The best aspects of the course included the lessons on research topics and the practical applications it offered to the field of engineering. The worst aspects of the course included the professors’ impatience and the homework assignments. The professor would interrupt students while they were answering his questions and would occasionally be absent from class, leaving the teaching assistant to give the lessons. Also, the homework assignments were heavy and often based on things not learned in class. The course would improve if the professor was more organized and if the class were better structured. Prospective students should expect a very useful and interesting engineering course in which a previous background in Solid Mechanics is required. 199

This course took an analytical teach-by-example approach to the subject matter. The instructor explained things clearly and often used handouts to supplement his lectures. But the course didn’t cover nonlinear elastic material and at times lectures were confusing. In addition, the instructor made many mistakes on homework assignments, resulting in students having to figure out what the issue was. Suggestions for improvement include: shorter exams that can be completed, a new instructor, better course organization, and more handouts. Prospective students need a solid mathematics background.

The best aspects of this course included the motivating instructor, wel -prepared lectures, clear expectations, and introduction to research paper analysis. Students felt that the exams were hard and difficult to study for, the grading was harsh, and the amount of information presented in the course was overwhelming. Suggestions for improvement included having review sessions before exams, adding a lab component to the course to apply concepts learned in class, and providing clearer feedback and expectations for graded assignments. Prospective students should have a background in basic materials science and should attend all classes.