What is Nuclear Engineering?
Nuclear engineering sounds scary and complicated at first, but it’s an important discipline that has developed life-saving technology and methods for renewable energy. The word “nuclear” comes from the word nucleus, meaning the central hub of an atom, which is the building block of the world as we know it. Nuclear power comes from harnessing the energy of atoms. A nuclear engineer might do anything from designing X-ray machines and MRI scanners to developing fusion power and nuclear power plants.
Nuclear engineers can work in a variety of settings. Those employed by universities will often find themselves in a laboratory environment handling complicated machinery. Some will work behind a desk, using computer simulations to analyze data, project reactions, and monitor equipment. Others, working for private power companies, might be on the floor of a plant.
Nuclear engineering is a lucrative field, with the median salary of more than $125,000 in 2023. As the demand for alternative energy and medical technology increases, the need for nuclear engineers will surely increase with it.
Becoming a nuclear engineer typically requires a bachelor’s degree in nuclear engineering from a school accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET). If you’re looking to get into more of an academic research setting as a teacher and researcher, then getting a masters or doctorate degree would be wise. Some universities offer 5 year programs that allow students to get both their undergraduate and masters degrees at once.
Top Nuclear Engineering Colleges
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology, better known as MIT, is located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It has an undergraduate enrollment of only 4,638 and an extremely low acceptance rate of 4%. However, it is one of the best engineering colleges not just in the United States, but in the entire world. Its nuclear science and engineering major is no different.
This course catalog provides a good understanding of what kinds of classes you can expect from a nuclear engineering major, and specifically what’s required from MIT students. MIT’s nuclear engineering program has the advantage of being hands-on and practical, providing research opportunities as early as your first year. It aims to equip students with skills needed in the nuclear engineering field and related careers, such as:
- Utilities
- Medical Technologies
- Policy
- Innovative New Technologies
- Research
- Computational Analysis
- Consulting
MIT students learn both design principles and research methodologies, helping them prepare for whatever they choose to do with their degree.
North Carolina State University
NC State is situated in Raleigh, North Carolina, and is a large public university with over 23,000 students. Admissions is competitive, with 47% of applicants being accepted into the college. Its nuclear engineering grad school is ranked third in the nation, according to US News. It is home to the nation’s first nuclear engineering curriculum and non-governmental research reactor, founded in the 1950s. It is also the only nuclear engineering program in the state.
The college offers a bachelor and minor in nuclear engineering, as well as an accelerated bachelor-master, regular master, and PhD in the field. Major focus areas are:
- Reactor Systems Engineering
- Radiation Interactions and Detection
- Plasma Science and Engineering
- Nuclear Fuel and Materials
NC State nuclear engineering occupies 38,000 square feet in Burlington Engineering Laboratories, including their PULSTAR reactor and its associated labs.
Texas A&M
Texas A&M is a massive public university in College Station, Texas, with more than 50,000 enrolled students. The acceptance rate is 63% – difficult but not unattainable.
Their department of nuclear engineering is the largest program by student population, with 419 students across the undergraduate and graduate departments. They spend over 12 million dollars a year in research expenditures and have many resources at their disposal. It is ranked consistently as one of the best value and quality nuclear engineering programs in the United States.
Texas A&M’s research facilities are second to none. They have two research reactors, seven accelerators, and a high-energy pulsed plasma laboratory. Their research is across multiple territories, such as:
- Reactor Physics and Computational Science
- Nuclear Security Research
- Nuclear Power Engineering
- Nuclear Materials
- Health and Medical Physics
Georgia Institute of Technology
Georgia Tech is a large public college in Atlanta, Georgia, with 17,461 students and a very competitive acceptance rate of 17%. Universities.com ranks it the 5th best college for nuclear engineering, and other sites also put it in the top ten for its graduate program.
Almost 3,000 students are enrolled in the school for nuclear and radiological engineering and medical physics. The department has $40 million in new research awards annually and numerous opportunities for students. More than half of the students in the department spend a semester abroad in Georgia Tech’s campus in Metz, France, or other locations around the world.
Georgia Tech has a maker space for their students, the Flower Invention Studio, which provides resources like 3D printers, water jets, laser cutters, woodworking tools, and an electronics bench. There are also seven student competition teams for putting these skills into practice in fun and creative ways.
