Mechanical Engineering with Placement Year

BEng Hons

  • UCAS code H307
  • Entry year 2025
  • A level requirements ABB
  • Duration Full time 4 years

We welcome applications from the United States of America

We've put together information and resources to guide your application journey as a student from the United States of America.

Overview

Top reasons to study with us

  • Get real-world experience with our placement years

  • Brand new state-of-the-art facilities

  • Practical hands-on courses including lab-based sessions and project work

Our mechanical engineering degree adopts a practical approach that will develop your skills and knowledge for a career involving innovation and leadership.
Mechanical engineering is concerned with anything that moves and many things that don’t. From a simple nut and bolt, through to the complex multi-physics of aerodynamics in Formula One, mechanical engineering solves the broadest range of challenges and leads to a multitude of different and exciting careers.

Our approach reinforces your learning from lectures through practical activities and allows you to fully assess your assumptions while building teamwork and project management skills essential to your future career. The degree is professionally accredited by the Institution of Mechanical Engineering (IMechE) as meeting partial fulfilment of the educational requirements to become a Chartered Engineer.

In the modern world, mechanical engineers are part of small or large teams developing complex systems, which is why our broad based common first year adds significant value to your degree. In your first year, you will study themes from within mechanical engineering, but also the fundamentals behind electrical, electronics and chemical processes, along with a solid foundation in engineering mathematics.

Specialist modules in mechanical engineering will begin in the second year, where you will cover main themes of materials, statics and dynamics, fluids and thermodynamics, complemented by design and laboratory activities. You have the opportunity to undertake a business development project, to introduce you to Industry 4.0 concepts.

On this programme, you will undertake a year in industry, gaining valuable experience and enhancing your employability. We have extensive links built through our leadership in research and have students undergoing placements with multinational corporate companies through to smaller specialist SMEs. Typically, this is undertaken during your third year, after you have gained a reasonable amount of engineering knowledge. Once you have completed your placement, you will write an extended reflective piece about your time spent with the company.

Careers

Mechanical engineers lead the design and build of the things we use and see in our everyday lives. This dynamic discipline, which involves a high level of mathematics, physics and other STEM subjects, is applicable to a virtually limitless range of scenarios and situations. From the cars we drive to the buildings we live and work in, mechanical engineers have been involved in building our world every step of the way. You will graduate with a broad range of skills that make you highly desirable, such as the ability to think creatively, develop solutions to problems, manage projects, apply practical and technical knowledge and to be confident in decision making. It’s unsurprising then that our graduates go on to work within a wide range of sectors and industries, from Aerospace to Energy, Maritime to Rail and more. Graduates from our Engineering degrees are well-paid too, with a median starting salary of £29,000 (HESA Graduate Outcomes Survey 2023).

Here are just some of the roles that our BEng and MEng Mechanical Engineering students have progressed into upon graduating:

  • Design Engineer – Gilbert Gilkes and Gordon Ltd
  • Graduate Engineer – Johnson and Johnson
  • Graduate Mechanical Engineer – Frazer-Nash Consultancy
  • Air Integration Engineer – BAE Systems
  • PhD Candidate – Lancaster University
  • Graduate R & D Engineer – Laing O’Rourke
  • Sustainability Design Engineer – Queen’s University Belfast
  • Graduate Manufacturing Engineer – BAE Systems
  • Junior Test Engineer – RAL Space
  • Process Engineer – Unilever
  • Marine Engineer Officer (Submariner) – Royal Navy
  • Aerospace Engineer – BAE Systems

Lancaster University is dedicated to ensuring you not only gain a highly reputable degree, you also graduate with the relevant life and work based skills. We are unique in that every student is eligible to participate in The Lancaster Award which offers you the opportunity to complete key activities such as work experience, employability/career development, campus community and social development. Visit our Employability section for full details.

Entry requirements

Grade Requirements

A Level ABB

Required Subjects A level Mathematics and a Physical Science, for example, Physics, Chemistry, Electronics, Computer Science, Design & Technology or Further Mathematics.

