Nuclear engineering is the branch of engineering concerned with the release, control, and utilization of all types of energy from nuclear sources. The uses of nuclear energy in today's technological world are varied. As public concern has grown about the role of fossil fuels in promoting global warming, nuclear power is increasingly recognized as a necessary alternative source for electric energy. In the space industry, nuclear energy provides power for satellites and interplanetary probes. Radiation technology, another important area, employs radioactive material to sterilize biologically hazardous wastes, to diagnose and treat disease, and to monitor the transport and metabolism of experimental pharmaceuticals. Nuclear fusion, an area of ongoing research, shows significant promise as an energy source for the future.
Approximately 20 percent of the electricity generated in the United States in 1989 came from nuclear power plants, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. By 1991, more than 110 nuclear power plants are scheduled to be in service. The industrial use of radiation has also continued to grow, with the expanded use of radioisotope sources for food irradiation, nuclear oil well logging, and thickness gauge applications.
The expansion of the nuclear power industry and the increased use of other nuclear-related technologies have created a steady demand for nuclear engineers at all professional levels. Areas of specialization include fields such as reactor operations, reactor safety, fuel management, fusion, radioisotope applications, environmental surveillance, waste disposal, and medical technology. The organizations employing nuclear engineers range from federal and state agencies to private consulting firms, from major utilities to small manufacturing companies. Each year many of these groups send representatives to Georgia Tech to interview prospective employees.
The nuclear engineering program at Georgia Tech is one of the largest and most outstanding in the nation. The faculty members associated with the program represent an impressive blend of academic and professional experience. A number are national or international leaders in their fields, as indicated by honors they have received from the American Nuclear Society, the National Science Foundation, the American Physical Society, and the United States Department of Energy.
Both students and faculty at Georgia Tech have access to state-of-the-art computing facilities and to one of the most extensive technical libraries in the nation. In addition, nuclear engineering students enjoy a number of resources unique to their interests. Among these are a 5-megawatt research reactor, a subcritical assembly, hot cells for handling radioactive materials, a complete nuclear instrumentation laboratory, radiochemical laboratories, and a 600,000 curie cobalt-60 source.
Approximately one-third of the nuclear engineering undergraduates at Georgia Tech participate in the Cooperative Education Program, a plan that enables them to gain on-the-job experience by alternating quarters of study and employment in industry. Important links with industry and government are also maintained through collaborative research conducted by faculty members and through the program's External Advisory Committee, a group of leading nuclear engineering professionals who provide counsel to program officials.
The Curriculum for the Bachelor of Nuclear Engineering degree is flexible and broadly based. Approved by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology, the program is structured to meet the needs of students who enter the profession immediately after graduation as well as those who pursue graduate study.
In addition to nuclear engineering studies, the core curriculum includes courses in mathematics, physics, chemistry, engineering science and mechanics, and mechanical and electrical engineering. As upperclassmen, students may specialize by selecting technical electives in a particular area. A concentration in nuclear power, for example, includes courses on nuclear reactors to prepare graduates for careers in the nuclear power industry. A student concentrating in radiological aspects of nuclear engineering may select special studies in biology and chemistry.
The nuclear engineering curriculum also includes courses in English, the social sciences, and the humanities. Because of its breadth, the baccalaureate degree in nuclear engineering provides excellent preparation for careers not only in nuclear technology but in other multidisciplinary fields as well.
In addition to the B.N.E. degree, the nuclear engineering program offers studies leading to master's and doctoral degrees. Graduate programs are also available in health physics, a related area of study that includes specializations in medical physics and in radiological and environmental protection.
The nuclear engineering program is administered within the George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering. Students who wish to have additional information about nuclear engineering studies are invited to contact the following:
Inquiries regarding admission to Georgia Tech should be addressed to the
Director of Admissions
Georgia Institute of Technology
Atlanta, Georgia 30332-0320
Applicants interested in the co-op program should write directly to the
Cooperative Division
Georgia Institute of Technology
Atlanta, Georgia 30332-0260
Updated: 6 February 1996