Swinburne’s Associate Degree of Engineering gains full accreditation

Swinburne’s Associate Degree of Engineering has gained full accreditation status from Engineers Australia, giving graduates an added competitive edge in the global market.

The two-year course is a broad-based point of entry into employment as an associate engineer and offers students the chance to move into the third year of Swinburne’s Bachelor of Engineering. 

Engineers Australia is the accreditation authority for tertiary institutions in the country and is responsible for identifying high-quality courses in the field. 

The accreditation meets Australian and global benchmarks. It has taken years of work to achieve this important milestone, according to Swinburne’s Engineering Education Manager and lecturer, Luke Alao.

‘If an engineering degree program is not accredited, graduates may not be able to legally work as an engineer, not only in Australia but in most countries in the world.’

Mr Alao says this accreditation, which companies instantly recognise, is ‘invaluable and an advantage in the job market’.

‘It is important to know that our graduates will be supported wherever their career takes them while working in an increasingly global profession.’

Shelyn Buhler says the accreditation will expand her career options

Supporting success

First-year student Shealyn Buhler felt nervous about beginning an undergraduate degree after taking a break from education after high school and not having prior field knowledge. After enquiring with Swinburne’s Study Connect services, she felt confident to pursue her interest in engineering and chose the Associate Degree of Engineering. 

Ms Buhler says the course is successfully preparing her to transition into a bachelor degree, and a PhD in the future.

‘Everybody just wants to do the bachelor and I definitely understand that. It sounds a bit more fancy and it feels a bit more fancy, but it was really helpful to have the opportunity of involvement with the teachers and know that, if I am struggling, I have the extra classes.’

The content, structure and teachers make Ms Buhler ‘fall more in love with the course every day’. ‘If you put the effort in, the teachers really put the effort in to you as well. They really care about their students and really want everyone to pass.’

Ms Buhler is not set on the future direction of her career but says the Associate Degree of Engineering gaining accreditation will help her job prospects, as she hopes to travel for work.

‘The more I learn about engineering, the more I discover what I’m really interested in. I’m really interested in a research career, but another reason I want to do engineering is because I want a job where I can always be doing something different. I want to be able to travel with my job and being able to work on a whole range of different projects and research projects gives me a lot of flexibility.’