For the Mining Engineering program offered by the University of Kentucky, a minimum of 24 semester hours of coursework plus a thesis are required. In no case will independent work, taken as MNG-780 or MNG-790 and used for part of the thesis, be counted as part of the 24 hours of coursework. The thesis must be actively supervised by a member of the graduate faculty.

Career prospects

Mining engineers work to discover, evaluate, recover and process mineral deposits from the earth and ocean floor. The majority are employed in either the design or supervision of mineral extraction and processing systems. They may also go into such related work as environmental control, safety, research or education. Some mining engineers, along with geochemists, geophysicists and geologists, work in mineral exploration; others work with metallurgical and other engineers to appraise new ore deposits. They study rock formations and water, soil and plant characteristics for signs of mineral or ore deposits.