Department of Mechanical, Materials and Manufacturing Engineering

What is Product Design
What is different about Product Design & Manufacture at The University of Nottingham?
What are the Career prospects?
What is the course actually like?
Admissions information
What is the difference Between BEng and MEng Degrees?
What facilities are there for Product Design
Why else might you want to study here?

What is Product Design?
Product design is an exciting profession.  There is something very rewarding about seeing a product that you have designed in a store or even better being used by someone.  As a product designer you are concerned with the needs of the end user, but you are also responsible for many other issues.

Design can make peoples lives better, it can make businesses more successful, but it can also have the opposite effects. This is why it is important that a designer’s education is complete and that it prepares them fully for their future career in a responsible profession.

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What is different about Product Design & Manufacture at The University of Nottingham?
The way we teach Product Design at The University of Nottingham is subtly different. We teach the design process as it is conducted in industry today.  Industry has been quick to take on the advantages of rapid prototyping and photo realistic rendering; the product development process involves less and less use of traditional model making techniques.  Because of this we don’t teach finished model making skills to our students as they will probably never use them in industry.  Instead our students make extensive use of our rapid prototyping facilities and make quick card or foam models to aid them in the design of a product.  Project work is presented using a combination of hi-quality visuals and rapid prototypes, just as is commonly done in industry.  Less time in the workshops gives our students more time to spend designing the product and more time to go into the details of manufacture.

The additional knowledge in manufacturing our students gain compared to other design courses is what gives our students the advantage in the job market

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What are the Career prospects?
Making no secrets about this, the job market for graduate Product Designers is very competitive.  This is why we have designed this course to give you the best advantage in the market place that we can.  We believe that making our graduates creative and with an excellent understanding of manufacturing engineering  issues will give them the best chance to entering the career or their choice.

Although the course provides a career path for entering the Product Design profession, it also opens up avenues to other areas of employment; creative industries such as advertising and multi media, Business activities such as marketing and project management and of course manufacturing and product development. 

It’s also worth remembering that The University of Nottingham is a highly respected institution; all our graduates are perceived in a similar manner.

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What is the course actually like?
Compared to some we are a relatively small course with around 40 students per year and that is the way we like it.  The course fosters a community feel; you are not just a face in the crowd.  2nd, 3rd and 4th year students all share the same studio space for project work and are encouraged to learn from each other as well as the staff.

The first year of the course has a structure that many of the schools other courses follow in common. This provides a good grounding in the basics of design and engineering and provides students flexibility at the end of the 1st year to change courses if they wish to.

The subsequent years of the course provide a balanced mix of traditional lecture based subjects along with design projects and design based modules. 

As the course progresses through its years the emphasis on the work moves more toward design projects.  The final semester on both BEng and MEng courses is wholly a major design project.

Most design project work is individual although there are group design projects in 1st and 2nd years.  Design project vary in length and topic covering products from medical devices to consumer products and last from 3 weeks to 3 months.

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Admissions information
The UCAS codes are:

MEng - H715  4 years UG 

BEng – H700  3 years UG

Typical A level offer: MEng ABB  BEng BBC

Typical IB score: 32

Entry requirements: Three A levels including Mathematics but excluding General Studies. Design and Technology or Art are also desirable. 

Location: University Park Campus

You can apply online and full details are given on the UCAS website

General admissions information may also be found on our admissions webpage.

Specific enquiries on admissions may be made by emailing the admissions tutor

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What is the difference Between BEng and MEng Degrees?
Both degrees are for undergraduates.  One is at bachelors level and the other is at masters level.  The courses are identical up to the end of year 2, after this the structures and subjects are different.

The decision as to whether to study for three or four years is not made until the end of the second year, and is subject to you achieving the required level of mark.

The MEng degree has a more industry focused approach, and aims to make design project work fare more realistic in the way that projects are constrained.

Nottingham itself is a lively and vibrant city with lots to offer its student population.  Good access links both nationally and internationally make it an easy place to live.

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What facilities are there for Product Design?
We have excellent facilities at The University of Nottingham.  The Department of M3 provides 3 design studios for Product Design students, 2 of which are new for 2007 and one of which is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.  These are the hub of all project work and become a bit of a home from home. 

Next to the design studios is an IT Lab, again open 24, 7.  This lab has modern computers running a variety of design software.  The course uses Pro Engineer as its CAD software and uses 3D Studio Max for Visualisation and animation.  Students also use Adobe Creative suite for presentation work and have access to a colour laser printer.

Rapid prototyping is a key element to the course.  We currently have 3 machines usable by student and plans for more.  Our traditional workshops are large and well equipped providing facilities for the production of test rigs and prototypes.  We additionally have a manufacturing workshop with state of the art computer controlled machining centres, along with laser and water jet cutters.

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Why else might you want to study here?
The University of Nottingham is based on four campuses around the Nottingham city area, with additional campuses in Malaysia and China. Product Design & Manufacture is based on the University Park Campus, this is the main campus and has large open spaces and is a lovely place to live and study.  The campus has excellent sporting and leisure facilities, as well as a great arts centre by the lake.   The campus is close to the city with good access to it via local buses.

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