The field of Materials Science and Engineering offers unlimited possibilities for innovation and development. Attention is being focused on developing and processing metals, ceramics, polymers and composites with improved properties.

The activities of the materials engineer range from materials production, including their extraction from ores and their refining, to the design, development, processing and recycling of materials for use in aerospace, transportation, electronics, energy conversion and biomedical systems.

Advanced materials can provide a major competitive advantage in virtually every part of a country's manufacturing industry. Because Australia is a country rich in minerals, materials science has been designated as a priority area for research and development. Examples of recent and significant developments include the emergence of environmentally friendly and economical metal processing methods, advanced surface coatings, biomedical materials, electrical ceramics, engineering polymers, and advanced composites.

The School of Materials Science and Engineering provides education and training for students to prepare them for a significant and important career in the materials and other industries. The School is in a good position to provide the increased numbers of graduates necessary for development of these new initiatives in materials as it is the only school in Australia that offers professional courses in Ceramic Engineering, Metallurgical Engineering and Materials Engineering as well as providing postgraduate specialisation in these fields.

The School is extremely well-equipped with a wide range of advanced computing, thermal analysis, mechanical testing, X-ray and optical and electron microscopy facilities.

We offer a four year full-time BE program (3135) with four different plans. In addition, six year part-time BSc(Tech) programs are also offered in Ceramics (3030) and Metallurgy (3130).

Please note that this program is subject to approval.

Please refer to the section above or contact the School of Materials Science & Engineering for information regarding the Program Objectives and Learning Outcomes.

Plans under program 3135, all of which lead to the award of Bachelor of Engineering (BE), provide appropriate preparation for a professional Physical Metallurgical engineer (MATSE13135), Process Metallurgical engineer (plan MATSG13135), Materials engineer (plan MATSH13135) and Ceramic engineer (plan MATSJ13135).

The first two years of all plans are identical and the third and fourth years contain a number of common courses. Students can change their selection among the study plans up to the end of Session 1 of Stage 3.

Each study plan provides a range of electives in the particular study specialisation concerned. In addition, a limited number of electives can be chosen from other plans.

Concurrent programs are also available with Bachelor of Engineering/Masters programs in either Commerce (3128) or Biomedical Engineering. To enter program 3128, students start in BE program 3135 and study their academic plan to the end of third year. They then transfer in year 4 to BE Program 3128 and in their 5th year, study under the Master of Commerce program 8404 to obtain the award of Bachelor of Engineering/Master of Commerce (BEMCom).

Similarly, students can study an academic plan within the Bachelor of Engineering program 3135 and then, in the 5th year, study under the Master of Biomedical Engineering Program 3749 to obtain the award of Bachelor of Engineering/Master of Biomedical Engineering (BE/MBiomedE).

The following structure is applicable to all plans within the Bachelor of Engineering single degree program.

OR

PLUS 18 unit of credits (UOC) of Stage 1 Electives (Click here for full list of electives)
Required elective:

Recommended electives:

Note: MATH2049, MATH2059, MATS1092 and General Education courses are for re-enrolling students.

Note: MATS5342 is not offered until 2008.

Note: MATS5113 & MATS5323 are for re-enrolling students.

Note: MATS3624 and MATS3724 is a full-year course, at 9 UOC and 12 UOC per semester respectively.

PLUS

OR

Note: MATS1343 is for re-enrolling students

Students in this program must also satisfy the General Education requirements.
This is 12 UOC, usually taken in second and third year studies.
For further information, please refer to "General Education" in the Table of Contents (see left-hand side of page).

Please refer to Program Structure and the School of Materials Science & Engineering for the Academic Requirements relating to this program.

For information regarding fees for UNSW programs, please refer to the following website:  https://my.unsw.edu.au/student/fees/FeesMainPage.html

All students are required to have gained at least 12 weeks of approved industrial experience before graduation and to have submitted satisfactory reports on such work. Industrial experience is usually obtained during a long vacation at the end of Stages 2 and 3.

The Institution of Engineers Australia recognises the degree of BE in any of the 4 undergraduate plans as meeting the examination requirements for admission to graduate and corporate membership. Similarly, substantial or complete recognition is accorded to the BE degree programs by overseas engineering institutions.

Graduates in Ceramic Engineering are also eligible for membership of the Institute of Ceramics of Great Britain, the Royal Australian Chemical Institute and the National Institute of Ceramic Engineers USA.