Energy and Mineral Engineering (EME)

Program Home Page

YAW D. YEBOAH, Head of the Department of Energy and Mineral Engineering
118 Hosler Building
814-865-3437
Email: ydy1@psu.edu

R. Larry Grayson, Graduate Program Officer
103A Hosler Building
814-863-1644
Email: rlg19@psu.edu
www.eme.psu.edu

Degrees conferred: Ph.D., M.S. (with or without options in Petroleum and Natural Gas Engineering; Mining and Mineral Process Engineering; Environmental Health and Safety Engineering; Fuel Science; and Energy Management and Policy)

The Graduate Faculty

Michael A. Adewumi, Ph.D. (IIT) Professor of Petroleum and Natural Gas Engineering
Luis Ayala, Ph.D. (Penn State), Assistant Professor of Petroleum and Natural Gas Engineering
André L. Boehman, Ph.D. (Stanford) Associate Professor of Fuel Science
Seth Blumsack, Ph.D. (Carnegie Mellon), Assistant Professor of Energy and Mineral Engineering
Jeffrey Brownson, Ph.D. (Wisconsin), Assistant Professor of Energy and Mineral Engineering
Yongsheng Chen, Ph.D. (Hehigh), Assistant Professor of Energy and Mineral Engineering
Caroline B. Clifford, Ph.D. (Penn State), Senior Research Associate, Energy Institute
Timothy Considine, Ph.D. (Cornell) Professor of Natural Resource Economics
Derek Elsworth, Ph.D. (California, Berkeley) Professor of Geo-Environmental Engineering
Turgay Ertekin, Ph.D. (Penn State) Professor of Petroleum and Natural Gas Engineering
Semih Eser, Ph.D. (Penn State) Associate Professor of Energy and Geo-Environmental Engineering
Maochen Ge, Ph.D. (Penn State) Associate Professor of Mining Engineering
Abraham S. Grader, Ph.D. (Stanford) Professor of Petroleum and Natural Gas Engineering
R. Larry Grayson, Ph.D. (West Virginia), Professor of Energy and Mineral Engineering
William A. Groves, Ph.D. (Michigan) Associate Professor of Industrial Health and Safety
Joel M. Haight, Ph.D. (Auburn), Associate Professor of Energy and Mineral Engineering
Phillip M. Halleck, Ph.D. (Chicago) Associate Professor of Petroleum and Natural Gas Engineering
Richard Hogg, Ph.D. (California, Berkeley) Professor Emeritus of Mineral Processing and Geo-Environmental Engineering
M. Thaddeus Ityokumbul, Ph.D. (Univ. of Western Ontario) Associate Professor of Mineral Processing and Geo-Environmental Engineering
Zuleima Karpyn, Ph.D. (Penn State), Assistant Professor of Petroleum and Natural Gas Engineering
Vladislav Kecojevic, Ph.D. (Belgrade), Associate Professor of Mining Engineering
Andrew Kleit, Ph.D. (Yale), Professor of Energy and Environmental Economics
Mark S. Klima, Ph.D. (Penn State) Associate Professor of Mineral Processing and Geo-Environmental Engineering
Angela D. Lueking, Ph.D. (Michigan) Assistant Professor of Energy and Geo-Environmental Engineering
Peter T. Luckie, Ph.D. (Penn State), Professor Emeritus of Mineral Processing
Serguei Lvov, Ph.D. (St. Petersburg) Professor of Energy and Mineral Engineering
Xiaoliang Ma, Ph.D. (Kyushu, Japan), Senior Research Associate, Energy Institute
Christopher J. Marone, Ph.D. (Columbia) Professor of Geosciences
Jonathan Mathews, Ph.D. (Penn State) Assistant Professor of Energy and Mineral Engineering
Kwadwo A. Osseo-Asare, Ph.D. (California, Berkeley) Professor of Metallurgy and Energy and Mineral Engineering
Sarma Pisupati, Ph.D. (Penn State) Associate Professor of Energy and Mineral Engineering
Mark Radomsky, Ph.D. (Penn State), Senior Lecturer
Ljubisa R. Radovic, Ph.D. (Penn State) Professor of Energy and Mineral Engineering
Raja V. Ramani, Ph.D. (Penn State) Professor Emeritus of Mining and Geo-Environmentatl Engineering
Jamal Rostami, Ph.D. (Colorado School of Mines), Assistant Professor of Energy and Mineral Engineering
Alan W. Scaroni, Ph.D. (Penn State) Professor of Energy and Mineral Engineering and Associate Dean for Graduate Education and Research
Harold H. Schobert, Ph.D. (Iowa State) Professor of Fuel Science
Chunshan Song, Ph.D. (Osaka) Professor of Fuel Science
Robert W. Watson, Ph.D. (Penn State) Associate Professor of Petroleum and Natural Gas Engineering and Geo-Environmental Engineering
Yaw D. Yeboah, Sc.D. (MIT) Professor and Head of Energy and Mineral Engineering
Fan Zhang, Ph.D. (Harvard), Assistant Professor of Energy and Mineral Engineering

