Course details

Summary

The Bachelor of Engineering with Honours (BE(Hons)) focuses on how problems can be solved by using design and engineering processes. At every stage of your degree, you'll be involved in creating, designing and realising sophisticated engineering products.

As a Waikato engineering student you will also complete 800 hours of work experience – usually paid – with a company or organisation that suits your interests, and you’ll make valuable industry contacts which in many cases leads to part or full-time work.

Our Cooperative Education Unit actively seeks and oversees your industrial work placement, ensuring a good fit for your area of study and career goals.

Materials and Process Engineering

By studying Materials and Process Engineering at the University of Waikato, you will learn how to add value to raw materials used to manufacture a number of useful products, while minimising waste. These products can be as varied as dietary formulae, foods, ceramics that can withstand high temperatures, new metal alloys, pharmaceuticals, laminated boards, functional proteins, and composites.

At the University of Waikato you will have the opportunity to explore the key, over-lapping disciplines of materials engineering and process engineering.

Materials engineers make critical decisions in selecting and developing the best materials for a particular purpose. As a materials engineer you could work on a number of diverse projects, including understanding the properties and uses of wood and steel, designing and constructing new filters for sewage treatment, and providing new materials for the energy industry.

Process engineers make critical decisions in the processes and utilities required to manufacture a product. As a process engineer you could work on converting trees into paper and fibre board, iron sand into steel, effluent into drinkable water and producing solar panels for electricity generation.

An important part of the Materials and Process Engineering programme at the University of Waikato is supported work placements into relevant industries. This gives you the opportunity for paid work experience while exploring first-hand the field of Materials and Process Engineering you could choose for your career.

Career opportunities

• Energy Efficiency Engineer
• Environmental Engineer
• Materials Engineer (plastics, composites, metallurgy)
• Process Design Engineer
• Products/process Development Engineer

BE(Hons) Majors:

• Civil Engineering
• Chemical and Biological Engineering
• Electronic Engineering
• Environmental Engineering
• Materials and Process Engineering
• Mechanical Engineering
• Software Engineering

Entry criteria

For guaranteed entry you are expected to have studied the listed subjects at Level 3 NCEA, CIE AS, A Level or equivalent with certain levels of attainment.

• Chemistry - a minimum of 16 credits in NCEA at Level 3 in Chemistry
• Calculus - a minimum of 16 credits in NCEA at Level 3 in Mathematics with Calculus.
• Physics - a minimum of 14 credits in NCEA at Level 3 in Physics.

English language requirements:

IELTS (Academic) - 6.0 overall (no band less than 6.0); iBT (internet based) TOEFL - 79-80 with a score of 20 in writing; Pearson PTE Academic - 57 with no less than 57 for each communicative skill; Waikato Pathways - Successful completion of Level 7 with a B grade average in the Certificate of Attainment in Academic English (CAAE) programme.