Undergraduate manufacturing education-an interdisciplinary approach

Following a description of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and its motivation to develop as a center in manufacturing education, the history, evolution, and characteristics of the manufacturing research and academic programs are described. The authors discuss the status of course offerings with emphasis on the undergraduate level within the university departments, the relationship of the undergraduate and graduate programs via the professional program, and future steps such as satellite-delivered courses that are underway or planned. Some recommendations for development of an undergraduate curriculum based on the experiences authors´ experiences are also given