Structural Mechanics
Why Study Structural Mechanics?
Pursuing a minor in structural mechanics at Caltech enhances your understanding of how materials and structures respond to forces, loads, and environmental conditions. In focused courses, you'll design safe, efficient structures across applications from spacecraft to civil infrastructure. Whether you're interested in developing next-generation systems for wind energy, designing earthquake-resistant buildings, or creating ultralight space structures, this minor provides the analytical tools and design principles essential for modern engineering challenges.
The field combines rigorous mathematical analysis with practical application, equipping you to investigate mechanical physics and tackle engineering challenges related to biological fluid dynamics in ocean tides, sustainable energy systems, waste processing facilities, advanced manufacturing, and other complex scenarios. As engineering systems and performance demands grow more sophisticated, expertise in structural mechanics becomes essential for ensuring safety and optimizing performance in various sectors.
Why Study Structural Mechanics at Caltech?
Caltech's structural mechanics minor benefits from the institution's world-renowned mechanics, materials science, and engineering design expertise. Through connections with GALCIT (Graduate Aerospace Laboratories) and collaborations with the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), you'll engage with faculty leading cutting-edge research in space structures, deployable systems, and advanced materials applications. Here, faculty are actively developing innovations such as ultralight spacecraft structures, optimized analysis of the stability of thin shells and pressurized envelopes, and creating mechanically reconfigurable systems for space exploration.
The interdisciplinary nature of Caltech means your structural mechanics training connects naturally with other fields, from bioengineering to environmental engineering challenges in civil infrastructure. With a small ratio between students and faculty, you can connect with not just those who teach your courses but their colleagues in other departments and across the world in research opportunities.
What You'll Learn
The structural mechanics minor program covers math, computing, and engineering principles crucial for engineers and researchers, including structural analysis, failure analysis, and design optimization. You'll learn how to apply the fundamental principles that govern how structures and materials behave under various conditions, from calculating stability to studying the links between geometric forms and structural performance.
You will begin with the Caltech first-year core curriculum for any major you choose. Courses in the structural mechanics minor build the mathematical and mechanical basis for advanced coursework. Through laboratory opportunities and the potential to participate in programs like Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowships (SURFs) at leading institutions worldwide, you can gain hands-on experience with experimental techniques that impact various modern engineering fields, incorporating advanced mechanical, physical, and mathematical expertise in fluid mechanics, civil engineering applications, and aerospace engineering.
View the Caltech catalog for degree requirements and curriculum information.
Who You'll Learn From
The faculty members across the Division of Engineering and Applied Science lead advances in solid and fluid mechanics, materials science, civil engineering, environmental engineering, and structural engineering. Their research covers everything from basic theory to innovative aerospace, civil, and mechanical engineering applications, such as explosion dynamics, high-speed flight, condensed matter physics, earthquake engineering, sustainable energy systems, and more. In small classes, collaborative research opportunities, and course projects, you'll work with the expertise of scholars who actively advance scientific knowledge.
I had a math course with instructor Matthew Gurman, and because of how small the classes are, it's very, very easy to facilitate that one-on-one, friendly interaction with your instructors. These instructors know so much and have mastered their field. I can come up to him with any kind of question involving math, and he's willing to sit down and write it all on a whiteboard and help out.
Career Possibilities
Consistent practice in developing real systems while addressing structural and mechanical issues significantly improves career prospects in any engineering field. This is especially true when paired with an undergraduate major that enables you to contribute to advancements in computational methods or system structures, guided by globally recognized faculty. Graduates pursue a variety of potential careers, including:
- Structural or materials engineering in aerospace, civil, or manufacturing applications
- Research in higher education or industrial research and development
- Consulting in specialized engineering or structural analysis projects
- Graduate studies in structural engineering or related areas
Curriculum Components and Prerequisites
The structural mechanics minor enhances your primary undergraduate degree by offering a series of courses that emphasize both the mathematical and scientific foundations of engineering principles. These courses also cover practical applications, such as analyzing structures and understanding materials behavior in real-world contexts, like waste treatment plants. The curriculum includes:
- Foundational sequence in the mechanics of structures and solids, fluid mechanics, space structures, etc.
- Computational methods and advanced topics
- Optional laboratory experience available
Pursue a Structural Mechanics Minor at Caltech
Caltech's structural mechanics minor program enhances STEM majors with additional experience in structural analysis, materials behavior, and design optimization, essential skills for understanding how structures and materials behave under complex conditions. Whether you are interested in aerospace, civil infrastructure, chemical engineering, or other applications of mechanics and physics, the structural mechanics minor prepares you for impactful projects in your career and success in graduate studies.