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Department of Engineering, University of Cambridge

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The University of Cambridge's Department of Engineering is the largest department at the university.[1] The main site is situated at Trumpington Street, to the south of the city centre of Cambridge. The department is currently headed by Professor Colm Durkan.[2]

Department of Engineering, University of Cambridge
Department of Engineering, University of Cambridge
Baker Building (left) and James Dyson Building (right)
Established1875 (1875)
Head of DepartmentProfessor Colm Durkan
Location
Trumpington Street, Cambridge
,
United Kingdom

52°11′54″N 0°07′18″E / 52.19827°N 0.121579°E / 52.19827; 0.121579 (Department of Engineering, University of Cambridge)
Websitewww.eng.cam.ac.uk

History

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Reverend Richard Jackson of Torrington, a former fellow of Trinity College, died in 1782, leaving a substantial portion of his estate to endow a Professorship of Natural Experimental Philosophy, which eventually became the Professorship of Mechanism and Applied Mechanics. This position was first held in 1875 by James Stuart.[3] The first engineering workshop at Cambridge was constructed in 1878 in a wooden hut measuring fifty by twenty feet.

The department now has several sites around Cambridge:

 
Cambridge University Engineering Department, Trumpington Street site, looking southeast from the Inglis A Building in November 2004. The Baker Building is in the left background, and the Leys School is in the right background (behind the chimney). The Inglis Building is in the middle and foreground.
  • The main buildings are located at Trumpington Street and Fen Causeway on the Scroope House site, where most of the undergraduate teaching in the Engineering Tripos is carried out. The Baker Building was opened by the Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Philip, on November 13, 1952.
  • Various sections that could not easily be accommodated on the main site have moved to the university's West Cambridge site, including the Whittle Laboratory (a turbomachinery laboratory founded by Sir John Horlock in 1973),[4] the Geotechnical Centrifuge Laboratory, the Microelectronics Research Centre (1992), the Electrical Engineering Division Building, and the Institute for Manufacturing (IfM).
  • A few of the smaller buildings on the Old Addenbrooke's Site, in Trumpington Street opposite the Scroope House Site, have been used by the Department from time to time. Currently, the Cambridge Programme for Sustainability Leadership is in the end building of that site, 1 Trumpington Street, having expanded and moved there under its previous name of Cambridge Programme for Industry in 1991.
  • In 2016, the construction of the James Dyson Building was completed in front of the Baker Building, providing additional office space and seminar and meeting rooms for use by the Department.[5]
  • Over the course of the next ten years, the Department plans to consolidate the Department of Engineering entirely on the West Cambridge site.[6]

Notable companies and projects founded by students and alumni

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Undergraduate education

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There are approximately 1,200 undergraduate students enrolled in the Department,[9] with roughly 320 undergraduate students admitted each year. [citation needed]

All students are enrolled in general coursework during their first two years, which consists of mechanical and structural engineering, as well as materials, electrical, and information engineering. In their final two years of undergraduate work, students can choose to specialize in one of two concentrations (Engineering Tripos or Manufacturing Engineering Tripos), or receive a degree in General Engineering.[10]

In the Engineering Tripos, students may further specialise in one or more of nine engineering disciplines:

  • Aerospace and aerothermal engineering
  • Bioengineering
  • Civil, structural, and environmental engineering
  • Electrical and electronic engineering
  • Electrical and information sciences
  • Energy, sustainability, and the environment
  • Information and computer engineering
  • Instrumentation and control
  • Mechanical engineering

The Manufacturing Engineering Tripos provides an integrated course in industrial engineering, including both operations and management.[11]

Graduate education

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The Department of Engineering currently has about 190 faculty and PI-status researchers, 300 postdoctoral researchers, and 850 graduate students. Post-graduate education consists of both taught courses and research degrees (PhD, MPhil, and MRes). The majority of research students are enrolled in PhD programs, while around 10 percent follow the one-year MPhil (research) program.

The Department has a number of Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) Centres for Doctoral Training (CDTs), which follow a 1-plus-3 year model where a one-year MRes course is followed by a three-year PhD. Full funding for four years is provided through these centres. In addition to the CDTs, the Department has a limited number of EPSRC PhD studentships available for both British and EU students.[12]

Research evaluation

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The Department was ranked 2nd in 2021 among UK engineering departments by the Research Excellence Framework (REF). The Department of Engineering was also ranked 2nd in 2014 by REF.

REF Score
Assessment Year GPA National Ranking
2021[13] 3.69 2
2014[13] 3.49 2

Notable alumni and researchers

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See also: Category:Members of the University of Cambridge Department of Engineering
Fellows of the Royal Society
Members of the Order of Merit
Timoshenko Medal Recipients
Notable people for their contributions

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Strategy and Development Plans - Department of Engineering". 7 November 2013. Retrieved 31 March 2017.
  2. ^ Colm Durkan
  3. ^ a b (paul@jenandpaul.co.uk), Paul Robertson. "CUED 125 Anniversary". Retrieved 31 March 2017.
  4. ^ "The AOUG Sir John Horlock Award for Science". Association of Open University Graduates (AOUG). Archived from the original on 10 September 2014. Retrieved 14 April 2014.
  5. ^ "The James Dyson Building | CUED undergraduate teaching". teaching.eng.cam.ac.uk. Archived from the original on 9 January 2015. Retrieved 17 July 2016.
  6. ^ "Professor David Cardwell interview for Professional Engineering Magazine - Department of Engineering". 6 May 2015. Retrieved 31 March 2017.
  7. ^ Lovett, Samuel (13 July 2015). "Students From Cambridge University Have Built A Solar-Powered Car And Intend To Race It". The Huffington Post UK. Retrieved 9 June 2024.
  8. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 December 2010. Retrieved 3 November 2010.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  9. ^ "Prospective Undergraduates". Department of Engineering. 25 October 2013. Retrieved 7 August 2024.
  10. ^ "Part IIA modules and engineering areas". Retrieved 13 October 2020.
  11. ^ "Undergraduate Courses". Archived from the original on 6 October 2012. Retrieved 1 July 2015.
  12. ^ "Graduates Overview - Department of Engineering". 12 August 2013. Retrieved 31 March 2017.
  13. ^ a b "REF 2021: Engineering". Times Higher Education (THE). 12 May 2022. Retrieved 12 December 2022.
  14. ^ "Biographical Memoirs of fellows of the Royal Society". doi:10.1098/rsbm.2018.0024. S2CID 132105865. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  15. ^ Runchal, Akshai K. (August 2009). "International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer". Special Issue Honoring Professor D. Brian Spalding. 52 (17): 4063–4073. doi:10.1016/j.ijheatmasstransfer.2009.03.058. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  16. ^ "City University". 31 January 2020.
  17. ^ "John Arthur Shercliff, Biographical Memoirs of Fellows of the Royal Society". Biographical Memoirs of Fellows of the Royal Society. 31: 524–541. November 1985. doi:10.1098/rsbm.1985.0018. S2CID 71433327.
  18. ^ "Royal Society Directory".
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