“The collaborative atmosphere and penchant for interdisciplinary research at Urbana-Champaign is unparalleled. Only here is it possible to interact and collaborate with a wide array of top-notch scholars in many different fields. It is no coincidence that, historically, quite a few of the most innovative, groundbreaking scientific advances came out of Illinois.”
– Alex Olshevsky, Assistant Professor, Industrial and Enterprise Systems Engineering
The Illinois Advantage
The future is taking shape right now in one of the world’s most innovative and dynamic engineering environments. With a world-renowned faculty and state-of-the art research facilities, Engineering at Illinois offers graduate students exceptional opportunities to make remarkable discoveries and contribute to the scholarship and achievements that inspire and enrich the lives of people everywhere, every day.
Graduate Rankings
Consistently rated among the best in the world, the graduate engineering program at Illinois is currently ranked 5th in the Best Graduate Schools issue of U.S. News and World Report (published in March 2011). Ranked graduate engineering science specialties in the College of Engineering include the following:
7 – Aerospace/Aeronautical/Astronautical
1 – Biological/Agricultural
11 – Chemical
2 – Civil
4 – Computer Engineering
5 – Computer Science*
8 – Computer Science - Artificial Intelligence*
9 – Computer Science - Programming Language*
6 – Computer Science - Systems*
11 – Computer Science - Theory*
4 – Electrical/Electronic/Communications
3 – Environmental
17 – Industrial/Manufacturing
2 – Materials
6 – Mechanical
12 – Nuclear
9 – Physics*
2 – Physics, Condensed Matter*
10 – Physics, Nuclear*
*ranked in 2010
Additional Rankings
Leading with Research
At Illinois, research shapes our identity, stimulates classroom instruction, and serves as a springboard for public engagement activities throughout the world. With more than 50 research centers and institutes, the College of Engineering at Illinois continues its long tradition of groundbreaking achievements that inspire and enrich the lives of people around the world. Conducted independently and in collaboration with faculty, the research and creative projects of our graduate students increase our shared knowledge.
Collaborative Study
Our multidisciplinary, internationally renowned researchers, supported by a motivated and exceptionally-gifted student base, collaborate with captains of industry, government agencies, and peer institutions in search of innovative solutions to the world’s technological challenges.
Renowned Faculty
The Engineering at Illinois faculty are among the most distinguished in their fields, including recipients of the Nobel Prize, Japan Prize, Wolf Prize, National Medal of Science and National Medal of Technology, MacArthur and Guggenheim fellowships, and Presidential Early Career Awards for Scientists and Engineers. While maintaining excellence in traditional areas of academic interest, our faculty have adapted well to the changing focus in new fields of endeavor.
World-Class Facilities
The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is home to one of the world’s top-tier engineering complexes. Surrounded by more than 80 research centers and labs housed in multiple buildings across two quads, it is at the center of a world-class network. Faculty and students benefit from access to state-of-the art equipment in a highly modern environment that inspires both collaboration and creativity.
Diversity at Illinois
The creativity and ideas of a significant part of the American population have yet to be fully recognized in engineering and science. As one of the largest and top-ranked engineering colleges in the world, Engineering at Illinois views it as imperative that it take a leadership role in advancing women and underrepresented minorities in engineering. Increasing the diversity of our faculty and students is also fundamentally important to accelerating the rate and impact of our research. Studies have shown that creativity increases and the range of potential solutions grow when teams of individuals from different personal, cultural and disciplinary perspectives are brought together. The college must be able to draw on a diverse and highly motivated pool of engineering researchers and students to address major societal changes.
