In Summary

  • Swinburne is releasing a new Bachelor of Engineering Practice (Honours) degree
  • Students will be working on projects given to them by real industry clients
  • The course will be non-ATAR, interview entry
Students will join a simulated engineering practice from day one, work as engineers in teams on industry projects and will be supported by engineering mentors throughout the entire course.

Swinburne is introducing a revolutionary Bachelor of Engineering Practice (Honours) degree that will offer an alternative to the traditional teaching and assessment approaches in engineering.

The new course has been co-designed with multiple industry partners to ensure that future graduates will be prepared to go into an existing company or create their own.

“Reports commissioned by UNESCO and the Australian Council of Engineering Deans suggest that a new approach is needed to engineering education,” says Associate Dean, Learning Innovation in the Faculty of Science, Engineering and Technology, Dr Llewellyn Mann.

“This course was created as a world-leading approach to engineering education. It leverages the existing strengths of Swinburne in engineering, design, innovation, entrepreneurship and social impact.”

Entry to the degree will be based on interview rather than ATAR results and assessment will be based on individual performance within a team rather than on exams.

“Students will join a simulated engineering practice from day one, work as engineers in teams on industry projects and will be supported by engineering mentors throughout the entire course,” Dr Mann says.

The degree will run alongside the existing Bachelor of Engineering (Honours), which currently produces technical engineers who are in high demand. The practice course will produce engineers with technical depth, but also a broader interdisciplinary focus. 

“These new graduates will be in-demand among employers who are looking for engineers who are integrators, who have a broader entrepreneurial and innovative skillset, and who will work alongside the more technical engineers to oversee and manage projects,” Dr Mann says.

The course will conform to the requirements for accreditation by Engineers Australia and students will graduate as engineers.

Domestic students will be accepted into the degree in semester 1, 2018 and the course will be open to all prospective students from semester 1, 2019.

Find out more about the Bachelor of Engineering Practice (Honours).