MAE Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

SENIOR CAPSTONE DESIGN COURSES - MECH&AE 162D & 162E for ME Majors

The senior capstone courses for Mechanical Engineering majors are MECH&AE 162D and MECH&AE 162E.  These are two quarter sequence courses only offered once a year as posted on the MAE term offerings page.  Please plan accordingly by utilizing the Class Planning tools posted at the Majors and Minors page  (Select Mechanical and Aerospace, Under Class Planning tools).
NOTE: Spring 2024, Summer 2024, Fall 2024, and Winter 2025 degree candidates should plan MAE 162D (WINTER 2024) and 162E (SPRING 2024).

  • MECH&AE 162D “Mechanical Engineering Design I” requisites are:
    MECH&AE 94 and
    MECH&AE 156A (or MECH&AE 183A or M183B) and
    MECH&AE 162A (or MECH&AE 171A)
  • MECH&AE 162E “Mechanical Engineering Design II” requisite is:
    MECH&AE 162D

Reminder that 94, 156A, 183A (or M183B), 162A, 171A are all required courses for the ME degree.  It is highly recommend that students complete ALL the listed requisites, the 157 lab, and any remaining ME required courses well before enrolling in 162D and 162E .  This will allow a student to maximize their 162D/E lab options, minimize conflicts with remaining courses, and lessen their workload.  With careful planning students should be able to avoid a conflict.   

NOTE:  Students who have not completed MECH&AE 157 are advised to prioritize this lab with MAE 162D in Winter 2024 as there will only be one regular 157 lab offered in Spring 2024.

The senior capstone courses must be taken in sequence in the same year (back-to-back in Winter/Spring) as students are expected to stay with the same team and therefore the same lecture and lab times for both Winter and Spring quarters.  

  MECH&AE 162D/MECH&AE 162E
WINTER 2024/SPRING 2024 times (updated 11/15/2023) 
 
Lecture 1 MECH&AE 162D/E – Monday 12:00PM – 1:50PM  
Labs Lab 1A – Monday 4:00PM – 07:50PM
Lab 1B – Monday 4:00PM – 07:50PM
 
     
Lecture 2 MECH&AE 162D/E – Monday 8:00AM – 09:50AM  Cancelled 11/15/2023  
Labs Lab 2A – Tuesday 4:00PM – 07:50PM
Cancelled 11/15/2023

Lab 2B – Tuesday 4:00PM – 07:50PM
Cancelled 11/15/2023
 
     
Lecture 3 MECH&AE 162D/E – Monday 2:00PM – 3:50PM  
Labs Lab 3A – Wednesday 4:00PM – 7:50PM
Lab 3B – Wednesday 4:00PM – 7:50PM
 
     
Lecture 4 MECH&AE 162D/E – Monday 10:00AM – 11:50AM  
Labs Lab 4A – Thursday 4:00PM – 7:50PM
Lab 4B – Thursday 4:00PM – 7:50PM
 
 


Students are required to be in the same team, which means the same lecture and lab times for both Winter and Spring quarters.  Pease review the possible conflicts with 162D and 162E and any remaining ME required courses/labs left to complete.   Students that identify conflicts that can not be resolved should
contact the MAE counselors via MyUCLA Message Center during the Winter enrollment period. 

 
Possible Conflicts WINTER 2024 (as of 10/16/2023) SPRING 2024 – *tentative as of 11-15-2023* 
MAE 105D MW 2:00PM – 3:50PM (conflicts with Lecture 3) MW 4:00PM – 5:50PM (conflicts with Labs 1A, 1B, 3A, 3B)
MAE 133A TR 4:00PM – 5:50PM (conflicts with Labs 2A, 2B, 4A, 4B) MW 8:00AM – 9:50AM (no conflict)
MAE 156A MW  10:00AM – 11:50AM (conflicts with Lecture 4) TR 12:00PM – 1:50PM (no conflict)
MAE 157.1 MW 2:00PM-5:50PM (conflicts with Labs 1A, 1B, 3A, 3B) NEW MAE 157W, Lab 1 – MW 2:00PM-5:50PM (conflicts with Labs 1A, 1B, 3A, 3B) 
MAE 157.2 TR 2:00PM-5:50PM (conflicts with Labs 2A, 2B 4A, 4B) MAE 157, Lab 2 – TR 2:00PM – 5:50PM (conflicts with Labs 4A, 4B) – Recommended for ME graduating seniors SP24, SU24, F24
MAE 157.3 TR 10:00AM-1:50PM (no conflict) NEW MAE 157W, Lab 3 – TR 10:00AM-1:50PM (no conflict)
MAE 162A Not offered Winter TR 10:00AM – 11:50AM (no conflict)
MAE 171A TR 4:00PM – 5:50PM (conflicts with Labs 2A, 2B, 4A, 4B) TR 08:00AM – 09:50AM (no conflict)
MAE 183A Lecture MW 8:30AM – 9:45AM (conflicts with Lecture 2) TR 12:30PM – 1:45PM (no conflict)
MAE 183A Lab 1A Monday 2:00PM-5:50PM (conflicts with Labs 1A, 1B) Monday 2:00PM-5:50PM (conflicts with Labs 1A, 1B)
MAE 183A Lab 1B Wednesday 2:00PM-5:50PM (conflicts with Labs 3A, 3B) Wednesday 2:00PM-5:50PM (conflicts with Labs 3A, 3B)
MAE 183A Lab 1C Friday 2:00PM-5:50PM (no conflict) Fridays 2:00PM-5:50PM (no conflict) 
MAE M183B Lecture Monday 12:30PM – 1:45PM (conflicts with Lecture 1) Not offered
MAE M183B Lab 1A Monday 2:00PM – 5:50PM (conflicts with Labs 1A, 1B) Not offered
MAE M183B Lab 1B Tuesday 8:00AM – 11:50AM (no conflict) Not offered
MAE M183B Lab 1C Wednesday 2:00PM – 5:50PM (conflicts with Lab 3A, 3B) Not offered
MAE M183B Lab 1D Thursday 8:00AM – 11:50AM (no conflict) Not offered