The Department of Energy and Mineral Engineering provides a vertically integrated approach to research and education in all aspects of the energy and mineral industries, including scientific and engineering issues, health and safety and maintenance of high environmental standards. The Department’s mission is to forge an intellectual and scientific cohesiveness in energy and mineral resource technology. This objective is achieved by exploiting the natural synergy between the exploration, extraction, processing and utilization of energy and mineral resources so as to cater to the emerging needs of society.

The Department offers advanced degrees in Energy and Mineral Engineering (M.S. and Ph.D.) and an online professional Master of Engineering (M. Eng.) degree in Oil and Gas Engineering Management. The Department has overall requirements for the M.S., M. Eng., and Ph.D. degrees with specific requirements associated with each program.

Energy and Mineral Engineering Program

The Energy and Mineral Engineering (EME) program is a single graduate program with a focus on the production of energy and minerals in an economic, safe and efficient manner. The program provides flexible education of students in energy and mineral sciences and engineering, with focus on both non-renewable and renewable resource and energy industries. The program is designed to resolve the sometimes competing goals of flexible education of requisite breadth while still providing in-depth study; students are required to follow a focused curriculum that combines the requisite rigor with flexibility in a rapidly changing field of endeavor. Participating students take core program and required option courses and additional courses from a broad array of courses to meet the total credit requirements. Students are not required to choose an option. However, a student who desires disciplinary identity may choose from among the five available options: petroleum and natural gas engineering, mining and mineral process engineering, environmental health and safety engineering, fuel science, and energy management and policy.

Admission Requirements

Scores for the Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) are required for admission, though this may be waived at the discretion of the Energy and Mineral Engineering graduate program. The best-qualified applicants will be accepted by the Energy and Mineral Engineering graduate program up to the number of spaces available for new students. At the discretion of the Energy and Mineral Engineering graduate program, a student may be granted provisional admission. Requirements listed here are in addition to general Graduate School requirements stated in the GENERAL INFORMATION section of the Graduate Bulletin.

Admission to the Energy and Mineral Engineering graduate program in the Department of Energy and Mineral Engineering is competitive. Entering students must hold a bachelor’s degree in a science or engineering discipline . Students with 3.00 or better (out of 4.00) junior/senior cumulative grade-point averages and appropriate course backgrounds will be considered for admission. Exceptions to the minimum 3.00 grade-point average may be made for students with special backgrounds, abilities, and interests. Undergraduate students from the Department of Energy and Mineral Engineering with sixth semester standing, minimum grade-point average of 3.3, and excellent faculty recommendations may be admitted for a five-year B.S./M.S. dual degree.

