grade, including a grade of W, is considered an attempt.

Work at Institutions other than UTA

• Enrollment in Other Institution(s): To ensure adequate coverage of needed material, once enrolled at UTA as an engineering major, a student must obtain written permission from the department before enrolling in courses intended to be transferred to the University for credit toward a UTA engineering degree.
• Transfer Courses: Only equivalent courses in a program accredited by ABET or those lower division courses accepted by the College of Engineering or the student’s major department can be counted toward an engineering degree.
• Validation of Transfer Credit: Transfer credit that constitutes a part of a continuing course sequence in the same area will be validated only upon satisfactory completion of the succeeding course in the sequence at UTA. Students whose performance in the subsequent courses at UTA is poor may be required to repeat courses taken elsewhere.

Academic Standing

• Three-Calculation GPA: The College of Engineering uses three GPA calculations to evaluate students for admission and continuation. The college will use the university’s grade exclusion/forgiveness policy applicable to the student in determining the three GPA calculations. For all COE regulations, GPA requirements and calculations are truncated (not rounded) after three decimal places.  Only grades earned at UTA are used in the COE GPA calculations. A student’s COE three-calculation GPA must meet or exceed the requirement in each of the following three categories:
  • All courses
  • All math, science, engineering and construction management courses applicable to the degree being sought, and
  • All courses in the major subject applicable to the degree being sought.
• Satisfactory Academic Standing:  College of Engineering pre-professional program students are in satisfactory academic standing if they are not on University probation and at the same time maintain the program's three-calculation GPA in the pre-professional program, are not in violation of the 3-attempt rule, and meet the GPA and other transition requirements of their major program.  College of Engineering professional program students are in satisfactory academic standing if they are not on University probation and at the same time maintain a major GPA and overall GPA of 2.0, are not in violation of the 3-attempt rule, and meet the GPA requirements of their major program. (See the major department section of the catalog for this requirement.) 
• College of Engineering Probation:  Academic standing is determined at the end of each semester after official grades post. College of Engineering students in the pre-professional portion of their program will be placed on College of Engineering probation if any one of the three GPA calculations falls below the minimum set by their department. Students on College of Engineering probation and in the pre-professional portion of the program are advised by an Engineering Student Services advisor. While on probation, students may be required to participate in student success activities, meet course grade requirements, and may be restricted in course load and/or course selection.  Students remain on College of Engineering probation until either they meet the minimum requirements of their major program or they are dismissed from the College. Once in the professional program, students in a College of Engineering major may be placed on College of Engineering probation if their major GPA or overall GPA falls below their program’s requirement for graduation, which is 2.0 for all programs.
• Attempt limit in engineering courses:  Individual programs within the College of Engineering may limit the number of unsuccessful attempts at engineering courses prior to transitioning to a professional engineering program.  A student who exceeds the limit of unsuccessful attempts allowed for a program of study may be dismissed from that program.  Enrollment in a course for a period of time sufficient for assignment of a grade, including a grade of W, is considered an attempt. 

Competence in Oral Communication and Computer Use

Students in engineering and computer science satisfy the oral communication requirement by successfully completing COMS 2302. Programs in the College of Engineering have different requirements for demonstrating computer literacy. Students should consult their particular degree program for details.

Transient Student Enrollment in Engineering Courses

Enrollment of transient status students in COE courses will be approved on a case-by-case basis by the offering department.  Criteria includes status of student in their home institution, academic record, prerequisite status for courses requested, and course availability.  

Designated Tuition Charge

In addition to fees applicable to the entire University, each engineering course carries a “designated tuition” charge (authorized by the Board of Regents per statute 54.0513) detailed under Description of Tuition and Fees.

Requirements for an "Engineering Math" Minor

The Mathematics Department supports an Engineering Math minor available to students with a major in the College of Engineering. For specific requirements, please see the departmental advisor in the major program.

COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING Undergraduate Certificates

Undergraduate certificates in areas of specialization are offered in the College of Engineering. Typically, students must complete 12 to 15 hours of course work as detailed in the requirements for specific programs to earn a certificate. These certificates can be earned by students who are pursuing their undergraduate degree at UTA. More information about the certificates offered in the College of Engineering is provided in individual department sections of the catalog and on the web pages of the departments offering the certificates.

Honors Degree

College of Engineering students who wish to graduate with an Honors Degree in Engineering must be members of the Honors College in good standing. They must complete the major degree requirements and the requirements of the Honors College. Honors Degree requirements are compatible with all departmental and college requirements, but specific requirements vary with each engineering department’s program. It is particularly important that students pursuing an Honors Degree in Engineering consult carefully with an advisor in the College of Engineering and also in the Honors College before each registration to be sure all requirements are met.

Professional Licensure

The protection of the public welfare requires that those who practice engineering do so ethically and competently. Professional licensure requires an individual to meet examination and practice requirements defined by the laws of the state or states in which he or she intends to practice.

The first step toward licensure as a Professional Engineer (P.E.) is to pass the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) examination. Graduating seniors are permitted to take the FE examination during their final year. The FE examination is offered by the Texas Board of Professional Engineers in both the fall and spring semesters. Since this examination is over topics common to all engineering degree programs, students are strongly urged to avail themselves of this opportunity at a time when their academic preparation is at a peak.

Pre-med and Pre-law Studies

Students graduating with degrees in engineering occasionally choose to go on to medical schools or law schools. Those students are advised to consult early with UTA pre-med or pre-law advisors so that additional requirements can be taken in a timely way. For example, a minimum set of additional courses for an engineer planning to apply to medical school consists of 4 chemistry courses (2 in general chemistry, 2 in organic chemistry), and 4 biology courses (2 in general biology plus 6 hours of advanced Biology).