MEng or BEng in mech eng

i imagine this question has been asked before but i cant seem to find it after a quick trawl through previous posts

i will be applying for mech eng in the next couple of weeks and im confused as to what the difference is

what do you gain from applying for MEng over Beng?
i understand with a MEng allows you to become a chartered engineer, is it worth it, does it help employability for higher up jobs by much?
im under the impression you can decide to do a fourth year of masters after 3 years? or are the courses different from the beginning?
is it worth going for a MEng being someone who will struggle to finance a BEng nevermind needing to find funds for another year of study?

any help is greatly appreciated thanks

Reply 1

slc88

If you graduate BEng and then decide you want to be educated to masters level you will not receive student finance for that extra year but if you are on a MEng programme you will receive student finance for the final year.

Reply 2

Jaydude

Original post by slc88

What if your on a BEng programme, then switch to MEng in your second year, would you still get the funding for that fourth year? You would just student finance know during that year when you switch, correct?

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Reply 3

a10

Original post by Jaydude

yes. You will be given the option to swap to MEng at the end of second year providing you meet the academic requirements, you have to mantain a certain average in order to move up to the MEng programme also vice versa if you're on the MEng programme and fail to mantain this average then you'll be downgraded to the BEng. The average differs from university to university but its usually around 55-60%.

Reply 4

SillyEddy

What do you gain from MEng over BEng? Well, a year of further study is a big one. You'll do more specialised things in the fourth year and this may help your career prospects. On some graduate schemes I've seen, graduates with a Masters may get a £2k bonus to their salary (£25k up to £27k, typically).

Why MEng over MSc? Well, an MEng is an undergraduate degree covering Masters content, but it's still one degree. The good news is that this means it's covered by student finance. An MSc is a postgraduate degree (both the MSc and MEng are typically one year long) and is not covered by student finance, but it can be done any time after graduation and gives you a second degree in your title. An MEng must be completed in the same area as the BEng (as it's an extension of it) and must be done in basically one go. I don't think you can leave and come back to do the MEng. The MSc lets you change engineering field so you can get more experience in other areas.

The MEng or MSc will both allow you to become chartered. You can become chartered with a BEng, but this requires further training. A friend of mine at JCB told me he is on a training scheme with them to get up to chartered standard on his BEng. Being chartered is a way of showing professional and academic competence. You need experience on engineering projects to become chartered, so employers can quickly see that you're a suitable candidate. It can also give you networking with other engineers through your institution.

You typically choose to do your MEng in the second year, albeit probably late in the year. As mentioned by a10, you'll need to be academically suitable for it. This is why MEng entry requirements are slightly higher, but it shouldn't discourage you from trying it out. Some universities may tailor the degree differently in the third year for those going onto the MEng programme. Quite often though, the first year is a standard year for all people on that course. BEng and MEng students will probably share the first and second year and then start to branch out from there. Sometimes it is purely a fourth year with no other real difference.

Funding should come under student finance for the MEng as it's still a Bachelors degree. It will just be 4 years of funding instead of 3. They will manage that for you though. Personally, my goal is to finish my BEng Mechanical (with a placement year) and then use the money from the placement year to fund my MSc Aerospace. It would be well worth considering taking a placement year as this will give you a massive advantage when it comes to finding a job afterwards. Unfortunately, this does mean it will take me 5 years to get my degrees and be done with it, but I think it's wise in the long run.

Reply 5

MechanicalGambit

Original post by SillyEddy

What do you gain from MEng over BEng?........ They will manage that for you though. Personally, my goal is to finish my BEng Mechanical (with a placement year) and then use the money from the placement year to fund my MSc Aerospace. It would be well worth considering taking a placement year as this will give you a massive advantage when it comes to finding a job afterwards. Unfortunately, this does mean it will take me 5 years to get my degrees and be done with it, but I think it's wise in the long run.

some great advice here thanks eddy, have you started your degree already?
i have heard about the advantages of a placement year, could you go into detail into how this works, do the university primarily find this for you or are you expected to set up your own? thanks

Reply 6

PickwickianGeek

Original post by a10

Sorry, I'm unfamiliar with how well people do at Uni but is that considered a high percentage? At the moment, I'm planning to apply to a BEng since my grades aren't good enough to do a MEng so I'm hoping I can do better while at uni and upgrade to MEng from there.

Reply 7

SillyEddy

Original post by MechanicalGambit

I'm in my second year, so I can offer a few tips. There are those on here at all sorts of stages, including foundation and graduation, too.

The benefit of the placement year is that you are typically paid (the average salary is around £15,500 or so, but £14k-£17k is a typical range) and can develop your skills in an industrial setting. You will usually be given actual work to do and be treated like any other engineer, so it's obviously a huge step. The benefit of this is that you may gain a job offer before you graduate or you can use this opportunity to boost your employability with other companies. It will also impact your studies and on average can boost your grade by one classification, according to my university.

It is pretty much entirely down to you to sort out though. Make sure your course offers placements as it will make the process a lot easier. My university doesn't charge you to do placements but others may want a partial student loan to be paid for your luxury of working. The university can help offer CV and covering letter advise, and my university has weekly employment seminars or events. They will do careers fairs and point you in the right direction, but applying is purely up to you.

There are a lot of resources, but basically find companies and start applying early in September of your second year. I have around a dozen companies I am about to apply for, plus some others in reserve. The application varies but usually you'll provide a CV, covering letter and answer some basic questions about your experience and expectations of the role, so do research into that organisation and work out what makes them tick. After that... Well, I'm not entirely sure. I was invited to an assessment centre event last week, so I'm not very far into it at all. I presume there will be some analytical tests and an interview, but it really depends. I guess then I am made an offer of employment (hopefully) and can choose to accept the job. The jobs are typically 12 months long starting in July or September (or whenever they need you) and you can gain experience in an industrial setting.

Reply 8

a10

Original post by PickwickianGeek

60% is a 2:1 at uni (so 55 would be a getting towards a high 2:2), it may sound low but the stuff you learn is difficult and a lot more independent learning is required. You'll be surprised how low your marks are at first. It's not like A-level where you just regurgitate information and memorise answers or solutions. You really have to know what you're talking about and be able to apply this to any changing situation.

Apply for the BEng esp since as the requirements are usually lower than the masters course, as said before you will get the chance to upgrade after you have met the said requirements. For a lot of the universities the BEng and MEng degree path is exactly identical and just becomes different after third year (as the MEng students stay an extra year obviously and learn more specialised topics).