ME 524Advanced Dynamics and Vibrations
- Units
- 0.50
- Faculty
- Engineering
- Subject
- Mechanical Engineering
When it runs
- F24
- W25
- S25
- F25
- W26
- S26
- F26
- W27
- S27
Ran in 1 of the last 7 terms. Winter 2027: not on the schedule. Spring 2027: schedule not out yet.
This course is a continuation of ME 212 and ME 321. It includes study of planar and three-dimensional motion of rigid bodies and systems, including gyroscopic effects. Vector (Newton's Method) and analytical (Lagrange's Equation) methods are used to derive equations of motion. Linear vibrational analyses are performed to examine natural frequencies, stability, and mode shapes. Computer simulation of non-linear systems is discussed.
Prerequisites
- Complete all of the following
- Must have completed the following:
- Students must be in level 4A or higher
- Enrolled in H-Mechanical Engineering, or H-Mechatronics Engineering
Antirequisites
None listed.
Leads to
No course lists it as a requisite.
Fall 2026 sections
| Section | Class | Enrolled | Meets |
|---|---|---|---|
| LEC 001 | 7732 | 16 / 48 | T 12:30–14:20 Th 11:30–12:20 |
Reviewed on UW Flow
50% liked it50% easy50% useful
From 2 ratings and 1 comment on UW Flow. The most helpful comments, quoted as written, without names. Read them all on UW Flow.
One of 2 courses I regret taking in undergrad, I was expecting something useful to mechanical design but instead got a math course with little to no applications. Extremely difficult and confusing assignments/exams, long lectures full of content most ME students haven't covered since 1st year, professor who struggles to convey concepts and give useful notes to learn from. I strongly recommend you avoid taking this course if you value your sanity.
Mar 2021 · didn’t like itOn UW FlowRemove this
Discussed on r/uwaterloo
7 posts and comments in 6 threads mention ME 524, June 2015 to December 2024. Quoted word for word, newest first; each reply sits under the post and the comment that started its branch. Search r/uwaterloo for newer posts.
Spring 2022
A GUIDE ON HOW TO PLAN AN OPTION 29 points, 15 comments
u/1000Ditto: “Hey all, here's an example (by yours truly) of how to plan an option. as someone who has been trying to get many options in but having a hard time, might as well write down my process so others can kind of benefit from it. …”
Fall 2021
Got high this afternoon and made a tree diagram of Mechanical Engineering courses and their prerequisites, enjoy 174 points, 13 comments
u/mathematicalengineer: “Nicely done! Sad to see that linear algebra (MATH 115) doesn't directly lead into any other ME course for the rest of the program.”
u/Dragon20942: “Honestly though it should at least be a prerequisite to ME547, ME524, and perhaps ME 456”
Spring 2021
Mechanical engineering undergrad retrospective 201 points, 42 comments
u/doAbr00talroll: “… • ME524: The prof was clearly enthusiastic and knowledgeable about the topic but I feel like I REALLY missed out not taking it in person. There were a lot of technical issues and the content is difficult to learn in the best of situations. …”
Fall 2020
Engineering ranked by Math Difficulty? 9 points, 18 comments
“In your opinion, how would you rank the difficulty/depth of math that each engineering student has to go through? (By major)”
u/doAbr00talroll: “… I'm just in 4a though so the 4b courses might be harder math wise given there's stuff like ME547 (robot manipulators), ME524 and ME526 (one of them is fatigue the other is advanced dynamics and vibrations, I forget which is which)”
Winter 2018
need some advise on 4th year mech courses 6 points, 10 comments
u/shaysura: “… was like: ME 566 - Computational Fluid Dynamics ME 564 - Aerodynamics ME 524 - Adv Dynamics and Vibrations ME 559 - Finite Element Methods ME 436 - Welding & Joining Processes ME 533 - Non-metallic and Composite Materials ME 452 - Energy Transfer in …”
u/WarpdriveEngineer: “… -ME 524: vibrations is a new and challenging method of using lin alg and ODEs, dynamics is more of what you saw in dynamics 1 (but 3D). …”
Spring 2015
Any mech eng doing/done the tron option? 1 point, 6 comments
“I just wanna know if there are any mech eng that are doing/done the tron option. I wanna know what courses you took to complete the option (ECE or MTE courses?) and if doing the option itself was …”
u/annihilatron: “… Courses I did not take and have heard nothing about: ME561, ME547, ECE463, ECE450, ECE457, ECE486, ME524, The rest of the SYDE courses (non-422) ======== Jobwise, it doesn't affect much. …”
Check it elsewhere for Fall 2026
- Undergraduate Calendar, 2026–27The official entry
- Requirements for Fall 2026Waterloo’s requisite checker
- Schedule of Classes, Fall 2026Instructors, rooms, live seats
- Quest Class SearchWhere you enrol
- Course outlinesSyllabi from past terms (UW login)
- UW FlowStudent ratings and reviews
- WClassesPast sections back to 2004, and who taught them