University of Nottingham Ningbo China

Course overview

This MRes programme aims to provide students with the necessary advanced, technical, professional and specialised study skills within the fields of Mechanical, Materials and Manufacturing Engineering, and to develop a critical awareness of the advanced techniques and technological advances available to conduct state of the art research in this area.

Students have the opportunity to explore these in experiment and modelling oriented projects, and complete the course by analysis and interpretation of research results and writing up a dissertation for examination according to the established procedure at the University of Nottingham.

By taking a multi-disciplinary approach to teaching and learning the subject, the course aims to provide a more robust understanding of the subject and the ability to apply it in industrial practices or further studies.

The specific objectives are as follows:

• to encourage integration between the separate disciplinary areas;
• to propel the development of new ideas and techniques in Mechanical, Manufacturing and Composite Materials commercially-based engineering;
• to develop the students' transferable skills in research methods at the postgraduate level;
• to facilitate an in-depth investigation of a relevant topic through independent research.

Depending on the availability of teaching resources and demands in future, this MRes programme may introduce optional modules to reflect the progress and state of the art advances in Mechanical/Materials areas such as advanced CFD, advanced FE analysis and the updated knowledge of viscous flow and heat transfer, vibration dynamics together with advanced manufacturing technologies, advanced production and assembly system and composite materials.

Course structure

• Generic Research Training module

Students are required to take a compulsory Generic Research Training module which is run by the Faculty of Science and Engineering. The Generic Research Training module includes three components, including:

Component 1 – Research training

Training sessions are delivered by the Graduate School. Face-to-face and online standalone training options are available.

Component 2 - Scientific research paper writing

This face-to-face training is delivered by the module convenor. The training sessions focus on the development of scientific research paper writing skills, and scientific publication and metrics issues. This component consists of training sessions of total 4-5 hours in 2 mornings/afternoons and a tutorial session of 2 hours in a morning/afternoon (all sessions: to be arranged locally).

Component 3 - Professional Development

Relevant state-of-the-art techniques and up-to-date knowledge are obtained from the public lectures and research seminars organised by relevant professional institutions/organisations and Schools/Research Groups in the Faculty. Supervisor’s approval must be obtained before attending each event. Attendance of each event must be checked and signed by supervisor.

• Thesis

Students are required to submit their thesis prior to the end of the period of registered study. The thesis is examined by both an External Examiner and an Internal Examiner appointed under the regulations governing the assessment of research degrees, who should provide independent reports on the thesis, indicating whether the thesis module has been passed; and also whether a viva voce examination is necessary.