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Explosives Engineering Graduate Options

Explosives Engineering Certificate

This certificate program is designed to provide formalized education in the area of Explosives
Engineering. Students will be exposed to the theoretical and practical approaches of explosives
engineering. Students will learn analysis and design of explosive-related systems and both
natural and built structure effects. The Explosives Engineering Certificate Program is open to
all persons holding a B.S., M.S., or Ph.D. degree in engineering, physical science or
technology, who meet S&T graduate requirements and who have a minimum of 12-months of
post-B.S. professional employment experience. The certificate is designed for the professional
who does not have the time to take the GRE. Professional experience and maturity are often
assessed and may be used to compliment the applicants undergraduate GPA. Once admitted
to the program, the student must take four designated courses as given below. In order to
receive a Graduate Certificate, the student must have an average cumulative grade of 3.0 or
better in the certificate courses. Students admitted to the certificate program will have
non-matriculated status; however, if they complete the four-course sequence with a grade of B
or better in each of the courses taken, they will be admitted to the M.S. Explosives Engineering
program. The certificate credits taken by students admitted to the M.S. program will count
toward their master's degrees. Students who do not have all of the prerequisite courses
necessary to take the course in the certificate program will be allowed to take "bridge" courses
at either the graduate or undergraduate level to prepare for the formal certificate courses. For
further qualification information see graduate program entrance, acceptance requirements &
procedures on the next page.

The following courses are required:

Two Required Courses:
Exp Eng 307-Principles of Explosives Engineering
Exp Eng 350-Blasting Design and Technology

Choose any two courses from the list below:
Exp Eng 305/Min Eng 305 Explosives Handling And Safety
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Exp/Min Eng 309: Commercial Pyrotechnics Operations
Exp/Min Eng 313: Stage Pyrotechnics & Special Effects
Exp/Min Eng 351: Demolition of Buildings & Structures
Min Eng 383: Tunneling & Underground Construction
Exp/Min Eng 402: Environmental Controls for Blasting
Exp/Min Eng 406: Scientific Instrumentation for Explosives Testing & Blasting
Exp/Min Eng 407: Theory of High Explosives
Exp/Min Eng 490: Research (Explosives Engineering related)

As new explosive courses come on line, these will be approved for substitution in the above list
by the faculty, on an individual basis.

Explosives Technology Certificate

The Explosives Technology Certificate is designed for non-engineering graduates whereas the
Explosives Engineering Certificate is designed for engineering graduates.

The Explosives Technology Certificate Program is open to all graduates holding a B.A., or
advanced higher degree that have a mathematics background through trigonometry (Missouri
S&T Math 6 or equivalent) and a minimum of 12-months of post-B.A. professional
employment experience.

The student must have a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher in the four courses required for this
graduate certificate. Students admitted to a graduate certificate program will have non-degree
student status, but will earn graduate credit for the courses they complete. If the four-course
sequence is completed with a grade of B or better in each of the courses taken, the student, upon
application, will be admitted to the M.S. degree in Explosives Engineering, but will be
precluded from taking any graduate courses until successful completion of the following
pre-requisite courses:
1. S&T Chem 001 General Chemistry 1 (or equivalent)
2. S&T Chem 002 General Chemistry 1 Lab (or equivalent)
3. S&T Chem 004 Lab Safety (or equivalent)
4. S&T Math 014 Calculus for Engineers 1 (or equivalent)
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5. S&T Math 015 Calculus for Engineers 2 (or equivalent)
6. S&T Physics 023 Engineering Physics 1 (or equivalent)
7. S&T IDE 140 Statics and Dynamics (or equivalent)

The certificate courses taken by students admitted to the M.S. program will apply toward their
masters degrees. Once admitted to a certificate program, a student will be given three years to
complete the program so long as he or she maintains at least a B average in the courses taken.
The applicant must also pass a background check.
The following courses constitute the graduate certificate in Explosives Technology:

Two Required Courses:
Exp Eng 307-Principles of Explosives Engineering
Exp Eng 350-Blasting Design and Technology

Choose any two courses from the list below:
Exp Eng 305/Min Eng 305 Explosives Handling And Safety
Exp Eng 309/Min Eng 309 Commercial Pyrotechnics Operations
Exp Eng 313/Min Eng 313 Stage Pyrotechnics and Special Effects
Exp Eng 323 Pyrotechnic Show Design
Min Eng 383 Tunneling & Underground Construction Techniques
Exp Eng 401 Regulatory Issues in the Explosives Industry
Exp Eng 406/Min Eng 406 Scientific Instrumentation For Explosives Testing &
Blasting

Other courses approved by the explosives engineering faculty may be substituted for any of the
above listed courses on a case-by-case basis.

