The department's mission for the Ph.D. program is to foster creativity and excellence in students through in-depth training on applying advanced principles in mechanical engineering and related fields to conduct basic and/or applied research for the advancement of scientific knowledge. The program prepares graduate students for advanced placement in industry and/or faculty position in academia. The objective of our Ph.D. program is to train and prepare students to work independently, carry out scientific research endeavors, and assume leadership roles of research and development teams. <br><br>Ph.D. candidates will be guided in their research work by our nationally renowned faculty who are working on the cutting edge of emerging technologies pertaining to manufacturing processes, nano-materials, energy storage and conversion technologies, composite materials, combustion, thermal-fluid sciences, acoustics and noise control, laser diagnostics, biomechanics, controls, robotics, and autonomous systems. Our locality in the city of Detroit provides us with ample opportunities to collaborate with researchers from automotive industry, medical centers and governmental research centers. Such collaborations allow our students to perform research work at the forefront of timely and emerging technologies.