Melbourne School of Engineering

Study Abroad & Exchange: Incoming

• Am I a Study Abroad or an Exchange applicant?
• Your program structure
• English entry requirements
  • English Language Alternative Entry
• Engineering electives
• More information

Am I a Study Abroad or an Exchange applicant?

Although both Study Abroad and Exchange programs involve studying away from your home institution for one or two semesters, there are important differences between the programs.

Exchange program

Exchange programs are defined by the following:

• Your home institution must be a University of Melbourne partner through a formal exchange agreement.
• You must be nominated for the program by the exchange coordinator of your home institution
• The University of Melbourne must accept your application
• If selected, you remain enrolled with your home institution
• You continue to pay your home institution fees
• The academic program you undertake may be credited towards your degree as per the formal agreement between the two institutions

Study Abroad program

If your home institution does not have a formal exchange agreement with the University of Melbourne, or if the exchange numbers are unevenly balanced, you can apply to participate in the Study Abroad program.

• You can study at the University of Melbourne for one or two semesters
• You will pay fees to the University of Melbourne
• You organise with your home institution's Study Abroad adviser about obtaining credit for your University of Melbourne academic program
• You may apply directly to the University of Melbourne or through one of our representatives

Program structure

Unlike many engineering programs, students undertaking the Bachelor of Engineering degree at the University of Melbourne select an engineering stream from first year rather than completing a 'common year'. The streams students can choose are:

Study Abroad programs in the fields of Computer Science, Geomatic Engineering and Geographic Engineering IT are also available.

You will normally enrol in four subjects (12.5 points each) in a semester, giving you a total course load of 50 points at any one time. This is the maximum full time course load.

A typical course plan is two 'core' Engineering subjects (those which your home university requires you to take) with two other 'elective' subjects - either Engineering electives or electives from other Faculties.

The following is a sample semester for a Civil and Environmental Engineering student. It is simply one of many possible course plans.

We suggest you pay special attention when choosing Engineering subjects. For instance, it may be best to choose 2nd year level subjects rather than 3rd year level subjects for your 'core' Engineering subjects, as normally you must have completed two years of Engineering studies and have met all the required prerequisites before undertaking 3rd year level majors.

The year level is indicated in the 4th digit of subject codes, for instance, 421-2xx is a second-year level subject and 421-3xx is a third-year level subject.

The structure of the Engineering program at Melbourne may be different from your Engineering program at home, and this may affect your subject selection.

For example, students in year one of our four year program do not have a common first year, they are required to specialise in a stream (e.g. Mechanical, Civil, Chemical etc.) from the first year of enrolment.

You also need to check...

• that the subjects you choose will be offered in the semester you plan to enrol (eg. semester one or semester two)
• while you will enroll in four subjects, it is important that you have chosen two additional subjects for pre-approval (i.e. six subjects for the semester), in case of timetable clashes, or change of subjects on arrival. Pre-approval will streamline your enrolment in our program and help you settle in quickly.

The timetable is usually available at least five months prior to enrolment and is on the worldwide web sis.unimelb.edu.au

You should also be aware that in some rare instances, subjects may be cancelled. In this situation you will be informed about the subject cancellation at enrolment.

It is important to discuss your course plan with your academic adviser at home to ensure that your selection meets the requirements of your home university.

English entry requirements

Standard entry

For standard English entry requirements, see: www.futurestudents.unimelb.edu.au/courses/ugenglishreq.html

Special entry

If you are from a country where English language proficiency is an admission requirement, it is possible to apply with an IELTS score of 6.0 (minimum all bands) or a TOEFL score of 550 (computer based 213) with TWE of 4.0 and undertake an English Language (ESL) subject (Advanced English as a Second Language I) as one of your four subjects in the first semester of your program (of course, this subject will need to be approved by your home institution).

Melbourne School of Engineering: English Language Alternative Entry

International Faculty of Engineering Study Abroad and Exchange students may accept their offered program under the Faculty of Engineering English Language Alternative if they do not meet the normal minimum English Language entry requirements.

See the language test marks here.

You may enrol, providing you undertake in writing, to study 'Advanced English as a Second Language I' at the same time as your course in the first semester of your enrolment.

You are not permitted to overload i.e. take the subject in addition to your normal subject load (normally 4 x 12.5 point subjects per semester).

Note: you will need to be enrolled in at least two Engineering subjects

Engineering Elective Subjects

The Melbourne School of Engineering offers a range of Engineering Elective subjects that generally do not require specific Engineering pre-requisites. However, you are normally expected to have covered at least 2 years of Engineering studies before enrolling in 3rd year level subjects and 3 years of Engineering studies before enrolling in 4th year or higher level subjects.

The following are a sample of these subjects currently on offer. You will need to see if they are offered in the semester you plan to enroll.

Please check the Course & Subject Handbook for subject selection.

Biomedical Engineering

• 421-140 Introduction to Biomedical Engineering

Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering

• 411-102 Chemical Process Analysis

Civil & Environmental Engineering

• 421-103 Engineering Statics
• 421-210 Environmental Engineering
• 421-447 Transport Engineering
• 421-448 Transport Systems
• 421-305 Engineering Hydraulics
• 421-322 Environmental Engineering Design
• 421-325 Field Data Acquisition & Analysis
• 421-629 Energy Efficient Technology

Engineering Management

• 411-343 Chemical Engineering Management
• 421-258 Engineering Business Management
• 431-451 Project Management & Product Commercialisation
• 433-341 Software Engineering Process & Practice
• 433-343 Professional Issues in Computing

Geomatic Engineering

• 451-100 Geomatics Science
• 451-102 Introduction to Surveying
• 451-105 Introduction to GIS & Remote Sensing
• 451-113 Computer Systems & Graphics
• 451-201 Geomatics for Engineers
• 451-203 Planning, Property & Surveying Law
• 451-204 Professional Development
• 451-418 Land Administration

Mechanical Engineering

• 436-105 Engineering Communications
• 436-121 Introduction to Mechanical Engineering
• 436-466 Renewable Energy

Computer Science & Software Engineering

• 433-171 Introduction to Programming
• 433-252 Software Engineering Principles & Tools

More information

For more information about Engineering contact
Ms Marie Armitage
e:

For more information about the University of Melbourne