 

FULL/CLOSED, IMPACTED and/or WAITLISTED MAE COURSES AND LABS

REQUISITE/S – The MECH&AE Department enforces all requisites for their undergraduate courses.   This means the requisite must be taken prior to accessing a course.   If you have questions about meeting requisites send a MyUCLA Message Center case.

FULL/CLOSED COURSE/S –  If a MECH&AE course is full or closed (including the wait list) you should submit the Enrollment Consideration Request (ECR) form.

IMPACTED COURSES –  Courses designated as impacted have a 2nd week drop deadline.  Students can check the official UCLA Schedule of Classes to verify the impacted vs non-impacted designation of a UCLA course.  Currently, the following MECH&AE labs are now deemed impacted:

  • MECH&AE 157
  • MECH&AE 162D
  • MECH&AE 162E
  • MECH&AE M183B

WAITLISTED COURSES – If a MECH&AE course is on the schedule with wait list spots only then YES, the course is being offered that quarter.  Go ahead and secure a spot on the wait list section for the best chance at enrollment.  If all the wait list sections become full or closed then your next course of action is to utilize the Enrollment Consideration Request Form (ECR).

Please not that several MAE labs (e.g. MAE 157, MAE 162D, MAE 162E, MAE 183A) are set up as wait list only.  This means you will see a 0 in the enrollment section, but you will see slots available under the waitlist section.  To begin enrollment you must secure a wait list spot first.  These labs are set up this way for the following reasons:

  • the lab has physical space limitations and the demand for the lab may exceed availability.  The wait list allows the department to give priority to graduating seniors IF demand exceeds availability.  Please note In such a situation students would be contacted by the OASA MAE Advisors early about the possibility of being unable to be accommodated into a lab.  
  • the lab requires a first day of attendance to a) form groups and/or b) clear lab safety requirements and/or c) to submit the first homework assignment  Students can check the official UCLA Schedule of Classes under the Class Notes section for details about what is required to be moved from waitlisted status to enrolled status.
  • Priority Enrollment-  myUCLA will not allow priority enrollment for courses that have a wait list option only.  You must add yourself to the wait list during your FIRST pass.

LAB SWITCHES – If you want to be considered for a potential lab switch for MAE 107, 157, 183A, 162D/E please also submit the Enrollment Consideration Request (ECR) form and indicate “lab switch”.   Lab switches are based on space availability and confirmation that there is a true course conflict.  We will not consider lab switches based on conflicts with work, extra curriculars, or instructor preference.  There is not guarantee a lab switch can be accommodated so please secure a spot in any available lab if you need the course to graduate or consult with an OASA advisor if you need assistance with your schedule.

MECH&AE 157 - requisite update effective Fall 2023

Effective FALL 2023 MECH&AE 105D (Transport Phenomena) has been added as an enforced requisite to MECH&AE 157.

MECH&AE 157 (Basic Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Laboratory). 
Laboratory, eight hours; outside study, four hours. Requisites: courses 101, 102, 103, 105A, 105D, Electrical Engineering 100.
Methods of measurement of basic quantities and performance of basic experiments in fluid mechanics, structures, and thermodynamics.
Primary sensors, transducers, recording equipment, signal processing, and data analysis. Letter grading.

MECH&AE 157 is highly recommended to be completed by end of the junior year.

  • Mechanical majors should complete this course no later than Fall of their senior year to avoid any scheduling issues with their senior capstone MAE 162D/E.
  • Aerospace majors should complete this course no later than Winter of their senior year as it is an enforced requisite to their senior capstone MAE 157A.

 

TECHNICAL BREADTH REQUIREMENT option for MAE students

All engineering students are required to satisfy the Technical Breadth Requirement (12 units).  Please review the Technical Breadth page for an overview of this requirement.

