The matrix exponential is a very important subclass of functions of matrices that has been studied extensively in the last 50 years. In this thesis, we discuss some of the more common matrix functions and their general properties, and we specifically explore the matrix exponential. In principle, the matrix exponential could be computed in many ways. In practice, some of the methods are preferable to others, but none are completely satisfactory. Computations of the matrix exponential using Taylor Series, Scaling and Squaring, Eigenvectors, and the Schur Decomposition methods are provided.