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At University of Galway, we believe that the best learning takes place when you apply what you learn in a real world context. That's why many of our courses include work placements or community projects.
Bachelor of Engineering (Mechanical Engineering)
Mechanical Engineering is a subject concerned with the design and manufacture of parts and systems that make up the range of machinery and equipment you see around you, from a can opener to a jet aircraft. Mechanical engineers design the tools and processes necessary to create all man-made products, and are often involved from conceiving of an idea right through to seeing it as a finished product ready for its commercial application. They design everything you think of as a device or machine. Devices used in engines, the components used in transportation, power conversion equipment, like the steam and wind turbines used in modern electric power plants, and processing equipment used in oil and gas rigs all come within the remit of the mechanical engineer.
If you think you have or can develop the skills and knowledge to understand the requirements for designing a moving device or machine for the environment it will be used in as well as understand how it will best be manufactured, then you may make a good mechanical engineer. This degree programme is designed to provide graduates with the skills to face the challenge for newer, better, faster, more reliable, more versatile, longer-lasting and more environmentally friendly products and processes. These skills need also to be complemented by the managerial and personal skills needed to interact with teams on joint projects.
Learning about Mechanical Engineering will help you to develop your creative side, a part of your thinking that will enable you to design a new product or system and the analytical skills to make it a reality. You will also learn about the value of the teamwork skills that go into the successful production of most devices and processes used in today's world. These are valuable skills that will be useful in other areas of your life also.
Integrated Masters (ME) and Work placement
All students registering for an engineering degree at NUI Galway will be enrolled on an integrated five year programme; a Bachelor of Engineering (BE) (four years, Level 8) + a Master of Engineering (ME) (one year, Level 9). Upon successful completion of the five years of study, graduates will have the educational qualifications required for progression to Chartered Engineer. Students registering for an engineering degree at NUI Galway in 2019 will make a decision at the beginning of 3rd Year to either remain on the BE+ME pathway (five years) or exit with a BE (four years). Students on the BE+ME pathway will avail of advanced engineering modules, a substantial research and development project, and a work placement of eight months duration during the 4th Year. For students exiting with a BE, the work placement (eight months) will occur during 3rd Year. Read more about Engineering work placements.
All Engineering Degrees at NUI Galway are professionally accredited by the statutory professional body, Engineers Ireland. This “Accreditation” means that the degree has been assessed and approved to meet the educational requirements for professional Engineers.
- Under an international agreement (Washingon Accord), any Degree accredited by the National professional body (Engineers Ireland) is recognized internationally. So having an “Accredited” degree means that employers outside of Ireland can (1) understand the quality/education achieved by a graduate and (2) know that it is equivalent to their own Education system/standards, and (3) can offer appropriate employment on this basis. For example, certain functions (sign off on large civil engineering construction projects) can only be carried out by a chartered engineer.
- Engineers Ireland changed the criteria for Accreditation in 2012, and now require a Masters (Level 9) qualification as the education standard required for Registered Professional Titles of Chartered Engineer* (prior to this, a Level 8 degree was required). The changes were implemented because the standard European engineering qualification (degree or diplome) is at level 9, and European industry maintains a strict differentiation between those engineers qualified at level 9 and those qualified at level 8. Any graduate interested in working in Europe/Worldwide is now strongly advised to get an accredited level 9 award.
- Engineers Ireland accreditation can be obtained at the following levels:
- Level 8: 4-year honours degree – associate engineer
- Level 9: 5-year masters degree – chartered engineer
*A Chartered Engineer is the highest professional education standard in Engineering. A chartered Engineer is competent (because of their education and training) to assume personal responsibility for the development and application ofengineering in research, design, construction, manufacturing, superintending, managing and in the education of the engineer. His/her work is predominantly intellectual and varied and not of a routine mental or physical character. It requires the exercise of original thought and judgement and the ability to supervise the technical and administrative work of others.
Applications and Selections
Who Teaches this Course
Requirements and Assessment
Minimum Grade H5 in two subjects and passes in four other subjects at O6/H7 Level in the Leaving Certificate,
including Irish, English, Mathematics, a laboratory science subject (i.e., Chemistry, Physics, Biology, Physics with Chemistry (joint), Agricultural Science or Computer Science) or Technology, and any two other subjects recognised for entry purposes.
For A-Levels: A minimum of Grade C in Mathematics is required
Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL)
Next start date
A Level Grades (2024)
QQI/FET FETAC Entry Routes
Mode of study
In first year you get to explore different areas of engineering. First year is identical for all streams of engineering, mechanical, civil, biomedical, energy systems, etc. The modules you will take in Year One are listed in our Curriculum Information below.
