How to choose an engineering degree

Many students all over the world are considering a future career in engineering in response to the global shortage of engineers. However, engineering is a profession that requires a significant amount of specialist training.

Future engineers are now faced with a very wide range of choices in terms of where and what and how they receive this training.

Choosing a career

The first decision a student normally makes is what sort of engineer they want to be. An important determining factor here will be the job opportunities that exist in their home country. While most countries have a skills shortage for engineers, the type of engineer required can vary quite significantly. Future undergraduates especially should also pay attention to what is likely to be required in the three to four years that they will take to graduate. For instance, countries that have a current need for manufacturing and power engineers may be starting to also have demand for microelectronic engineers in the near future. Similarly, those countries that already have a well-developed high-tech industrial sector may be looking for a higher level of speciality such as biomedical engineering.

Students hoping to develop their careers outside their home country will need to undertake more research to ensure that they have realistic expectations about the opportunities that exist. Many countries, including Britain, have employment laws which restrict the employment of non-nationals, and students should pay special attention to work permit regulations , skills shortage areas and the training scheme that allows engineers to work in Britain for a year after graduation . Such students also need to be a little careful when applying for a visa to study in Britain as, like many other countries, visas are not given to students who are using their training as just a pretext to settle permanently overseas.

Another issues that students should consider is whether they plan to work in the private or public sector. In some countries, sponsorship may be available for those who plan to work in the public sector but such students are often more restricted in the choice of the future career. There may also be additional considerations to be made concerning which qualifications are recognised.

Another important factor when planning a future career is to make the best match with their own abilities and interests. Future engineers should understand that they are more likely to excel in their chosen profession if they enjoy their work. Most engineering professions require students to have a flair for mathematics and physics. However, other skills will come into play depending upon they kind of engineering. Some branches will tend to be more theoretical requiring a high level of precision. Others may be more practical requiring a more pragmatic multidisciplinary approach. Again some branches of engineering will require their engineers to become managers or supervisors at an early stage of their career.

Choosing Britain

Britain has a world leading reputation for the provision of engineering training which is the reason why many future engineers choose Britain to further their studies.

This reputation is not based on history alone although the experience of British engineers overseas does mean that it is possible to provide engineering training within an international context. There are other important factors that contribute to the quality and relevance of the British engineering degrees. These include:

The university sector is government controlled with quality assurance procedures which have been copied by many countries all over the world
Engineering degrees are also controlled by the Professional bodies such as the IET which ensures the quality of the students, the quality of the teaching and most importantly the relevance of the programmes themselves.
Universities have control on the actual programme content which means that all programmes provided within Britain are unique in some way. This provides prospective students with an incredible level of choice to match with their specific areas of interest.
Individual modules are integrated within the whole programme to provide continuous development and to avoid overlapping curriculum. This means that students are taught very efficiently and are able to develop a depth of knowledge which typically takes much longer in other countries.
A distinctive feature of British degrees is the emphasis placed on practical work to support the theoretic base. In many countries, such practical work is restricted because of the costs involved.
Britain’s research output per capita is amongst the highest in the world. The ethos within British universities is that research and teaching activities are integrated so that students at undergraduate and postgraduate level will have direct experience of cutting edge research.

It should also be appreciated that British universities are also distinguished by the unique student experience that they are able to offer. One reason for this is that British students expect to leave home, often for the first time, to go to university. As a result, the universities must provide a well-tested support structure that caters for both the students’ welfare and social needs. Another reason is that most British universities have significant numbers of non-UK nationals amongst their students and academic staff. University social life is therefore very diverse, exciting and multi-cultural. Support services are designed to support the specific needs of international students and staff as a matter of course.

Students planning to undertake engineering training in Britain are provided with a very wide range of choice which in turn means that they have a number of important decisions to make with regard to what and where they will study. Such decisions generally start with a decision on a future career which will often determine the type of qualification required. As it is likely that there will be many places within Britain that offer the appropriate qualifications, students will then be faced with important choices on where they will continue their studies.

Choosing a Programme

Once a student has defined their future career and decided to study in Britain, they need to identify suitable programmes. Students will first need to ensure that the programme is recognised and relevant.

Once the type of degree has been decided, students need to give attention to the wide range of programmes that are available. An important point to understand is that, while the content and standard of the programmes are regulated by the Quality Assurance Agency, the curriculum is not standardised across the universities. This means that students should not choose a programme by the name of the degree and the reputation of the university alone. They should also pay close attention to the programme descriptions.

In many universities, the first year of an undergraduate degree may be common to a number of different degree programmes. Indeed the second year may also share modules with a fewer number of degree programmes. The third year normally provides more specialist modules and it is here that students have more choice in what modules they take. At Masters level, the first part of the degree is typically by taught course and the individual modules will tend to be unique to the university concerned. The second part of the programme is typically a research dissertation and students need to be aware that there are staff within the university that are able to supervise a project which matches the students specific interests.

Perhaps one of the first choices is whether a student is interested in one of the more general degrees (i.e. electrical engineering) or one of the more specialist degrees (communications). An important issue here to consider what future employers are looking for, as in some cases, they may prefer their employees to specialise at postgraduate level rather than at undergraduate level. However, for students who want to specialise, this is often possible within a general degree if such a degree offers a wide range of specialist options in the final year.

A further issue for undergraduates is that the education system that they have previously studied in does not provide the depth in Mathematics and Physics equivalent to the British A level. This often means that such students will be required to take a Science Foundation Programme before enrolling on an undergraduate degree. Such programmes can be provided in either state or private colleges, sometimes in association with a group of universities, or by the universities themselves.

Choosing a university

Once a prospective student has identified the right programme, they are still likely to be faced with a number of different universities to choose from.

Often an important determining factor in this choice is the reputation of that university concerned. The important issue here is the reputation a university has within the eyes of the student’s prospective employers and this can be influenced by a range of factors such as the number of alumni known to the employer, the media coverage the university has in the employers country and the various rankings that reflect quality in research and teaching. One consequence of a university having a high reputation is their overall popularity with the students. In Britain, fee levels are quite similar across all the universities which means that popular programmes will restrict the number of students applying for limited number of places by raising their entrance requirements. Guidance on the typical entrance requirements are normally published in the prospectuses, websites and main directories. It is therefore important for students to be guided by these entrance requirements as it is not realistic for students to aim for a top university if they themselves are not a top student.

Even when all these considerations are taken into account, students, especially undergraduate students, are likely to be still faced with a significant number of universities to choose from. Most students will then look a bit more carefully at the facilities but academic (library, IT, laboratories etc) and social (accommodation, transport, cost of living, accommodation of religious needs).

Students should also not neglect giving consideration to how they are going to enjoy their time at university. British universities are distinguished throughout the world by providing students with a very vibrant social and cultural life and these activities often have an important role to play in a student’s personal development, especially undergraduates. Students who have a particular sport or hobby which they wish to continue in university to first check if they are able to keep up with this interest while at university. They may also find activities are available that they have always wanted to try.

Students should also pay attention to the overall environment. Students used to lively city life may find a campus university a bit claustrophobic while conversely, those used to living in a smaller community, may find a big city frightening and lonely.

For postgraduates, it is the case that those undertaking a Masters degree will find that these intensive one-year programmes do not always allow for a very extensive social life. This means that it is even more important for Masters students to opportunities to unwind when they can.

By Dr Kasey Carver, Director of International Relations, UMIST

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