
Think, design and create like a bona fide engineer right out of the gate. With a combination of theoretical understanding and technical mastery, you'll graduate from the Case School of Engineering ready to enter a top-tier graduate program or launch your high-velocity career.
in biomedical engineering
U.S. News & World Report, 2019
raised in investments, sales & grants by 100+ startups at Sears think[box]
in the U.S. for commercialization of research
Brookings Institution
in the world for contributions to innovation
Nature Magazine
in research grants received by Case School of Engineering in 2018
booths of student work showcased at CES last year, more than any other university in the U.S.
Programs
Most are offered as a major or a minor
- Aerospace Engineering
- Biomedical Engineering
- Chemical Engineering
- Civil Engineering
- Computer Engineering
- Computer Science
- Data Science and Analytics
- Electrical Engineering
- Engineering Physics
- General Engineering
- Materials Science and Engineering
- Mechanical Engineering
- Polymer Science and Engineering
- Systems and Control Engineering

Engineering in the field
Our students engage in long-term humanitarian design initiatives around the world. Examples include:
Kampala, Uganda
- Students are working to reduce pneumonia deaths in young children. Local clinicians lacked access to pediatric pulse oximeters to measure blood oxygen levels. Our students designed a prototype for a low-cost reusable device in 2016 and have returned every year for feedback and refinement. At these remote medical clinics, our students are also working on vaccine carriers, backpacks for health care workers and a waste disposal system for syringes and needles.
Cruce de Blanco, Dominican Republic
- In 2012, CWRU students installed a water distribution system with a sand-filtration unit for the community. Based on recent resident feedback, students have redesigned and will install a chlorination tank system for easier maintenance.
Each Case Western Reserve University student brings their own background and interests to our campus, creating a culture that’s dynamic, diverse and inclusive.
First-year engineering labs
You won’t find this kind of in-the-trenches engineering experience anywhere else. Here, it’s required.
First semester
- Individual and team projects across the engineering fields give students substantial lab time, where they also build and test a personal project like a piezoelectric crystal or water sensor.
Second semester
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Students make presentations and generate project reports as they work directly with a community partner on a real-world engineering problem.
Sears think[box]
Students freely access this 50,000-square-foot, seven-story makerspace. Some current engineering projects include:
- Smart Glove
Embedded electronics in this glove allow it to function as an innovative remote control device. Data from flexible resistive sensors in four fingers along with a force-sensing resistor in the thumb are transmitted using an XBee radio communication module to the receiving equipment. - Wheelchair Conversion Kit
This kit transforms manual wheelchairs into affordable, high-performance electric wheelchairs. The kit attaches a small electric motor to the back, which drives the wheels through a friction-drive mechanism.
Co-ops
One-third of our engineering majors choose a co-op placement, which provides valuable work experience plus stipends of more than $20,000 (on average) over a seven-month period.
Some recent co-op placements
-
Avery Dennison
- Biomet
- Bose
- DePuy
- Diebold
- Fives North American
- GE Aviation/GE Healthcare/
- GE Lighting/GE Oil & Gas/
- GE Transportation
- GRL Engineers
- Invensys
- Keithley Textronix
- Lubrizol
- Moen
- NASA Glenn Research Center/
- NASA Johnson Space Center
- Nucor Steel
- OMNOVA
- Philips Healthcare
- PolymerPlus
- The Walsh Group
Events engineering students love
36-hour Sci-Fi Marathon
- For 40+ years, students have watched back-to-back sci-fi for 30+ hours each January. Viewing starts at 8 p.m. the first Friday of spring semester. Cheap snacks and free surprises are part of the fun!
Engineering Week (aka E-Week)
- This week of fun includes the CWRUBotix Game Night (field hockey with a robot, anyone?), the National Society of Black Engineers Black Inventors Challenge (Shark Tank, CWRU style), and the Phi Sigma Pho RePlay for Kids (modify toys for kids with disabilities).
Hackathon
- More than 350 students spend 36 hours at think[box] bringing innovation and collaboration to life on projects in four different tracks. Free food and awesome prizes, like a 3D printer, are included.
Pumpkin Drop
- Test gravity and eat pie—pumpkin pie, of course! Pumpkins of various sizes are simultaneously dropped from Strosacker Auditorium in honor of Galileo’s experiment at the Leaning Tower of Pisa.
Clubs and organizations for engineering students
With more than 200 clubs and organizations ranging from Acts of Random Kindness to IMPROVment to the Scuba Club, you’ll find all kinds of ways to pursue your academic goals and personal interests.
A few to check out:
- American Institute of Chemical Engineers
- American Society of Civil Engineers
- Big Gamers Club
- Biomedical Engineering Society
- CASE Aeronautics Team
- CASE Engineers Council
- Case Rocket Team
- CWRU Chapter of the American
- Society of Mechanical Engineers
- CWRU MedWish (reducing medical waste and helping underserved hospitals)
- CWRU Society for Biomaterials
- Engineers without Borders/Humanitarian Design Corps
- HackCWRU
- National Society of Black Engineers
- Robotics Club
- Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers
- Society of Women Engineers
- Theta Tau: professional engineering fraternity
- ...and dozens more