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Nuclear Engineering

Graduate studies in the field of applications of nuclear energy had their inception on the Berkeley campus in the fall of 1955 when the first M.S. program in nuclear engineering was offered by the Division of Mechanical Engineering. This program was developed largely as a result of the foresight and effort of Professors Edward Teller, Richard A. Fayram, and Nathan W. Snyder and reflected conclusions on curriculum arising from discussions at the 1954 Berkeley Conference on Nuclear Engineering. Initially, the program consisted of 26 units of prescribed work in nuclear reactor theory, mathematics, materials science, fluid mechanics, heat transfer, and applied thermodynamics.

There were seven students in the first group at Berkeley, six of whom received their M.S. degrees in June, 1956. The program underwent steady growth, with 14 students receiving the M.S. degree in June, 1957 and 23 in June, 1958. Course work beyond the M.S. level was initiated in 1956, and the program became more formalized with the appointment of Mills as professor and vice-chairman of mechanical engineering for nuclear engineering. The tragic accidental death of Mills in the spring of 1958 was very keenly felt by the staff, occurring as nuclear engineering was about to be elevated to department status.

In the fall of 1958, Professor Lawrence M. Grossman, who had joined the group in 1957, was appointed acting chairman of the Department of Nuclear Engineering. Thomas H. Pigford joined the staff as professor and chairman in the fall of 1959.  read more »