GCSE Mathematics grade B/6, English Language grade C/4

IELTS 6.5 overall with at least 5.5 in each component. For other English language qualifications we accept, please see our English language requirements webpages.

Other Qualifications

International Baccalaureate 32 points overall with 16 points from the best 3 Higher Level subjects including either:

  1. Mathematics HL grade 6 (either pathway) plus grade 6 in a HL Physical Science
  2. Mathematics HL grade 6 (either pathway) plus grade 6 in two SL Physical Sciences
  3. Mathematics SL grade 7 (Analysis and Approaches) plus HL grade 6 in a Physical Science

Acceptable physical science subjects include Physics, Chemistry, Computer Science, and Design Technology

BTEC (Pre-2016 specifications): Distinction, Distinction, Merit in an Engineering related subject to include Distinctions in Mathematics for Engineering Technicians and Further Mathematics for Engineering Technicians units.

BTEC (2016 specifications): Distinction, Distinction, Merit in an Engineering related subject to include Distinctions in the following units – Unit 1 Engineering Principles, Unit 7 Calculus to Solve Engineering Problems. Unit 8 Further Engineering Mathematics is highly recommended.

We welcome applications from students with a range of alternative UK and international qualifications, including combinations of qualifications. Further guidance on admission to the University, including other qualifications that we accept, frequently asked questions and information on applying, can be found on our general admissions webpages.

Contact Admissions Team + 44 (0) 1524 592028 or via ugadmissions@lancaster.ac.uk

International foundation programmes

Delivered in partnership with INTO Lancaster University, our one-year tailored foundation pathways are designed to improve your subject knowledge and English language skills to the level required by a range of Lancaster University degrees. Visit the INTO Lancaster University website for more details and a list of eligible degrees you can progress onto.

Contextual admissions

Contextual admissions could help you gain a place at university if you have faced additional challenges during your education which might have impacted your results. Visit our contextual admissions page to find out about how this works and whether you could be eligible.

Course structure

Lancaster University offers a range of programmes, some of which follow a structured study programme, and some which offer the chance for you to devise a more flexible programme to complement your main specialism.

Information contained on the website with respect to modules is correct at the time of publication, and the University will make every reasonable effort to offer modules as advertised. In some cases changes may be necessary and may result in some combinations being unavailable, for example as a result of student feedback, timetabling, Professional Statutory and Regulatory Bodies' (PSRB) requirements, staff changes and new research. Not all optional modules are available every year.

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Fees and funding

Our annual tuition fee is set for a 12-month session, starting in the October of your year of study.

Our Undergraduate Tuition Fees for 2025/26 are:

Home International
£9,535 £29,820

Fees and funding information

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Scholarships and bursaries

You will be automatically considered for our main scholarships and bursaries when you apply, so there's nothing extra that you need to do.

You may be eligible for the following funding opportunities, depending on your fee status:

Unfortunately no scholarships and bursaries match your selection, but there are more listed on scholarships and bursaries page.

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We also have other, more specialised scholarships and bursaries - such as those for students from specific countries.

Browse Lancaster University's scholarships and bursaries.

Important information

The information on this site relates primarily to 2025/2026 entry to the University and every effort has been taken to ensure the information is correct at the time of publication.

The University will use all reasonable effort to deliver the courses as described, but the University reserves the right to make changes to advertised courses. In exceptional circumstances that are beyond the University’s reasonable control (Force Majeure Events), we may need to amend the programmes and provision advertised. In this event, the University will take reasonable steps to minimise the disruption to your studies. If a course is withdrawn or if there are any fundamental changes to your course, we will give you reasonable notice and you will be entitled to request that you are considered for an alternative course or withdraw your application. You are advised to revisit our website for up-to-date course information before you submit your application.

More information on limits to the University’s liability can be found in our legal information.

Our Students’ Charter

We believe in the importance of a strong and productive partnership between our students and staff. In order to ensure your time at Lancaster is a positive experience we have worked with the Students’ Union to articulate this relationship and the standards to which the University and its students aspire. View our Charter and other policies.

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