Curriculum

The program is designed to prepare students for a career in industry, the national laboratories, or in state or federal regulatory agencies. The program, leading to a BS degree in Nuclear Engineering, emphasizes study in the following areas of nuclear engineering: nuclear reactions and radiation, introduction to medical imaging, nuclear reactor theory and design, fusion power engineering, radioactive waste management, radiological and biophysics, and nuclear materials.

Many students will go on to complete a one-year master's degree program (we do not have a 5th year MS program at this time). Students interested in careers in scientific research or in college teaching go on to complete the doctorate.

Nuclear Engineering Major

Nuclear Engineering Minor

Overview

The department offers a minor in nuclear engineering that is open to all students who are not majoring in NE and who have completed the necessary prerequisites for the minor requirements. The Faculty Advisor for the Nuclear Engineering Minor is Professor Raluca Scarlat.

Admissions Requirements

The NE Minor is open to any undergraduate who has:

Declared a major (not NE) on the UC Berkeley campus
A GPA of at least 3.0 at the time of applying
Completion of the minor must not delay graduation.

Graduation Requirements

To be given credit for the NE minor, undergraduates must:

Fulfill all course requirements
Take upper-division NE courses for a letter grade.
Maintain a GPA of at least 2.0 in the required upper division NE courses

Prerequisites:

Mathematics 1A, 1B, 53, 54
Physics 7A, 7B, 7C
MAT SCI 45, Properties of Materials

Application Process

Submit the PETITION FOR ADMISSION TO THE UNDERGRADUATE MINOR to the Undergraduate Advisor's Office after completion of the prerequisite courses.
Submit a PETITION FOR COMPLETION OF THE UNDERGRADUATE MINOR to the Undergraduate Advisor's Office upon completion of the minor requirements.
The department will verify the completion of minor and send the original form to the Office of the Registrar. A copy will be sent to the student's College or School and one retained in the department.
A notation in the memorandum section of the student's transcript will indicate completion of the minor.

Course Requirements for the Minor

Course	Units	Title	Prerequisites
NE100	3	Introduction to Nuclear Engineering	Physics 7A and 7B, Physics 7C may be taken concurrently. Math 53 and 54 may be taken concurrently.
Students will also be required to take three additional courses from the following list:
Course	Units	Title	Prerequisites
NE101	4	Nuclear Reactions and Radiation	Physics 7C
NE102	3	Nuclear Reactions and Radiation Laboratory	NE101
NE104	4	Radiation Detection and Nuclear Instrumentation Laboratory	NE101 or equivalent or Consent of instructor, NE150 recommended
NE107	3	Introduction to Imaging	NE101 and 104, or Consent of instructor
NE120	3	Nuclear Materials	MAT SCI 45, and an upper-division course in thermodynamics, or Consent of instructor
NE124	3	Radioactive Waste Management	E117 or equivalent, or Consent of instructor
NE130	4	Analytical Methods for Non-Proliferation	NE101, or consent of instructor
NE150	3	Introduction to Nuclear Reactor Theory	NE101, Math53 and 54
NE155	3	Introduction to Numerical Simulation in Radiation Transport	Math 53 and 54
NE161	3	Nuclear Power Engineering	Courses in fluid mechanics and heat transfer, junior-level course in thermodynamics, or Consent of instructor
NE162	3	Radiation Biophysics and Dosimetry	Physics 7C, E7, NE101 recommended
NE167	3	Nuclear Reactor Safety	NE 150, NE 161, or consent of instructor
NE170A	3	Nuclear Design: Design in Nuclear Power Technology and Instrumentation
NE170B	3	Nuclear Design: Design in Bio-Nuclear, Nuclear Medicine and Radiation Therapy	NE162, NE107, or Consent of instructor
NE175	3	Methods of Risk Analysis	Consent of instructor
NE180	3	Introduction to Controlled Fusion	Physics 7C

Joint Majors

Nuclear Engineering also has four joint major programs, with Materials Science and Engineering, Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Mechanical Engineering, and Chemical Engineering. These NE joint majors meet the same NE program objectives and student outcomes as the NE single major, listed above. Please see more information about the joint majors here.

The NE/MSE joint major also meets the Materials Science and Engineering program objectives and student outcomes.

The NE/EECS joint major also meets the EECS program objectives and student outcomes.

The NE/ME joint major also meets the Mechanical Engineering program objectives and student outcomes.

The NE/ChemE joint major also meets the Chemical Engineering program objectives and student outcomes.

Note: Although all joint major programs are designed to meet the respective objectives and outcomes of the programs, joint majors are not ABET accredited, but are ASC WASC accredited.

Curriculum Flowcharts (click to open in new tab)

Freshman Undergraduate Program

Transfer Undergraduate Program