Engineering - Mechanical Engineering with Management Higher Level Apprenticeship

Overview

This course has been developed in close partnership with employers, focused on development skills that employers specifically demand.



Why Might You Want To Do This Course?

The programme is designed to meet the needs of the growing and diverse engineering sector. It aims to attract students who have completed a Level 6 degree in engineering or a related discipline, and who wish to enhance their skills and knowledge in mechanical engineering and management. The programme also caters to students who have relevant work experience in the engineering sector, and who seek to gain a formal qualification that recognises their prior learning and achievements.



Course Content

The programme aims to produce apprentices with competency and skills that include the latest advances in engineering disciplines of energy and power, manufacture and design. In addition to covering the latest engineering technology, you will be equipped with the creative, commercial, business and management skills that are necessary to be an innovator, entrepreneur and industry leader.



Please Note:

This HLA is a work / study programme so you will already be in employment, or have a firm offer of employment from a company in the sector that supports your application.



Course Structure

This degree is designed to provide apprentices with a sound foundation for a professional career in engineering and management. Emphasis is placed on the practical application of theory.



Students enrol on a part-time (2 years) basis only. This typically involves attending the University to study one or two modules during the Autumn and Spring semesters in both years, and then completing a dissertation/project with their company during the Summer semester in the second year.



The MSc is awarded to students who successfully complete the six taught modules (120 CATS points) and the dissertation/project (60 CATS points ).



Exit qualifications are available: students may exit with a Postgraduate Diploma by successfully completing 120 CATS points from taught modules or a Postgraduate Certificate by successfully completing 60 CATS points from taught modules.



Course Details

This HLA degree consists of 120 CATS of modules from the list below, plus a dissertation/project (60 CATS). There are no optional modules.



Learning and Teaching

Each year the apprentices will attend scheduled classes during the Autumn and Spring semesters. Each of these semesters involves 12 weeks of classes. The scheduled classes involve 1-day per week, 2-days per week or 1 day and 2 evenings per week, depending on the semester.

The information below is intended as an example only, featuring module details for the current year of study (2024/25). Modules are reviewed on an annual basis and may be subject to future changes – revised details will be published through Programme Specifications ahead of each academic year.



Year 1

Core Modules

• Sustainable Energy Systems (20 credits)

• Business Management and Enterprise (20 credits)

• Project & Dissertation (60 credits)

• Research and Data Analytics (20 credits)

• Engineering Systems and Management (20 credits)

• Manufacturing Technology (20 credits)

• Computer-Aided Engineering (20 credits)

Graduate

Normally a 2.2 Honours degree or equivalent qualification acceptable to the University in a suitable engineering discipline, including substantial Mathematics and engineering content at 2.2 Honours level or equivalent standard, acceptable to the School.



Applicants holding a 2.2 Honours degree or equivalent qualification acceptable to the University in a suitable engineering discipline with performance in key modules below 2.2 Honours standard may be considered on an individual basis. Such applicants will be required to demonstrate a minimum of two years professional experience.



A 2.1 Honours degree in Mathematics or Physics or equivalent qualification acceptable to the University will be considered. Applicants with non-standard qualifications will be considered on an individual basis.



Students wishing to apply for this Higher-Level Apprenticeship should also upload their CV and a letter of support from their employer (combined in one file). The employer’s letter of support must state that the employer supports their application, that they are prepared to release them from work for one or two days per week to attend the course, and that, if they are an existing employee, they need this qualification for a new role. The new role can be a change of title/role within the company.



This Higher Level Apprenticeship (HLA) is fully funded by the DfE therefore it is not open to international applicants. Further information on eligibility criteria for Higher Level Apprenticeships can be found at https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/articles/higher-level-apprenticeships.



Please note this course is subject to renewal of funding by the Department for the Economy and applicants must be working for a company with a base in Northern Ireland.



International Students

Please see International Student's link below.

Applicants are advised to apply as early as possible and ideally no later than 30th June 2025 for courses which commence in late September.



In the event that any programme receives a high number of applications, the University reserves the right to close the application portal prior to the deadline stated on course finder.



Notifications to this effect will appear on the application portal against the programme application page.

2 years (Part-time)



Teaching Times

Contact teaching time is typically scheduled on-campus throughout the working week (mornings, afternoons or evenings, Monday through Friday).

Entry Year: 2025/26

Career Prospects

Introduction

This Masters degree programme offers a range of modules that can be combined to suit particular career aspirations, and graduates will have the skills and knowledge required to pursue careers in mechanical engineering, technical management, research and other related fields.



The complementary business and management skills developed through the programme are highly sought after by employers keen to recruit engineering graduates with a solid appreciation of the broader commercial industrial environment. Professionally relevant transferrable skills, such as oral and written communication, problem-solving, data analysis, self-direction, and team work are also developed throughout the course.