Explosives Engineering Minor

A student who receives a Masters or Ph.D. degree in an accredited engineering program from
Missouri S&T may receive the Minor in Explosives Engineering by completing 15 credit hours
from the courses listed below. Non-engineering students who have a strong background in
mathematics and the physical sciences may also qualify for the Minor in Explosives
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Engineering, with the approval of the Department and based on an individually designed
program of study. Students need to consult with the Chair of the Mining Engineering Program
to determine pre-requisite requirements for each course. The program granting the Bachelor of
Science degree shall determine whether or not courses taken for the Explosives Engineering
Minor may also be used to fulfill the requirements of the graduate degree from that program.

The following courses are required for the Minor in Explosives Engineering:
Exp Eng 307 - Principles of Explosives Engineering
Exp Eng 350 - Blasting Design and Technology
Plus three other explosives related courses as approved by program coordinator

Explosives Engineering Master of Science (MS)

By Thesis
Students will be required to meet the standard graduate school admission requirements for
Missouri S&T. Additionally; the Explosives Engineering M.S. is considered a specialist
qualification for graduates holding accredited engineering, physical science and technology
B.S. degrees. Students meeting admission requirements must be approved by the appropriate
department chair or designate as well as the office for Graduate Studies. The program details
can be found at Program Structure Exp Eng.

Graduates are expected to complete 24 credit hours of coursework (including 6 hours of
400/6000 level lecture classes) along with 6 hours of explosives engineering research and to
successfully complete a thesis describing his/her research. A complete list of explosives
courses is listed in the Graduate Catalog. More classes will be offered in the future and students
may also take other approved courses in related disciplines.

Non Thesis Option (mainly for off campus)
The 6 hrs of research are replaced by an additional explosive course and an industry project. 9
hours of 400/6000 level lecture classes are required.




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Explosives Engineering Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

The explosives Engineering PhD comprises a minimum of 72 credit hours. The 72 hrs
comprises 24 hrs of graduate lecture classes, 24 hrs of graduate research and 24 hrs of either
and or other graduate courses (including special problems and seminar). A minimum of 15hrs
of 400/6000 level lecture classes are also required within the 72 hrs. The student is required to
complete a substantial thesis describing his/her research.

Last updated 2
nd
March 2014


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Graduate Program Entrance, Acceptance Requirements & Procedures

Entrance Requirements

For the postgraduate explosives engineering program a Bachelors of Science degree in
engineering, technology or a physical science is required. This is to ensure that the student
already possesses basic engineering skills. The BS transcript is examined for the successful
completion of the following classes (S&T numbers or equivalent):

Chem 001-General Chemistry I . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 credit hrs
Chem 002-General Chemistry I Lab . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Chem 004-Lab Safety . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Math 014-Calculus for Engineers I . . . . . . . . . . . .4
Math 015-Calculus for Engineers II . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Physics 023-Engineering Physics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
IDE 140-Statics & Dynamics or IDE50 Statics . . . . 3

If these classes or their equivalents are not present the applicant will be required to take which
ever classes are deficient.

If the applicant does not have a BS and meet the above requirements (for example a BA)
he/she will be required to take and successfully pass the above classes before their application
will be considered. An explosives technology certificate is currently in application which will
cater for students that do not meet the above requirements and it is hoped that it will be in place
sometime in 2012.

The university also has regulations on the required GPA of the applicant for admission to
graduate school. For a postgraduate degree or certification that may lead into a graduate
degree a GPA of 3.0 is required for regular admission. The GPA may be the cumulative GPA
or the last 60 hrs of the BS program. For a GPA between 3.0 and 2.75 an applicant may be
admitted as a probationary student. For experienced applicants who have a significant
duration of work experience post baccalaureate, their experience and accomplishments may be
assessed by the explosives faculty and taken into consideration for applicants with a lower
GPA. We know that students often mature after graduation and gain valuable skills related to
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work experience. Often a probationary student will first be admitted to the certificate
program. Satisfactorily completing a certificate is an alternate route into the masters and is
often used by distance students who do not have the time to study for and take the GRE exam.
Further information may be found in the graduate catalog on the registrars website at

http://registrar.mst.edu/cataloginfo/cataloginfo.html

The PhD program has a direct route from the BS degree if the applicant has a GPA of 3.5 or
above. Otherwise the Masters must be successfully completed first.

Procedures

On receipt by admissions of your application for the explosives engineering postgraduate
program it will be checked for completeness and then passed on to the department where the
explosives engineering faculty will review the application and make their recommendation.
The recommendation then goes to the department chair for consideration it then is passed on to
the S&T graduate office where the staff check the application meets S&T standards and the
vice provost for graduate studies then makes the final determination. If the vice provost
determines that further action needs to be taken before approval it may be sent back to the
department for reassessment and/or further documentation. The time taken for the application
process is determined by the quality of the application, the timing of the submission and the
availability of faculty and staff. Sometimes everything is in perfect alignment and the process
quite rapid but other times there may be problems or everything is out of synchronization with
faculty out of town or on vacation and it may take an extended period.