Product Design Engineering (with placement year)

Our Product Design Engineering course blends design principles, ergonomics, engineering science and technology to create new products. This is integrated with manufacturing processes, technology and knowledge to turn designs into reality.

Product Design Engineering is the process of developing functional products for customers that can be then sold by businesses in competitive markets. It is fundamental to global market success and requires not only aesthetics and customer appeal, but also fitness for purpose and correct functionality, together with superior quality at a competitive price.

It is only when design is combined with a knowledge of the opportunities presented by new design tools, new materials and manufacturing processes, that innovative ideas may be exploited to their full potential. This linking of product design with manufacturing technologies is demanded by a wide range of industrial and commercial sectors and is critical to allowing quality products to be designed and produced in the right quantities, to an appropriate level of quality, and at the right price.

It brings together detailed and versatile product design skills with an in-depth knowledge of manufacturing processes and technologies. By combining a thorough design education with a sound engineering base, our graduates are ideally placed to conceive and develop innovative designs and turn them into profitable products.

What's the difference between MEng and BEng?
The MEng Product Design Engineering course is aimed at the most ambitious of students who wish to develop high-flying careers within different industrial sectors and to become the future leaders of industry in companies concerned with the design and manufacture of consumer and industrial products. The MEng courses are the preferred route to achieving Chartered Engineer status.

The structure of the first two years are common between the BEng and MEng and provide you with design core skills, combined with manufacturing technology and processes modules. The application of design and the solution of consumer and industrial problems is a strong theme throughout the courses.

The MEng structure is distinct from the BEng courses in the third and fourth academic years, providing broadening and deepening of the design and engineering learning experience. It enables further development of the technical aspects and addresses the strategic and managerial challenge facing the implementation of new professional approaches in industry.

The MEng allows students to deepen their understanding of the role of product design engineering in both product and production development. Additionally, during the fourth academic year, MEng students from different degree courses are brought together in multi-disciplinary teams for a range of yearlong projects, to solve challenging industrially based problems at a number of different host companies.

For a full list of areas studied, see the 'What You'll Study' section of the course page on our website.

Lecture based modules are assessed by a combination of coursework and formal examinations taken at the end of each semester.

Project module assessments require written reports and technical presentations, preparing you for your subsequent career. In their third and fourth years, MEng students prepare a design and technical exhibition respectively.

The proportion of coursework assessment is approximately 30% to 50% depending on degree course, semester/year and optional modules.

Professionally accredited courses provide industry-wide recognition of the quality of your qualification.

• Engineering Designers, Institution of
• Engineering and Technology, Institution of
• Mechanical Engineers, Institution of