Design is critical for many aspects of mechanical engineering, and spans a broad spectrum. Design helps give form to a better world and help solve problems we face. Engineers design machine components, mechanical devices, new materials, large systems, and even manufacturing or service processes. Underlying these activities lies a fundamental knowledge of the traditional areas of fluids, thermal, solids, and dynamics, but also a host of cross-cutting skills. As design often refers to the act of creating new things, engineering designers must master ideation, drawing, analysis, concept selection, prototyping, and testing. Today, almost all engineering companies view design as a primary mission focus to ensure innovation and competitiveness.<br>At Cornell, we offer courses that are aimed at design competencies, with a focus on product design (consumer, medical, and innovative) and the design and improvement of mechanical systems (machines, tools, and vehicles). Students in our product design program take courses in design methods, microcontrollers, 3d printing and prototyping and analysis coupled with other courses in entrepreneurship, management, and programming. These students usually go on to work for design and product firms like Apple, Shark Ninja, and OXO. Many students have also gone to create their own companies (check out Timur Ozekcin at Cylera).<br>The program emphasizes basic mechanical sciences to prepare students for the diversity found at the frontiers of research and industrial development. The faculty is particularly strong and active in biomechanical engineering, fluid dynamics, turbulence, combustion, thermal systems engineering, multiphase flows, energy and power systems, transport processes in microgravity, mechanical systems and design, control and robotics, dynamics and control of space structures, mechanics of materials and materials processing, materials microgravity sciences and computational mechanics.