At the School of Engineering we are focused on ensuring that you will be educated to the highest standards, and will have the necessary qualifications to avail of all of the professional opportunities presented to you, both in Ireland and across the world. You will be enrolled on an integrated five year programme; a Bachelor of Engineering (BE) (four years, Level 8) + a Master of Engineering (ME) (one year, Level 9). Students on the BE+ME pathway will avail of advanced engineering modules, a substantial research and development project, and a work placement. Upon successful completion of the five years of study, graduates will have the educational qualifications required for progression to Chartered Engineer. Full information on the optional 5th Year is provided here.
Curriculum information relates to the current academic year (in most cases).Course and module offerings and details may be subject to change.
Glossary of Terms
- You must earn a defined number of credits (aka ECTS) to complete each year of your course. You do this by taking all of its required modules as well as the correct number of optional modules to obtain that year's total number of credits.
- An examinable portion of a subject or course, for which you attend lectures and/or tutorials and carry out assignments. E.g. Algebra and Calculus could be modules within the subject Mathematics. Each module has a unique module code eg. MA140.
- Some courses allow you to choose subjects, where related modules are grouped together. Subjects have their own required number of credits, so you must take all that subject's required modules and may also need to obtain the remainder of the subject's total credits by choosing from its available optional modules.
- A module you may choose to study.
- A module that you must study if you choose this course (or subject).
- Required Core Subject
- A subject you must study because it's integral to that course.
- Most courses have 2 semesters (aka terms) per year, so a three-year course will have six semesters in total. For clarity, this page will refer to the first semester of year 2 as 'Semester 3'.
Year 1 (60 Credits)
RequiredMA140: Engineering Calculus - 5 Credits - Semester 1RequiredMP120: Engineering Mechanics - 5 Credits - Semester 1
RequiredCT1110: Engineering Computing I - 5 Credits - Semester 1
RequiredCH140: Engineering Chemistry - 5 Credits - Semester 1
RequiredEI140: Fundamentals of Engineering - 10 Credits - Semester 1
RequiredEI160: Engineering Graphics - 5 Credits - Semester 1
RequiredCT1111: Engineering Computing II - 5 Credits - Semester 2
RequiredMM140: Engineering Mathematical Methods - 5 Credits - Semester 2
RequiredPH140: Engineering Physics - 5 Credits - Semester 2
RequiredEI150: Engineering Design - 10 Credits - Semester 2
Year 2 (60 Credits)
RequiredMA2101: Mathematics and Applied Mathematics I - 5 Credits - Semester 3RequiredME223: Thermodynamics and Fluid Mechanics - 5 Credits - Semester 3
RequiredEE231: Electronic Instrumentation and Sensors - 5 Credits - Semester 3
RequiredCE227: Strength of Materials - 10 Credits - Semester 3
RequiredST1100: Engineering Statistics - 5 Credits - Semester 3
RequiredME2106: Theory of Machines and CADD - 5 Credits - Semester 3
RequiredME2105: Manufacturing Technology and CAIRDE - 5 Credits - Semester 3
RequiredBME2100: Materials I - 5 Credits - Semester 4
RequiredEE230: Electrical Circuits & Systems - 5 Credits - Semester 4
RequiredME5105: Fundamentals of Operations Engineering - 5 Credits - Semester 4
RequiredMA2102: Mathematics and Applied Mathematics II - 5 Credits - Semester 4
Year 3 (60 Credits)
RequiredEE3101: Electromechanical Power Conversion - 5 Credits - Semester 5RequiredME301: Fluid Dynamics - 5 Credits - Semester 5
RequiredME304: Mechanical Analysis And Design - 5 Credits - Semester 5
RequiredBME3132: Finite Element Methods in Engineering I - 5 Credits - Semester 5
RequiredME322: Thermodynamics and Heat Transfer - 5 Credits - Semester 5
RequiredEE352: Linear Control Systems - 5 Credits - Semester 5
RequiredME312: Automated Systems - 5 Credits - Semester 6
RequiredME352: Mechanical Vibrations - 5 Credits - Semester 6
RequiredME3107: Machine Design Project - 10 Credits - Semester 6
RequiredME431: Systems Reliability - 5 Credits - Semester 6
RequiredME353: Quality Systems - 5 Credits - Semester 6
Year 4 (60 Credits)
OptionalBME400: Biomechanics - 5 Credits - Semester 7OptionalME4105: Safety Engineering - 5 Credits - Semester 7
OptionalEE4103: Digital Control Systems for Automation and Robotics - 5 Credits - Semester 7
RequiredBME5104: Finite Element Methods in Engineering II - 5 Credits - Semester 7
RequiredME4112: Computational Fluid Dynamics - 5 Credits - Semester 7
RequiredME4111: Mechanical Engineering Professional Experience Programme - 20 Credits - Semester 7
RequiredME4109: Materials II - 5 Credits - Semester 7
RequiredME424: Energy Conversion - 5 Credits - Semester 7
RequiredME402: Advanced Mechanical Analysis And Design - 5 Credits - Semester 7
OptionalME3102: Project Management for Engineers - 5 Credits - Semester 8
OptionalME3104: Introduction to Regulatory Affairs in Manufacturing - 5 Credits - Semester 8
RequiredCT3112: Professional Skills - 5 Credits - Semester 8
Upon completion of the undergraduate degree, suitably qualified students have the option to enrol and continue their studies to Masters or PhD level.
