Benefits of straight MEng rather than BEng then MSci?

hi guys,

i missed my 1st choice uni for civil engineering, (UCL) and im not very keen on going to Brunel which was my insurance...

If i go to brunel, with the sole intention of doing well in my BEng and transferiing to an institution like UCL for my MSci, what will I be missing out on?

i feel as though its better to do a staight 4 year MEng at UCL?

Reply 1

scrotgrot

Well, you don't have to shell out for the masters with an MEng. If you feel the MEng is too general you can always do a more specific masters after it as well as getting to put off the hell of working for one more year.

Reply 2

Pink Boy

MEng means you don't have to pay extortionate postgraduate fees for MSci.

MSci means you can go to a different uni to study after you get your BEng.

But if you ever want to work in engineering outside the UK, MSci will be recognised as a Masters whereas MEng will not necessarily be. MEng and MSci Eng are pretty equal in the UK from my research with respect to job hunting. Unless you want to get into research then MSci is obviously the better choice.

In my opinion, MEng beats MSci as it can be very, very difficult to fund a postgraduate degree.

Reply 3

hugoalmeida

Original post by scrotgrot

Hi, i didnt really understand what you said, If I do a BEng and one uni then transfer to an MSci somewhere else does that take one more year/ hamper my prospects or make me less general?

if i just do a straight MEng is that better?

Reply 4

Pink Boy

MEng (4years) = BEng (3years) + Msci (1 year).

Also remember, you don't get student finance for MSci, whereas you get student finance for all 4 years of MEng.

Reply 5

0le

MSc is a master of science degree. MEng is a master of engineering. Quite a few engineering companies in the UK will want an MEng degree but then they would also accept an MSc degree. No one in industry cares tbh. You'll definitely be disadvantaged if you only have a Bachelor degree and then no masters degree after that (whether its MEng or MSc). An example is Rolls Royce who only want masters students:

http://www.rolls-royce.com/careers/students_and_graduates/graduate_programmes/our_programmes/engineering/index.jsp

Now for your answering your question...

MEng does not equal a BEng + MSc. The above poster is wrong. In an MSc, the course usually lasts for 12 months and I believe it covers more units. MEng will cover the usual 9 months or whatever the uni time period is. So bare that in mind. With an MSc, you will have to pay more, do more work (i.e. work for a few months more) and ultimately it'll be viewed as the same when you get into industry.

I believe the reason its viewed the same is that for MSc, you tend to have to do more work to specialize in whatever field you want, whereas with an MEng, you are probably already specialising in some form of engineering, so that "extra work" from an MScis spread over 4 years so to speak. Hence employers tend not to care.

So its better to do an MEng than an MSc, unless the MSc is extremely specialized and you have something lined up in your career plan.

(edited 9 years ago)

Reply 6

Dans77b

I did MEng mechanical engineering, people who did MSc did much the same stuff with some slightly different modules.

also, the MEng project for us was a year-long group affair, for MSc it was a individual project which started later and carried on over the summer.

Reply 7

0le

Original post by Dans77b

I gather your uni put your individual project in third year which let you qualify for an accredited bachelors degree if students wished to quit after third year?

My uni had the individual projects in the final year, and therefore we could not get a BEng unless we specifically asked for it (a BEng requires an individual research component). Consequently, if you had ****ed up your final year, you'd be left with no BEng. Luckily it never happened :biggrin:

Reply 8

Dans77b

Original post by djpailo

that is correct

Reply 9

PickwickianGeek

What is the usual price of doing a MSc for Mech Eng at University?

Also why is a MEng considered to be more valuable than a MSc for job prospects?

Reply 10

amongsttheweeds

Original post by PickwickianGeek

Also why is a MEng considered to be more valuable than a MSc for job prospects?

It isn't necessarily. An MSc seems to have more perceived value outside of the UK. An MEng is pretty standard and won't set you back, in the UK at least.

There's no point (AFAIK) doing an MSc unless a) you have chosen a specific field which requires one, b) you have claimed your BEng already, or c) you are changing universities and cannot carry on with an MEng.

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Reply 11

PickwickianGeek

Original post by addylad

Well I'm planning on staying in the UK so if I do a MSc it will be held in the same regard?

I'm currently interested in Medical Engineering. I decided to go into Mech Eng since BioMed Eng is a very specific course. So, it would be a good idea to do a MSc since I have a specific career path?

Additionally, my uni doesn't do the MEng so I don't have a choice either way!

Reply 12

amongsttheweeds

Original post by PickwickianGeek

Yeah, there is absolutely nothing wrong with an MSc.

Seems to make a lot of sense to me. Don't take my word for it though, start a thread and canvas opinion. :smile:

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Reply 13

Joseph.S

Have you called UCL? If you only just missed it, they could be lenient!

HELP!

Original post by hugoalmeida

HELP!

We've answered your question. Its now up to you to make a decision. We can't make that for you.

Reply 16

hugoalmeida

Original post by djpailo

We've answered your question. Its now up to you to make a decision. We can't make that for you.

Hello, yes I'm retaking but my parents just want me to go to uni this year and do an MSci at a better uni after my BEng. ..:O

Reply 17

hugoalmeida

Original post by djpailo

We've answered your question. Its now up to you to make a decision. We can't make that for you.

Hello, also would you be able to tell me any benefits exuding fees of doing a straight MEng from a 'target/top university' rather than transferring from an average one at the end of year 3 to do a MSci, thanks!!!