This programme will equip you with the knowledge and skills you need to meet the needs of the automotive industry in the advanced areas of analysis, design and manufacture.
Traditionally, the sector has been associated with high-volume vehicle manufacture, but the past decade has seen the landscape shift towards automotive component manufacturers and specialist design and consultancy house.
This course will prepare you to work in a range of different settings. Core modules will develop your knowledge of key fields such as chassis and driveline engineering, as well as vehicle and product systems design. You’ll then choose from optional modules on topics that suit your own interests and career intentions.
We put particular emphasis on computational methods and software packages in automotive engineering analysis, design and manufacture. Depending on the modules you choose, you could use Matlab, Abaqus finite element code, Fluent CFD, SolidWorks CAE and LabView (DAQ and control).
Specialist facilities
You’ll benefit from working in world-class specialist facilities for different aspects of automotive engineering. These include a brake test area and measurement lab, as well as the latest industry-standard software for computational fluid dynamics and finite element modelling of systems and materials. ADAMS software is also available for suspension simulation.
High-level CNC and wire EDM facilities are available in the Faculty workshop, and we have cutting-edge tribology facilities to study wear on engine parts. There’s even a ‘stirred bomb’ for characterising fuel ignition and advanced engines with optical access. If you get involved with Formula Student race car, you’ll also use our dedicated car build area including computerised engine test bays.
This programme is also available to study part-time over 24 months.
This course is accredited by the Institute of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) under licence from the UK regulator, the Engineering Council.
Core modules will give you a solid knowledge base in key areas of automotive engineering. You’ll build your understanding of how vehicle and product systems are designed and developed, as well as automotive driveline and chassis engineering.
This foundation will allow you to gain specialist knowledge in areas that particularly interest you when you choose from our range of optional modules. You could focus on topics such as computational methods, tribology, combustion in engines or applications of mechatronics among many others.
Throughout the programme you’ll complete your Professional Project – an independent piece of research on a topic within mechanical engineering that allows you to demonstrate your knowledge and skills.
In the two taught semesters you’ll review the literature around your topic and plan the project, before completing the design, analysis, computation, experimentation and writing up in the summer months. You could even get involved with the Formula Student race car through your project.
If you choose to study part-time, you’ll extend your studies over a longer period so you can take fewer modules in each year.
Want to find out more about your modules?
Take a look at the Automotive Engineering module descriptions for more detail on what you will study.
Compulsory modules
Optional modules
Our groundbreaking research feeds directly into teaching, and you’ll have regular contact with staff who are at the forefront of their disciplines. You’ll have regular contact with them through lectures, seminars, tutorials, small group work and project meetings.
Independent study is also important to the programme, as you develop your problem-solving and research skills as well as your subject knowledge.
You’ll be assessed using a range of techniques including case studies, technical reports, presentations, in-class tests, assignments and exams. Optional modules may also use alternative assessment methods.
The professional project is one of the most satisfying elements of this course. It allows you to apply what you’ve learned to a piece of research focusing on a real-world problem, and it can be used to explore and develop your specific interests.
Recent projects for MSc Automotive Engineering students have included:
A proportion of projects are formally linked to industry, and can include spending time at the collaborator’s site over the summer. You can also get involved with projects linked to the design, construction and testing of the Formula Student race car.
Career prospects are excellent and with this qualification you should expect to find employment in the automotive and motor sport industries.
Graduates from this programme are working for employers such as Bentley Motors, BMW UK, Jaguar Land Rover, Honda, Nissan Motor Company, Renault F1 (Lotus Renault GP), Red Bull Racing and Ricardo UK.
Alternatively, you may choose to work in the general engineering industry, undertake PhD study or move into a completely different field such as finance or teaching.
Demand for aerospace engineering graduates is rising, both in the UK and overseas. In fact, the UK aerospace industry is the second biggest in the world after the USA, and it’s home to some of the world’s leading aerospace companies such as Airbus, Astrium, BAE Systems, GKN and Rolls-Royce.
Taught by expert academics in a leading research environment, this programme will equip you with the knowledge and skills to succeed in an exciting and challenging sector. You’ll study aerospace structures and structural analysis, along with optional, specialist modules in areas such as aerodynamics and computational fluid dynamics, aircraft design, systems and optimisation methods, rotary wing aircraft and propulsion.
Our Aerospace Engineering Industrial Advisory Board is actively engaged in ensuring this course meets the needs of industry and reflects trends in the sector. It also provides industrial talks and seminars and advice and support to our students during their professional projects.
In addition to our advanced CAD facilities for design work, we have the latest industry-standard software for computational fluid dynamics and finite element modelling of material stress analysis, programming and structural and multidisciplinary optimisation.
We are currently seeking accreditation from the Institute of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) and the Royal Aeronautical Society.
You’ll take a compulsory module in Semester 1 which develops your knowledge of aerospace structures and the theory behind aerospace structural analysis, as well as applying this understanding to real-world problems.
This will inform the rest of your studies, where you’ll select from a wide range of optional modules allowing you to pursue the topics that appeal to your interests or suit your future career plans. You could gain sophisticated knowledge in areas such as aerospace vehicle design, computational methods or materials failure analysis.
Throughout the programme you’ll complete your Professional Project – an independent piece of research on a topic within aerospace engineering that allows you to demonstrate your knowledge and skills. In the two taught semesters you’ll review the literature around your topic and plan the project, before completing the design, analysis, computation, experimentation and writing up in the summer months.
Want to find out more about your modules?
Take a look our Aerospace Engineering module descriptions for more detail on what you will study.
Compulsory modules
Optional modules
For more information on typical modules, read Aerospace Engineering MSc in the course catalogue
Our groundbreaking research feeds directly into teaching, and you’ll have regular contact with staff who are at the forefront of their disciplines. You’ll have regular contact with them through lectures, seminars, tutorials, small group work and project meetings.
Independent study is also important to the programme, as you develop your problem-solving and research skills as well as your subject knowledge.
You’ll be assessed using a range of techniques including case studies, technical reports, presentations, in-class tests, assignments and exams. Optional modules may also use alternative assessment methods.
The professional project is one of the most satisfying elements of this course. It allows you to apply what you’ve learned to a piece of research focusing on a real-world problem, and it can be used to explore and develop your specific interests.
Typical projects for MSc Aerospace Engineering students could include:
A proportion of projects are formally linked to industry, and can include spending time at the collaborator’s site over the summer.
The aerospace industry is one of the most successful parts of UK engineering and is truly global in nature.
You’ll be able apply the skills you gain from this course to numerous areas of the aerospace industry, such as aerospace fundamental research, airline management and operations, satellite operations, aerospace design and manufacture in both the civil and military environments and Formula 1 racing.
Whether you join an aerospace company in the UK, such as Airbus, BAE Systems or Rolls-Royce or choose to work elsewhere in the world, the foundation provided by the MSc will make sure you are prepared for a rewarding and challenging career.
Links with industry
During this course you will meet employers from organisations operating within this sector through seminars and talks and by attending our careers fair. In previous years there have been talks from colleagues at Airbus, Astrium, BAE Systems, Rolls-Royce to provide additional industrial perspectives to the course and career guidance to students.