Students can advance to Masters level (ME) through our one year taught Masters programme (September-June) that builds on the successful completion of their undergraduate programme, subject to a sufficient standard (2nd Class Honours minimum). This programme is an integrated follow-on to the BE programme and is designed to meet Engineers Ireland’s criterion for Level 9 degrees, providing graduates with a route to Chartered Engineering status that will be recognised worldwide.
Masters degree education is becoming increasingly the norm internationally in Engineering, and this programme strengthens the ability of our graduates to compete nationally and internationally at the highest level for employment in industry and other sectors of the economy.
In PhD research, as well as Masters research projects, students create and use advanced experimental and computational techniques to discover new knowledge in diverse fields including materials, medical devices, fluid dynamics, and energy. We collaborate closely with researchers in biomedical and energy systems engineering, and with industry, both local and international. In industrial engineering, student work on topics including ergonomics, enterprise engineering and health and safety.
Why Choose This Course?
As Mechanical Engineering is perhaps the most wide ranging of engineering disciplines, it offers diverse career opportunities. Graduates go on to work in such areas as research, industrial design, project management, environmental protection, energy production, technical sales, process control, manufacturing, aeronautics, and materials and product development. For students interested in pursuing further education, the PhD and MEngSc degrees are obtained through doing research work along with advanced study. Research students specialise in an area of research, working with a high degree of independence.
Mechanical Engineers – we move the world!
Who’s Suited to This Course
Transferable Skills Employers Value
Related Student Organisations
Fees: Student Contribution
Fees: Student levy
Fees: Non EU
For 25/26 entrants, where the course duration is greater than 1 year, there is an inflationary increase approved of 3.4% per annum for continuing years fees**.
**Excludes Full-Time EU Undergraduate fees. These are fixed and do not change.
Please note that the fee structure in the fifth year differs and is considered a Postgraduate course for funding purposes. Please see here for rates charged in 2025/25.
Find out More
ENG-2050 Alice Perry Engineering Building
T +353 91 492 723
What Our Students Say
James Grogan | BE (Mechanical)
...I have always had a keen interest in finding out how things work, which often led me to taking apart everything I could get my hands on when I was younger. In third year students spend five months working in industry. This gives a real appreciation of how everything you learn in the classroom can be applied in an industrial setting. It is likely that knowledge of this area will become very important in the future, as it will be the next generation of engineers who must rise to the challenge of designing cleaner and more efficient systems...
What Employers Say
Majella Henchion, BE MSc | Networks Programme Owner, ESB
As a major employer of graduates from University of Galway’s Energy Systems, Mechanical, Civil and Electrical/Electronic Engineering programmes, ESB welcomes the establishment of University of Galway’s integrated five-year Accredited Master of Engineering degrees. We see great value in the additional educational attainment in and of itself but also as a key step in progression towards Chartership which is important for our Engineers because of the critical infrastructural nature of our work and the general management capability Chartership represents. ESB also welcomes the positioning of the work placement programme between the fourth and fifth years of study as it will enable the students to be given greater responsibility and experience a greater range of ESB’s work in the energy sector. We believe the movement of the industry placement makes it of greater value to the student, the undergraduate employer and to any post-graduate employer of that engineer.
Declan Costello | Senior R&D Manager, Medtronic
Medtronic welcomes the expansion of the University of Galway Engineering programs to an integrated five-year Accredited Master of Engineering degree. Medtronic already employs a large number of University of Galway Engineering graduates and the move to a five-year program aligns with international best practice, provides a more highly educated talent pool and facilitates an extended work placement which is hugely beneficial to both the company and the student.