Which technical breadth area should you choose? The Mechanical and Aerospace department does not endorse one area over another.  However, the department does want to point out the flexibility of the Engineering Science Area in regards to your major elective courses.  In particular, the engineering science area option enables you to gain more depth within your AE/or ME major should you wish to do so.  If you’re not sure which area to select we highly recommend this as a topic of discussion during your faculty advising meeting.

How does the Engineering Science Area flexibility option work? 
Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering majors may apply required departmental breadth courses EC ENGR 100 and MAT SCI 104 toward the Engineering Science Area.  Please note you are not double counting EC ENGR 100 and MAT SCI 104.  Instead you are moving EC ENGR 100 and MAT SCI 104 from required department breadth to the technical breadth requirement in Engineering Science.  This means you would select one more course from the Engineering Science Area list to complete the three courses required.  You can then replace EC ENGR 100 and MAT SCI 104 with additional major electives from the available list of electives (see your DARS for the list).  Or via the petition process students may propose to substitute any technical elective from Samueli course offerings (petition BEFORE you take the course as petitions are not guaranteed to be approved).

Technical Breadth Requirement (standard) vs. Engineering Science Area flexibility:

  Required Department Breadth Technical Breadth Requirement Major Electives Required (major field electives are listed in the Samueli catalog for your major or you can see the list in your MyUCLA DARS)
Standard(total 7) ECE 100, MSE 104 (2 courses) 3 courses from an approved TBR list (3 courses) 2 major electives required from list for your AE or ME major
(2 courses)
Engineering Science TBA flexibility(total 7) ECE 100, MSE 104 (2 courses) ECE 100 and MSE 104 (already satisfied) plus 1 more from Engineering Science TBA
(1 course)
2 major field electives from the list of electives for your major (ME or AE)
-plus 2 additional major field electives from the approved list for your major (ME or AE) or via petition another technical course from Samueli course offerings.
(4 courses)

Electives: Where can I find a listing of courses that satisfy a MAE elective?

Students should refer to the Samueli catalog announcement for the year they were admitted to the major to review the AE or ME elective list. Additionally, students may log into DARS, run an audit and see a list of AE or ME electives in their DARS (Section: MAJOR MAJOR FIELD ELECTIVES & TECHNICAL BREADTH).   The MAE Term Offerings page has more information on what MAE course will be offered this academic year.

M20 vs CS 31

Effective Fall 2014-2015 Mechanical and Aerospace majors have the option of taking either Com Sci 31 (C++ programming) or MECH&AE M20 (MATLAB programming; same as CEE M20) to fulfill their programming requirement. All Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering will eventually be using Matlab in several upper division courses, therefore it is recommend that you choose MECH&AE M20 for your programming requirement.

If you are additionally interested in C++ programming you can take COM SCI 31 and try to apply it as a Technical Breadth Requirement in the Engineering Science area OR in the Computer Science area. Students who have questions about the programming requirement or their technical breadth can connect with an Aerospace/Mechanical counselor through the Office of Academic and Student Affairs (OASA).  Students in catalog years 2013-2014 and prior do have the option to take MECH&AE M20 in place of CS 31.  For students who already completed CS 31, you may move CS 31 to be a Technical Breadth Requirement in the Engineering Science area OR the CS Tech Breadth area. A petition may be necessary. Please consult with a MAE counselor if you have questions.

MATH 33B vs MAE 82 (formerly 182A)

Effective 2016-2017 and onward: Aerospace and Mechanical majors take MECH&AE 82 “Mathematics of Engineering” (not MATH 33B) as their differential equations course.  The requisite for MECH&AE 82 is Math 33A and it is recommended that students take MECH&AE M20/C&EE M20 “Matlab” prior to enrolling in MAE 82.

Effective Fall 2017 MECH&AE 82 and MATH 33B are subset restricted, therefore you can not apply both courses toward degree requirements.  If a student takes UCLA Math 33B and then switches to the Aerospace or Mechanical Engineering major they will be held to the MECH&AE 82 requirement.  The department does not accept course substitutions.  

Older Students in the 2015-2016 and prior catalogs please read below to see how the MAE 82 requirement change affects you.  We recommend you speak to a OASA MAE counselor first to discuss the pros and cons of Math 33B vis MAE 82 for you:

  • If you did not take/complete MATH 33B, you can switch to the latest catalog and take MECH&AE 82 (formerly 182A).
  • IF you completed Math 33B prior to Fall 2017 and have not taken MECH&AE 82 (formerly 182A) you can switch to the new catalog and we will substitute Math 33B for MECH&AE 82. However, we highly recommend you take MAE 82.
  • If you completed MATH 33B prior to FALL 2017 and you did not take MECH&AE 82 (formerly 182A) you can switch to the new catalog and we will allow a substitution of Math 33B for MECH&AE 82.  However, we highly recommend you take MAE 82.
  • If you completed Math 33B prior to Fall 2017 AND you completed MECH&AE 182A or 82 (formerly 182A) you may be able to switch to the new catalog and apply Math 33B to the TBR if the course is a requisite for an UD course already in your TBR area (e.g. ENGR SCI or ENGR MATH) area. A petition for this may be necessary.