Student Resources
From hands-on labs and competitive engineering teams to personalized advising and internships, PNW’s Department of Mechanical and Civil Engineering gives you everything you need to level up your skills and launch your dream career.
Explore Scholarships
Visit PNW’s scholarship database to search for scholarships dedicated to students in mechanical and civil engineering.
External Scholarship Opportunity
The American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers offers scholarships for students interested in pursuing an engineering or technology career in the heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration field.
Our Competition Teams
Purdue University Northwest’s 2025 NASA Rover Club competed in the NASA Human Exploration Rover Challenge (HERC) held at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama, picking up the Most Improved Performance Award – Human-Powered recognition.
The Concrete Canoe Competition provides students a unique opportunity to gain hands-on practical experience while testing their skills with concrete mix designs and project management challenges.
Formula SAE (FSAE) is a student design competition endorsed by the Society of Automotive Engineers. Each year SAE International challenges students to design, build and race a small open-wheel car.
The NASA Human Exploration Rover Challenge (HERC) is an annual competition where students from around the world design, build and test human-powered rovers on a simulated lunar and Martian terrain course.
The Shell Eco-marathon is a groundbreaking international engineering competition organized by Shell. It challenges students to design, build, and drive the most energy-efficient vehicles possible.
The Student Steel Bridge Competition challenges students to extend their classroom knowledge to a practical and hands-on steel-design project that grows their interpersonal and professional skills, encourages innovation and fosters impactful relationships between students and industry professionals.
Advising
Individual, collaborative relationships with academic advisors help students define and implement educational and career plans.
Advising Resources
All new undergraduate students must attend New Student Orientation, where the freshman advisor will explain the procedure for registration and the student will register for classes.
Transfer students also will have to see the freshman advisor for an initial evaluation of their transcripts and may be directed to a faculty advisor.
New graduate students will be assigned a faculty advisor based on research or study interests indicated in the applicant’s statement of purpose.
Our advisors strive to help students:
- clarify their life and career goals,
- assess individual academic abilities,
- develop suitable educational plans,
- select appropriate courses and complementary educational experiences,
- interpret institutional requirements,
- enhance their awareness of available educational resources (such as internship opportunities, honors, and tutoring programs),
- evaluate their progress toward established goals,
- assist them in completing degree requirements in a timely manner,
- seek out and use support services in the institution and the community.
Internships and Opportunities
Mechanical and civil engineering students at PNW get personalized internship and career counseling, STEM-focused career fairs and targeted networking events to connect you with top industry employers.
Pathways to Science
This STEM resource includes 450+ paid summer-research experiences for undergraduates as well as graduate fellowships, mentoring and professional development opportunities. Sign up to receive notifications about programs and opportunities!
Solar
Dive into a one-stop shop for students applying for NASA opportunities!
PNW Career Center
We assist Purdue University Northwest students and alumni in making connections with employers for a successful future.