Engineering at Caius Engineering at Caius
Updated list of prizewinnersThe paragraphs below summarise information about Engineering courses taken from the Cambridge Admissions Prospectus. An illustrated brochure about engineering courses is also available on application to the Engineering Department, and can be seen on-line.
The courses in Engineering normally last for four years and lead at the end of the fourth year to the degrees of Bachelor of Arts (with honours) and Master of Engineering. Cambridge has no B.Sc. degree or B.Eng. degrees; all undergraduates in whatever subject take the B.A. Those who are 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 some 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 specialisation. However, those who intend to study for the Chemical Engineering Tripos need to take into account that with effect from last year, the transfer into this subject is now made at the end of the first year.
In the third year (Part IIA) students concentrate on their chosen branch of engineering, whether it be whether it be Civil, Structural, Mechanical, Aeronautical, Electrical, Electronic, Information or a combination of these. 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 one-year Management Studies Tripos.
Strong specialisation is possible in year four (Part IIB) when each student chooses 8 modules from a range of about 65. The Department is a major international centre for engineering research and design and these courses 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.
It is theoretically possible for a student to leave the course after three years with a BA degree. However, this is not encouraged as the course is designed around a four-year structure and the student would be leaving his or her training unfinished, and would also not achieve accreditation from the engineering institutions.
Caius has five Teaching Fellows in Engineering, of whom one is a University Reader in Engineering, and the remainder are University Lecturers in Engineering; all take an active role in teaching both in the Department and in College. A new Research Fellow in Engineering was appointed in October 2000.
There are currently two Directors of Studies in Engineering at Caius. The first is Dr Thomas Bligh, who teaches Design both for the Engineering Tripos and for the Manufacturing Engineering Tripos. He is a member of the Manufacturing Systems Research Group, and his present research interests are in the design and performance prediction of multi-hulls and in designing vision-assisted robots for the Human Genome programme. This year he is responsible for first and third year engineers and graduates. The second is Dr David Holburn, who lectures on courses in digital systems and microelectronics. His current research interests include image processing, scanning electron microscopy and embedded computing systems. He is an active member of the Institution of Electrical Engineers. This year he is responsible for directing studies of the second and fourth year engineers. David is also a College Tutor.
Dr Malcolm Smith is a University Reader, and lectures on courses in mathematics and control engineering. Malcolm is a member of the Control Group, and his major research interests lie in the area of control systems. Since 1991 he has been a consultant to Williams Grand Prix Engineering on active suspension systems.
Dr Glenn Vinnicombe lectures on courses in control engineering. He is a member of the Control Group, and his research interests centre upon control theory for uncertain systems and related design issues.
Dr Julian Allwood joined the Fellowship in October. He will teach both in the Manufacturing Engineering Tripos and in the Judge Institute of Management Studies. His current research interests are in the modelling of production and business systems including work on continuum modelling of steady state deformation, and multi-agent modelling of distributed production and logistic systems.
Ms Anca Popescu is an Engineering Research Fellow at Caius. Her research in the Engineering Department has been focused on microelectronic power devices, with an emphasis on novel, creative designs and on analytical modelling.
You can read more about the Engineering Fellows and their colleagues at Caius here.
There are currently about 60 students at Caius on taught Engineering courses, 5 graduate research students and one research fellow.
The College has excellent facilities for those pursuing courses in engineering.
Extensive computing facilities are provided for all its members. Computer rooms are available at the College's three main sites, each equipped with workstations that can be used either as personal computers or as terminals connected to the University's data network or the Engineering Department’s own computing system. Caius' provision of one public computer for every 20 students is one of the most generous in the University. The College has taken a leading rôle in planning the University's new optical fibre network and a substantial and increasing number of student rooms are wired with network connections. Two College Computing Officers are available to help with practical problems.
Caius has a splendid and elegant library which is also well equipped with course books and is an excellent place to work and research. Click here for further information about the Library
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Click here to see the College Shield (full-size), as adapted for the College Engineering Society 'Nuts and Bolts' (13KBytes) .. |
The Caius Engineer is an occasional magazine/newsletter which aims to provide information about Engineering in Caius college. It is published every summer, and at other times when there is material to warrant it; it is distributed to everyone in the College who is concerned in some way with engineering
The Summer Edition of Caius Engineer is of particular value to those arriving in Cambridge for the first time; it describes many of the most important events in the Cambridge engineer's calendar, particularly in the first few weeks of term. It contains news of Caian engineers who have kept us informed of their achievements, together with a list of those newly arriving in the College to study Engineering; this includes those embarking on research or other higher degrees in Cambridge as well as a significant number of students switching to engineering from other subjects. Contributions about particular research interests of the College's engineering fellows appear from time to time, supplemented by articles of a more general engineering nature.
You can now access the electronic edition of the latest Caius Engineer on the Web - click to open The Caius Engineer in a new browser window.
The College hopes to admit about fifteen undergraduates each year to read Engineering; in recent years as many as 18 were admitted following a particularly strong field of applicants.
The main prerequisites for Engineering at Cambridge are good A-level qualifications in Mathematics and Physics; double subject Mathematics is strongly recommended. Other science subjects such as Chemistry are also valuable.
Each applicant is invited to visit the College for interviews with the Director of Studies in Engineering, and at least one other Engineering Lecturer. Interviews last typically for 20 minutes and often include discussion of engineering and related problems. A further interview is often arranged with a College Tutor; such interviews may be of a less technical nature. We are always keen to receive applications from Overseas students with good academic qualifications; for those who are unable to travel to Cambridge for interview, it is sometimes possible to arrange interviews to take place closer to the applicant's home.
Many students plan to take a break of a year between school and university. This can be a most valuable time if used positively, for example in industry or in travel. It is a current requirement for Part IB of the Engineering Tripos that candidates have completed 4 weeks of training in manufacturing processes. This qualification can readily be completed during the pre-university period. Caius strongly encourages those to whom it offers places in Engineering to take a year out in this way. It is important that students keep academically fit during a period as long as this away from sustained academic work. Some industrial employers provide for their students to attend day-release courses; in other cases the student may need to make individual arrangements; however, provided some suitable measures like this are taken, students rapidly re-adjust after being away under the stimulation of their Cambridge commitments. The Year in Industry Program, backed by the Royal Academy of Engineering, has been set up to coordinate places and applications from prospective students, and is a highly effective means of identifying a suitable opportunity. General advice about possible industrial employment before coming to Cambridge may be obtained through the Director of Studies in Engineering, or (for students who have been offered a place) from the Industrial Placement Coordinator at the Engineering Department.
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Last updated: 11 February, 2004. This page was composed by David Holburn. Nuts & Bolts images courtesy Derek Ingram.
