Engineering

What is Engineering?

Engineering is about being creative in technical problem solving. Engineers make things possible by using mathematical and scientific principles together with analytical and design skills. They tackle existing problems by developing new solutions through innovative technologies. They also expand the frontiers of society by developing advanced materials, sustainable energy systems, construction technologies, transport systems, biomedical devices and telecommunications infrastructure.

Engineering: The course for you?

We have been teaching Engineering at Trinity since 1841. There have been immense developments since that time, but the continuity of excellence in teaching and learning is a source of pride for us and our graduates. A distinctive feature of Engineering at Trinity is the two-year common programme, in which all students learn the fundamentals of Engineering science and also engage in substantial elements of project work prior to choosing a specific Engineering discipline. Trinity is the top-ranked university in Ireland, and our Engineering graduates use this to their advantage all over the world as well as in Ireland.

Engineering is a constantly evolving profession. As an engineer, you will need to be adaptable both to the rapid development of new ideas and technology and to the shifting requirements of industry and society. You will need to be a good communicator and be capable of working as part of a team. Above all, you must be a problem solver. You must be creative and able to synthesise and analyse information from different sources to arrive at efficient and practical solutions.

Engineering @ Trinity

The School of Engineering at Trinity is ranked in the top 200 Engineering Schools in the world and offers outstanding teaching by engineers who are at the forefront of their field worldwide. It has a strong philosophy of research-led teaching and continuously benchmarks itself against the top international engineering schools. The Engineering course offers the opportunity to carry out research as part of your course with the aim of producing graduates capable of participating at the highest national and international levels. There are opportunities for work placements in Ireland and abroad as well as study abroad opportunities as part of the degree programme. The Engineering programme is fully accredited by Engineers Ireland up to Masters level (M.A.I.) and offers excellent career prospects in Ireland and abroad.

Graduate skills and career opportunities

Engineering graduates from Trinity have the capacity to think independently but also to work in teams. They can use technical understanding to problem solve in a wide range of technical areas. They are able to communicate their technical and creative ideas to other professionals and to society at large. They are able to take responsibility, deal with complexity and ambiguity and successfully face open-ended challenges.

Your degree and what you’ll study

The B.A.I./M.A.I. (Engineering) degree programme is based on two years of general engineering, providing students with a firm grounding in the principles common to all disciplines, followed by two/three years of specialisation. Graduates are professionally accredited engineers with both a broad-based understanding of the whole discipline and a detailed knowledge of their chosen specialist area. The aim is that graduates will be able to continuously train themselves, to adapt and move into related or newly emerging areas as their careers develop after graduation.

Engineering Course Structure

FIRST AND SECOND YEARS

All students follow a common programme for the first two years. The first year comprises introductory courses in engineering science, mathematics, computer science, physics, chemistry, mechanics, electricity and magnetism, graphics and computer-aided engineering, and a group design and build project.

In the second year, students take further engineering science modules, such as solids and structures, thermo-fluids, electronics and materials, and complete two more group design and build projects. This allows you to explore all the possibilities open to you in advance of making your final decision about which specialism to concentrate on.

While every effort is made to allow students to study the course they choose, in some departments the number of places for students of any one year may be limited (this has never been necessary so far).

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?

At the end of second year you choose one of the six specialist areas:

• Biomedical engineering
• Civil, structural and environmental engineering
• Computer engineering
• Electronic engineering
• Electronic and computer engineering (joint programme)
• Mechanical and manufacturing engineering

THIRD AND FOURTH YEARS

Courses in the third and fourth years aim to broaden and deepen your knowledge and understanding of the specialism you have chosen.

Subjects are studied in much greater detail and students undertake real-life, practical projects. For example, if you choose Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering you could end up testing the pre-cast concrete used to build the Paddington to Heathrow railway; if you choose Computer Engineering, you might find yourself building a microprocessor system.

FIFTH YEAR OPTIONS WITH STUDY ABROAD AND INTERNSHIP OPPORTUNITIES

Engineering students require a Masters degree to be directly eligible for Chartered Engineer status with Engineers Ireland. Therefore the School offers several options for a fifth year leading to a Masters degree (M.A.I.).

• M.A.I. (Domestic)

Students can spend the fourth and fifth year in Trinity, undertaking additional modules in their specialisation as well as a group project in fourth year and a significant individual Capstone project in fifth year.

Students also have the option of spending the second semester of their fourth year undertaking a supervised internship placement. The remainder of their fourth year and the fifth year are spent in Trinity undertaking additional modules in the specialisation. Students complete a significant individual Capstone project in 5th year.

• M.A.I. (International)

Students have the option to spend their fourth year abroad as part of the Erasmus/International exchange, CLUSTER or UNITECH programmes. As part of the Erasmus/International exchange or CLUSTER programmes, students spend their fourth year abroad at a partner university and return to complete their fifth year at Trinity. Some of our Erasmus/International exchange partner Universities include Institut National de Sciences Appliquées de Lyon – INSA, Universidad Politecnica de Madrid (UPM), Politecnico di Torino and University of Melbourne. The CLUSTER programme is a consortium of 12 universities including Technical University of Catalonia, Barcelona; Technische Universität Darmstadt; Technische Universiteit Eindhoven; Institut polytechnique de Grenoble; Instituto Superior Técnico Lisbon; Katholieke Universiteit Leuven/Université Catholique de Louvain; Helsinki University of Technology; Karlsruhe Institute of Technology; Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne; Politecnico di Torino; KTH Royal Institute of Technology Stockholm.

The UNITECH programme is a collaboration of 8 partner Universities and 16 multinational corporate partners. Students will spend one semester of their 4th year in a partner university followed by a six month internship with one of the corporate partners and return to complete their 5th year at Trinity. The partner universities are Chalmers University of Technology, Gothenburg; ETH Zurich; Institut National de Sciences Appliquées de Lyon – INSA; Loughborough University; Politecnico di Milano; RWTH Aachen University; TU Delft, The Netherlands.

ASSESSMENT

Assessment in each of the first two years is mostly by means of written examination combined with continuous assessment of coursework during the year. Typically, examinations contribute at least 50% towards your grade in each subject. The design projects are assessed entirely by continuous assessment.

Engineering at a glance

All students follow common first and second years. At the end of the second year you will select one of six specialist streams as outlined below.

First year

Lectures – 16 hours per week  |  Tutorials – 5 hours per week  |  Laboratory work – 6 hours per week

First year modules

• Engineering Mathematics I and II
• Computer Engineering I
• Physics
• Chemistry
• Electrical Engineering
• Mechanics
• Introduction to Professional Engineering
• Engineering Design I: Graphics and Computer-Aided Engineering
• Engineering Design II: Project
• Experimental Methods

Second year

Lectures – 16 hours per week  |  Tutorials – 5 hours per week  |  Laboratory work – 4 hours per week

Second year modules

• Engineering Mathematics III and IV
• Numerical Methods
• Computer Engineering II
• Solids and Structures
• Thermo-Fluids
• Electronics
• Engineering and the Environment
• Materials
• Engineering Design III: Project
• Engineering Design IV: Project

Third and fourth years and M.A.I. Year

For contact hours, please see the individual stream pages (see below).

Common third and fourth year modules

• Engineering Mathematics V
• Management for Engineers
• Probability Statistics

Select one of the six specialisations below:

Biomedical Engineering

Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering

Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering

Electronic Engineering

Computer Engineering

Electronic and Computer Engineering (joint programme)