ROSE-HULMAN'S GRADUATE
ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING PROGRAM

Hallmarks of the Program
Some of the Available Courses
The Project Sequence
Sample Projects
The Main Faculty



General Description:

The graduate environmental and water resources engineering program at RHIT is housed in the Department of Civil Engineering, but includes faculty across the Institute. Our approach to graduate education is to prepare students for practice-oriented environmental and water resources engineering. We feel that a research-based M.S. degree program does not adequately prepare the environmental and water resources professional for career advancement. A professional degree is designed to consider the needs of the practicing engineer. As such, many courses include hands-on design projects and laboratory exercises that simulate the workplace. Students work on a project for a real client (often a non profit entity) in a structured projects course as opposed to a thesis. The project allows the student to apply what is learnt in the classroom to solve actual environmental and water resources problems in a realistic work environment. Students work on the project concurrently with taking courses to make effective use of their time on campus. A sample of the projects is available.

Hallmarks of the M.S. in Environmental Engineering:

The hallmarks of the program are as follows:

• A 3-course core sequence on the modeling of environmental and water resources systems - flows, transport, and decisions
  
• A 3-course core in physical, chemical, microbiological processes
  
• A variety of elective courses
• Introduction to popular industry software tools such as SWMM, HEC-HMS, HEC-RAS, MODFLOW, WaterCAD, Qual2E
• Emphasis on projects, computer applications, and laboratories
• A student-centered program with small class sizes and available professors
• A team-based investigative design project for a real client
• A graduate seminar that focuses on project management, communication, and career preparation
• Completion for most qualified students within 1.5 years

Some of the Courses Available for the MS in Environmental Engineering:

Environmental and Water Resources Engineering Project Sequence:

A. Project Proposal
B. Two Progress Reports
C. Final Report
D. Journal Article

Sample Projects and Clients

A sample of the projects we have worked on include:

• bench-scale model of innovative constructed wetland technology for residential development
• decision framework for selection of best management practices for manure management at confined hog facilities
• treatment system design and waste minimization plan for turkey processing wastewater
• modeling of nitrate groundwater contamination to determine feasible municipal well locations
• economic optimization model of sludge management technologies

Clients Include:

• Vermillion County Economic Development Council
• Indiana Department of Environmental Management
• J.F. New and Associates
• Chafee and Associates
• City of Niagra Falls
• Heartland Pork Enterprises

Main Environmental and Water Resources Engineering Faculty:

Robert J. Houghtalen, Ph.D., P.E.	Michael Robinson, Ph.D., P.E.	Martin J. Thomas, Ph.D.