The Design and Project Office
The courses in Engineering normally last for four years and lead at the end of the fourth year to the degrees B.A. (with honours) and M.Eng. (Cambridge has no B.Sc. degree or B.Eng. degrees; all undergraduates in whatever subject take the B.A.) Those eligible will receive mandatory grants through their local authorities for the full four years.
The Engineering Tripos comprises a two-year Part I followed by a two-year Part II. The aim in the two-year Part I is to give undergraduates a wide general knowledge of engineering, a consciousness of the areas of their experience and a confidence in their approach to new knowledge and unfamiliar situations. all engineers take the same first year course (Part IA), but there is an element of diversification towards the end of the second year (Part IB). this approach enables students to have a closer look at the options before they choose their specialization.
In the third year (Part IIA) students concentrate on their chosen branch of engineering. Strong specialization is possible in year fur (Part II) when each student chooses 8 modules from about 65. The Department is a major international centre for engineering research and design and these curses are taught by leading experts, so that students graduate with an up-to-date appreciation of theory and practice in their chosen area. The course is accredited by the Institutions of electrical, Mechanical Civil and Structural Engineers, and meets the educational requirements of the Royal Aeronautical Society, provided the appropriate third and fourth year options are taken.
The first two years of the Engineering Tripos also provide a basis for other third and fourth year courses. Within the Engineering Department, a student may opt for the two-year Manufacturing Engineering Tripos. Transfers are sometimes made from Engineering to other Departments, for example to study the two-year Chemical Engineering Tripos or the one-year Management Studies Tripos.
It is possible for a student to leave the course after three years with a BA Honours degree. However, the course is designed around a four-year structure and the student would be leaving his or her training unfinished.
This booklet deals in most detail with the first year of the Engineering course, so as to be of greatest assistance to sixth formers while they are reviewing the variety of university courses open to them.
The Surveying Course