University of Wisconsin – Madison
UW Madison accepts 60% of students that apply, is based in the city of Madison, Wisconsin, and has 34,500 students enrolled. It has one of the few research and teaching nuclear reactors left in the nation and is consistently ranked within the top five public universities for nuclear engineering among undergraduate and graduate programs.
Some of the facilities available to UW nuclear engineering students include:
- Nuclear Reactor Laboratory
- Nuclear Instrumentation Laboratory
- Fluid Mechanics and Heat Transfer Laboratories
- Ion Beam Laboratory
- Plasma Physics Laboratories
- Instructional Computing Labs (for Computer Aided Engineering)
UW’s website has a helpful write up about what kinds of uses your nuclear engineering skills can be used for in shaping the future.
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
34,779 students are enrolled at UNI, located in Champaign, Illinois. The acceptance rate is 60%, making it a competitive process. Grainger College of Nuclear, Plasma, and Radiological Engineering (NPRE) is consistently ranked in the top 10 of nuclear engineering colleges.
The first few years of the NPRE degree are focused on creating a strong foundation in science, engineering, and nuclear energy systems. The technical core and specific student concentrations take place mostly in the third and fourth years. Students have three concentration choices:
- Power, safety, and the environment
- Plasma and fusion science and engineering
- Radiological, medical, and instrumentation applications
University of California – Berkeley
UC Berkeley is an elite public university based in the city of Berkeley, California, with 31,000 students enrolled and a difficult acceptance rate of only 14%. It is one of the best nuclear engineering schools in the nation, ranked third, fourth, and fifth respectively by three different college ranking websites.
Faculty at UC Berkeley are at the cutting edge of nuclear research, playing a leading role in advancing fusion technology. Some other fields where faculty are conducting research are:
- Nuclear and Radiological Physics
- Ethics of Technology
- Fission Reactor Analysis
- Fuel Cycles and Radioactive waste
- Particle Beam and Plasma Technologies
- Nuclear Thermal Hydraulics
UC Berkeley has a 95% six year engineering graduation rate and 28% of their engineering body are first-generation undergraduates.
Purdue
Purdue University is a large, public university in West Lafayette, Indiana, with an undergraduate population of almost 38,000 and an achievable 70% acceptance rate. College Factual ranks it as the #1 value school for nuclear engineering, and #7 in overall quality.
One major benefit of the program is the Purdue University Reactor One (PUR-1), the first and only nuclear reactor in the state of Indiana. Along with its educational uses training the next generation of engineers, it also acts as a source for activation energy for other departments.
There are great opportunities for research at Purdue, such as in the fields of:
- Hydrogen Systems and Fuel Cells
- Nuclear Systems Simulation
- Nuclear Radiation Sensors and Instrumentation
- Reactor Physics
- Renewable and Hybrid Nuclear Systems
- Thermal Hydraulics and Reactor Safety
University of Michigan – Ann Arbor
As the US News #1 ranked grad school for nuclear engineering, Michigan is a fantastic college to attend for nuclear engineering. Michigan has a low acceptance rate of 18% and a student population of more than 30,000. It is located in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
The undergraduate to faculty ratio is a miniscule 6:1, providing plenty of opportunities for students to learn directly from world-renowned scientists and engineers. They had over $31.6 million in 2023 research funding as well. Michigan offers a bachelor, master, and doctorate in nuclear engineering and radiological sciences.
Their key areas of research include:
- Fission Systems and Radiation Transport
- Plasmas and Nuclear Fusion
- Materials and Radiation Effects
- Radiation Measurements and Imaging
- Policy and Climate
Their research priorities are:
- Clean, affordable, and reliable nuclear-inclusive energy systems
- Nuclear security and homeland defense
- Environment and health
- Scientific discovery
Preparing for These Nuclear Engineering Colleges
Nuclear engineering is an exciting and necessary field, but it is also a difficult one that requires a lot of work and knowledge. If you’re planning to go to one of these colleges for nuclear engineering, make sure you can show admissions counselors that you have a solid background in math from high school, especially in areas like calculus and physics. This will show your dedication and demonstrate that you have the ability to take on the rigorous studies that nuclear engineering will demand.
