Program Overview

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Program Overview

The BEng Hons Naval Architecture with Ocean Engineering program is designed to develop graduates capable of dealing with engineering challenges on a wide range of marine vehicles and structures. The degree aims to provide students with a comprehensive understanding of naval architecture and ocean engineering principles, including the design, construction, and operation of ships, offshore platforms, and other marine systems.

Key Facts

• UCAS Code: H512
• Accreditation: Royal Institution of Naval Architects, Institute of Marine Engineering, Science & Technology
• Second-year entry: available for suitably-qualified students
• Ranking: 8th in the world for Marine/Ocean Engineering (Shanghai Rankings Academic Ranking 2023)

Why this Course?

As a naval architecture student, you will learn to predict the stability and safety of ships, as well as their strength, speed, powering, and propulsion requirements. You will discover how to calculate the motions of ships and other floating structures in rough seas and how to estimate their reliability and safety in extreme conditions. Ocean engineering deals with the technical aspects of fixed and floating marine structures and systems related to harnessing ocean resources.

What you’ll Study

The program covers a wide range of topics, including:

• Engineering science and the fundamentals of naval architecture
• Buoyancy and floatation, stability, ship types, and terminology
• Resistance and propulsion, ship structural analysis, ship design, and marine engineering systems
• Business and management subjects
• Advanced subjects related to the design of conventional ships, fixed and floating offshore platforms, and subsea systems
• State-of-the-art tools for analyzing the water flow around ship hulls, predicting the stresses and strains in the hull structure, and the behavior of ships in waves

Course Content

The course content includes:

• Years 1 & 2: common core subjects, including engineering science, naval architecture, and mathematics
• Years 3 & 4: more advanced subjects, including hydrostatics and stability, marine engineering fundamentals, and principles of marine design and production
• Elective classes: students can choose one module from any department in the University
• Laboratory work: introduced from first year, with sessions covering basic aspects of hydrostatics and stability
• Computer software: used to demonstrate the practical application of theory and give students exposure to current engineering practice

Entry Requirements

• Highers: AAAB or AABBB (Maths and Physics, or Engineering Science at grades AB/BA)
• Advanced Highers: Maths and Physics recommended
• A Levels: ABB-BBB (Maths and Physics)
• International Baccalaureate: 34-32 (Maths HL5, Physics HL5)
• HNC/HND: pass a relevant HNC, A in Graded Unit
• English language requirements: if English is not your first language, please visit the English language requirements page for full details

Fees & Funding

• Scotland: £1,820
• England, Wales & Northern Ireland: £9,535
• Republic of Ireland: if you are an Irish citizen and have been ordinary resident in the Republic of Ireland for the three years prior to the relevant date, and will be coming to Scotland for Educational purposes only, you will meet the criteria of England, Wales & Northern Ireland fee status
• International: £29,350
• University preparation programme fees: international students can find out more about the costs and payments of studying a university preparation programme at the University of Strathclyde International Study Centre

Careers

With skills including analytical, numeracy, and problem-solving, Naval Architecture and Ocean Engineering graduates are suited to a wide range of career opportunities, including:

• Naval Architect
• Ocean Engineer
• Subsea Engineer
• Marine Surveyor
• Offshore Renewables Engineer
• Project Engineer
• Some graduates go on to postgraduate study or research

Learning & Teaching

The main methods of teaching are lectures, tutorials, laboratory, and group design classes. Students can expect an average of 20 hours of these per week. Self-study is important as it develops the confidence to tackle unfamiliar problems. This is an essential skill for professional engineers.

Assessment

The main method of assessment is exams in January and May. Presentations, laboratory reports, and other forms of coursework are submitted and marked individually throughout the year.

Projects

Individual and group projects are a major part of the course from the first year. First-year students carry out a basic design, build, and evaluate project. Second-year students work in teams on a more detailed design/build/test exercise as part of the Engineering Applications class.

Laboratory Work

This is introduced from the first year with sessions covering basic aspects of hydrostatics and stability. In the second year, students take part in the design and build of a small-scale racing yacht. This combines the use of professional Naval Architecture design software for hull design and computer-aided manufacture for hull generation.

Computer Software

This is used to demonstrate the practical application of theory and also gives students exposure to current engineering practice. The use of professional software to solve real engineering problems is introduced in the first year and is reinforced throughout subsequent years. Students gain exposure to software packages for stability, dynamics, and simulation, FEA, hydrodynamics, risk-based design, as well as other more specialized software packages.

Guest Lectures

During term time, the department arranges seminars in which industry experts visit the department and present to students. This is a great way of supplementing education with the latest developments and gaining industry contacts for future careers.