The language of instruction at Penn State is English. International applicants must take and submit scores for the TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) or the IELTS (International English Language Testing System), with the exceptions noted below. The minimum acceptable score for the TOEFL is 550 for the paper-based test, 213 for the computer-based test, or a total score of 80 with a 20 on the speaking section for the internet-based test (iBT). Applicants with iBT speaking scores between 15 and 19 may be considered for provisional admission, which requires an institutional test of English proficiency upon first enrollment and, if necessary, remedial course work. The minimum composite score for the IELTS is 6.5. Specific graduate programs may have more stringent requirements. International applicants are exempt from the TOEFL/IELTS requirement who have received a baccalaureate or a masters degree from a college/university/institution in any of the following: Australia, Belize, British Caribbean and British west Indies, Canada (except Quebec), England, Guyana, Republic of Ireland, Liberia, New Zealand, Northern Ireland, Scotland, The United States, and Wales.

Letters of recommendation and an applicant's statement of purpose are also required.

The M.S. degree program in Energy and Mineral Engineering is designed for students to gain advanced knowledge for research, analysis, and design in Energy and Mineral Engineering. Students pursuing an M.S. degree will be required to complete 24 course credits and submit a thesis (6 credits) to the Graduate School. Graduate committees in the graduate program in the Department of Energy and Mineral Engineering play an important role in formulating individual course and research schedules. At least 18 of the total course credits must be at the 500 level.

Doctoral Degree Requirements

The Ph.D. program in Energy and Mineral Engineering emphasizes scholarly research and help students prepare for research and related careers in industry, government and academe. Acceptance into the Ph.D. degree program in Energy and Mineral Engineering is based on the student’s performance on the Ph.D. candidacy examination administered by the faculty of the EME graduate program. A comprehensive examination is required of all Ph.D. candidates and should be taken after substantial completion of course work. The comprehensive examination is the responsibility of the candidate’s doctoral committee and administered according to the rules specified by the Graduate School. The Ph.D. program in Energy and Mineral Engineering is quite flexible, with minimum formal requirements. A minimum of 12 post M.S. course credits is required. At least 18 course credits for the graduate program must be at the 500 level. For students entering the program with an M.S. degree, 500-level courses already taken either at Penn State or other institutions may be accepted in partial fulfillment of the Ph.D. 18 credits of 500-level course requirements if the are found to be appropriate. The communication and foreign language requirements for the Ph.D. degree may be satisfied by intermediate knowledge of one foreign language. The general requirements for graduation are outlined in the GENERAL INFORMATION section of the Graduate Bulletin.

All graduate students are expected to attend general Department seminars. Graduate students may be asked to contribute to the instructional programs of the Department by assisting with laboratory and lecture courses.

Students in Energy and Mineral Engineering may elect the dual-title degree program option in Operations Research for the Ph.D. and M.S. degrees. (See also Operations Research; online at www.psu.edu/bulletins/whitebook/courses/o_r.htm )

Graduate students are supported by a variety of government and industry fellowships, and research and teaching assistantships. Stipends vary depending on the source. Please see the STUDENT AID section of the Graduate Bulletin to learn other forms of the student aid.

Graduate courses carry numbers from 500 to 599 and 800 to 899. Advanced undergraduate courses numbered between 400 and 499 may be used to meet some graduate degree requirements when taken by graduate students. Courses below the 400 level may not. A graduate student may register for or audit these courses in order to make up deficiencies or to fill in gaps in previous education but not to meet requirements for an advanced degree.

ENERGY AND MINERAL ENGINEERING (EME) course list

The University reserves the right to change the requirements and regulations listed here and to determine whether a student has satisfactorily met its requirements for admission or graduation, and to reject any applicant for any reason the University determines to be material to the applicant's qualifications to pursue higher education. Nothing in this material should be considered a guarantee that completion of a program and graduation from the University will result in employment.

This electronic Graduate Bulletin is a version of the official bulletin of The Pennsylvania State University. It is suggested that users refer to this electronic bulletin when seeking the latest information about the University's academic programs and courses. Printed versions of the Bulletin are also official copies of the programs, courses, and policies in effect at the time of printing.

Date last updated by Publications: 1/28/08

Last Revised by the Department: Summer Session 2008

Blue Sheet Item #: 36-06-188

Review Date: 4/15/08