Mining Engineering and Management, M.S.

 

Contact Information

Dr. Purushotham Tukkaraja
Mining Engineering and Management Department
MI 229
(605) 394-1267
E-mail: Purushotham.Tukkaraja@sdsmt.edu

Mining Engineering

The Master of Science in Mining Engineering is designed to provide a program of advanced study in either management-oriented or technically-oriented disciplines for candidates planning a career in the mining, mine management or underground construction field. The available course work and current faculty expertise support the following emphasis areas:

1. Applied geomechanics, including advanced rock mechanics, rock slope stability, and tunneling;
2. Mining engineering management, including mineral economics and finance, and mining business management; and
3. General mining engineering.

The course delivery is geared towards both campus and hybrid-distance delivery modes.

Background Requirements

The mining engineering coursework is geared primarily towards the working professional in the mining industry who requires distance delivery of the courses, although students can be admitted directly to the on-campus program. In either case, the student should have completed an appropriate undergraduate engineering degree. For those holding a non-mining engineering undergraduate degree the applicant should have significant experience in the mining or underground construction industry. Additionally, an undergraduate course in probability and statistics is highly recommended.

Curriculum

The thirty-two credit hour non-thesis MS MinE degree consists of a program of acceptable graduate work culminating in the preparation, presentation and defense of a final project report. The interdisciplinary curriculum includes 12 core credits (4 courses) that are required for all students, 9 credit hours of specialization courses and 9 credit hours of elective courses approved by the student’s major professor. Additionally, the final project and report, normally completed in the student’s last semester, is two credit hours.

The requirements for the MS MinE degree are as follows:

• A program of at least 32 credits of course work (including 2 credit hours for the final project) which must include as required core courses:
  • MEM 450/550 Rock Slope Engineering  or MEM 425/525 Advanced Rock Mechanics ,
  • MEM 410/510 Advanced Mineral Economics for Managers ,
  • MEM 480/580 Advanced Explosives and Blasting , and
  • MEM 610 Topics in Mineral Economics, Sustainability and Mine Regulation .
• At least 18 credit hours of approved graduate-level elective coursework (500 level courses and above).
• Meeting or exceeding prescribed academic standards.
• Preparation, presentation and successfully defending the required final project, which would normally be a practical project approved by the student’s major professor.
• Complying with all rules and regulations of the Graduate Office, which are presented elsewhere in this catalog.