Newcastle Mechanical engineering interview

Hi

Received an invitation to an 'open day' at Newcastle uni today for Mechanical Engineering (MEng) which includes 'a one-to-one interview with a member of academic staff'.

To anyone who has has had one of these interviews, what do they ask, how long does it last and what can I do to prepare?

Thanks

Hi,
When is your open day?

I received this invitation a few weeks ago and will be attend the open day next Wednesday.

.

Thanks

Hi guys,

Just got back from the Newcastle Applicant open day and interview.
We first got our introduction kits (lots of booklets and day schedule) and were taken to a room with lots of food and were allowed to help ourselves, which was a nice opportunity to talk to current students and some lecturers.
After that we were given a general talk about the course itself, then split into separate groups.
In our groups we then went on a tour of the school which is very impressive and a great chance to ask any questions.
Depending on which group you were in was when you had your interview.
Halfway through our tour we had our interviews. It was basically a largish room with a lot of the course lecturers sitting on individual tables, we were told which table to go sit at and you'd then have a very informal interview with whoever you were sat with.
I personally think mine went very well, the questions were very general, Why Mechanical Engineering? Why Newcastle? What are your interests? Have you been in any competitions before? Have you got any work experience? Etc. etc.
All very informal, I had quite a nice chat with my interviewer about the course and my specific interests in bio-engineering which I think he was impressed with.

Overall my experience was very pleasing and after the day Newcastle had shot up hugely on my choices list because of the welcoming and comfortable atmosphere.

The interview itself is short and is very much dependent on which lecturer you get. I was speaking to someone from London who said they got asked how a Jet Engine works, and what makes a plane fly. He didn't know how to answer the engine question and was just honest about it. Didn't go too horribly apparently. And another girl I was speaking to was asked about the forces on a car. So if anything brush up on your basic mechanics! Maybe watch a YouTube video about jet engines/internal combustion engines if you're not already familiar if you're worried. But the best thing to do is just show your enthusiasm and be honest

Best of luck, I hope it goes well for you both!

Hi guys,

Just got back from the Newcastle Applicant open day and interview.
We first got our introduction kits (lots of booklets and day schedule) and were taken to a room with lots of food and were allowed to help ourselves, which was a nice opportunity to talk to current students and some lecturers.
After that we were given a general talk about the course itself, then split into separate groups.
In our groups we then went on a tour of the school which is very impressive and a great chance to ask any questions.
Depending on which group you were in was when you had your interview.
Halfway through our tour we had our interviews. It was basically a largish room with a lot of the course lecturers sitting on individual tables, we were told which table to go sit at and you'd then have a very informal interview with whoever you were sat with.
I personally think mine went very well, the questions were very general, Why Mechanical Engineering? Why Newcastle? What are your interests? Have you been in any competitions before? Have you got any work experience? Etc. etc.
All very informal, I had quite a nice chat with my interviewer about the course and my specific interests in bio-engineering which I think he was impressed with.

Overall my experience was very pleasing and after the day Newcastle had shot up hugely on my choices list because of the welcoming and comfortable atmosphere.

The interview itself is short and is very much dependent on which lecturer you get. I was speaking to someone from London who said they got asked how a Jet Engine works, and what makes a plane fly. He didn't know how to answer the engine question and was just honest about it. Didn't go too horribly apparently. And another girl I was speaking to was asked about the forces on a car. So if anything brush up on your basic mechanics! Maybe watch a YouTube video about jet engines/internal combustion engines if you're not already familiar if you're worried. But the best thing to do is just show your enthusiasm and be honest

Best of luck, I hope it goes well for you both!

Thank you! What is best to wear? I don't want to be too overdressed or underdressed.

Hi, I'm going to an interview this Wednesday and I'm also interested in bioengineering! Where else have you applied for? And which area are you interested in most?

I emailed them prior to going to make sure of this and they said smart formal would be best, although there were people there in jeans and t-shirt as well. Though the majority were smart formal. Shirt/sweater/chinos/pants/boots/shoes etc etc




Yaaaaay! I've also applied for Leeds, Manchester, Durham and Sheffield. Leeds' medical engineering part is quite impressive and the professor I met on the open day was really nice.
I like regenerative medicine mainly, but I applied for Mechanical because it's really broad and although my interests are strongly Med Eng, I like loads of other parts of Mech Eng too like the automotive side of things!
There are some awesome TED talks conferences about prosthetics and 3D organic printers and stuff you could check out to get you hyped and feeling passionate before your interview haha! If you haven't seen them already!

Check out the research Newcastle are doing atm in BioEngineering. There's a professor called Tom Joyce who is currently on the MetalHip project which I found to be really impressive. Check out Newcastles website for more info

Where else are you applying??

Good luck for your day tomorrow btw! Just have fun, ask questions and all that good stuff haha