Beyond the Lecture Theatre: Student Life at UCL Mechanical Engineering
Studying with us at UCL MechEng, there are plenty of ways to get involved within the department and prepare yourself for your future beyond just your education.
If you join UCL to study mechanical engineering, you will be part of a vibrant learning community. Beyond the lectures, assessments and projects, the department offers a range of social and careers events and opportunities, department student societies, extracurricular teams (UCL Racing) and support when you need it.
Learn more about student life at UCL Mechanical Engineering:
- Events
- Careers and Employability
- Year in Industry
- MechSpace
- UCL Racing (UCLR)
- Student Societies
- Student Support and Wellbeing
Events
Throughout the academic year, the department runs many events for our students, including fun, social events and careers or academic events.
Some of our most popular events include sports days, museum tours, karaoke nights and much more. We announce our events via email directly to our students’ inboxes and often share them on our social media channels too. You can also explore some of our upcoming events here.
Careers and Employability
Mechanical Engineering is a broad discipline which can lead you to pursue many different career paths. The problem-solving and analytical skills you develop at UCL Mechanical Engineering will make you an attractive candidate for employers in many fields.
Our students can access support from the Faculty of Engineering’s dedicated careers service. They run regular events throughout the academic year and can work with you in several ways, including how to find different jobs, supporting you as you weigh up options and helping you prepare for interviews.
We as a department also run careers-focused events throughout the year and have a dedicated careers team to help our students in various ways. For instance:
- Facilitate industry relationships for individual and group projects
- Arrange employability workshops and events for undergraduate and postgraduate students
- Promote internships, graduate schemes and job opportunities from external employers
- Help with CV writing, assessment centres and job matching
If you are a current student with us, you can find out more about our departmental careers support on MESH (our Mechanical Engineering Student Handbook).
Year in Industry
During your degree at UCL, you have the option to undertake a year-long placement in industry to help you gain insight into life after university and develop your professional skills. This usually happens during your penultimate year of study, between second and third year for BEng students or third and fourth year for MEng students.
Prior to undertaking a Year in Industry, you need to gain approval from the department and meet with the Year in Industry Tutor (Peter Simpson). The department will support you throughout the year, as well as during the application process, with the final stage being a report at the end of your placement year explaining what you have accomplished and learnt throughout the year. This is assessed on a pass/fail basis.
Find out more about industry placements on the UCL Careers website
MechSpace
MechSpace is a student hub (in London’s King’s Cross – a short walk from the Bloomsbury campus) for designing and building practical projects. The facility spans six levels, with some 12,000 square feet of well-equipped workshops and study spaces: this is a space where students can unleash their creativity to its fullest.
MechSpace also plays host to several STEM outreach campaigns for younger students, such as 'Girl on Track' and 'F1 in Schools'. Additionally, the building is the venue for regular Repair Cafés held throughout the academic year.
We will supply all the materials you require, so this impressive space is an incredible benefit to our students.
UCL Racing (UCLR)
MechSpace is also the home to our UCL Racing (UCLR) teams. We have five UCLR teams in total: Eco-marathon, Formula Student, Rover, Rocket, UAS and Human-Powered Submarine.
Student Societies
At UCL, there are over 250 student societies, providing a range of extra-curricular activities for students to get involved with. If you are part of our Mechanical Engineering department, you can be part of a number of specific engineering societies to get to know your peers and gain professional knowledge at society-run industry events.
As a department, we regularly collaborate with the Mechanical Engineering Society (MES) throughout the year to bring our students the best events, including both fun, social activities and careers workshops.
UCL Mechanical Engineering's societies include:
- MES (Mechanical Engineering Society)
- MERS (Mechanical Engineering Researcher Society)
- UCL Racing (UCLR)
Other Engineering societies include:
Student Support and Wellbeing
Alongside UCL’s central student wellbeing support, UCL MechEng has our own team committed to ensuring our students are as happy and healthy as possible throughout their time with us.
You can approach our student advisers for non-judgemental advice or guidance on anything to do with your studies or student experience. From academic support to mental health guidance, you can find out more about the various types of support we offer our students, on MESH.
Watch: Why I chose to study Mechanical Engineering at UCL - Zubia's Story
Study abroad at UCL
UCL Mechanical Engineering offers a range of undergraduate courses to students from colleges and universities around the world.
UCL Mechanical Engineering team on a field trip to South Korea
Learn more about studying abroad with us
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