B.E. Degree Requirements
Residency
Completion of the B.E. program after the A.B. degree generally requires between 1 and 3 terms at Thayer School, depending on the courses taken during the first 4 years. Advanced standing on entry to Dartmouth may shorten the overall time required; some students complete both the A.B. and B.E. in 4 years.
Course of Study
B.E. students take required courses and electives in mathematics, basic science, engineering sciences, and engineering design.
The B.E. degree requires a minimum of 9 courses beyond the requirements for the A.B. degree. At least 6 courses must have significant engineering design content (see the
B.E. Planning Guide (PDF) for details).
Mathematics and Natural Science (9 courses)
- MATH 3: Introduction to Calculus
- MATH 8: Calculus of Functions of One and Several Variables
- MATH 13: Calculus of Vector-Valued Functions
- PHYS 13: Introductory Physics I
- PHYS 14: Introductory Physics II
- CHEM 5: General Chemistry
- ENGS 91: Numerical Methods in Computation, ENGS 92: Fourier Transforms and Complex Variables, or ENGS 93: Statistical Methods in Engineering
- Two non-introductory courses chosen from ASTR 15 and above; BIOL 12 and above (except 52); CHEM 6, 10 and above (except 63); EARS 31, 33, 35, 37, 40-52, 59, 62, 64, 66-75, 79 and above; ENVS 30 and 79; MATH 17-29, 31, 32, 35, 38, 39, 40, 42, 43, 50 and above; PHYS 19 or 24, 41 and above (except 48); COSC 30, 31, 39, 49, 71, 74
Engineering Common Core (3.5 courses)
- ENGS 20: Introduction to Scientific Computing (counts as 0.5 course for B.E. credit)
- ENGS 21: Introduction to Engineering
- ENGS 22: Systems
- ENGS 23: Distributed Systems and Fields
Engineering Distributive Core (choose 2 courses)
- ENGS 24: Science of Materials
- ENGS 25: Introduction to Thermodynamics
- ENGS 26: Control Theory
- ENGS 27: Discrete and Probabilistic Systems
Engineering Gateway (choose 2 courses from 2 different disciplines; students who modify the engineering sciences major with science, and dual-degree students with science majors, may take their gateway courses in the same discipline)
- Electrical
- Mechanical
- Chemical/Biochemical
-
Environmental
- ENGS 37: Introduction to Environmental Engineering
Engineering Electives (choose 6 courses)
-
Three courses must form a coherent disciplinary concentration* with 1 of these having significant design content; the remaining 3 electives may be chosen from ENGS or ENGG courses numbered 24-88 (except 30, 75, 80, 87), 107-177, 192 and 199; COSC 50-84 (except 30, 31, 39, 49, 71, 74, 79) and COSC 170-276 (except 174, 179, 189, 210). Two of the 3 electives may be mathematics or natural science courses as listed above.
*Effective with the Class of 2013, with the exception of one of either ENGS 34 (prerequisites 20, 22, 23, 25) or ENGS 36 (prerequisites 20, 22, 25), courses to be included in the area of "three-course concentration" will be numbered above ENGS/ENGG 40 and will require at least one prerequisite either from the series ENGS 20-37 or from advanced courses within the sciences. With permission, suitable advanced science courses may count within this three-course concentration. To qualify, ENGS 86 or 88 must be based upon prerequisites appropriate to the study and requires prior approval from the B.E. Committee.
Capstone Engineering Design (2 courses)
- ENGS 89/90: Engineering Design Methodology and Project Initiation/Completion (Prior to enrollment in ENGS 89, at least 6 engineering sciences courses must be completed. These include ENGS 21 plus 5 additional courses numbered 22 to 76.)
Detailed information about specific courses that satisfy accreditation and Thayer School requirements is in the
B.E. Planning Guide (PDF), which is for planning purposes only. You will need to go to Banner Student to complete the B.E. program plan. If you have questions, please see the Registrar in MacLean 103.
NOTE: The only B.E. courses that can be taken under the Non-Recording Option are MATH 3, 8, 13; PHYS 13 and CHEM 5.









