The choice to pursue engineering abroad is daunting, yet it can reap rewards beyond academics if you take advice from teachers and students who teach or study from foreign universities. Here’s some tips for selecting an engineering institute abroad. But before we explore that, what’s the deal with studying abroad in the first place?
Living and studying in another country can be hugely beneficial for your personal development. Being taken outside your comfort zone and not being able to rely on the safety net of your family and friends teaches you valuable skills in self-reliance and independence. Besides this, studying abroad gives you the opportunity to meet a variety of new people, and expand your horizons.
However, this experience is not one to be taken without careful consideration. It can be intimidating adjusting to a new cuisine, norms and environments. Additionally, studying abroad is an expensive endeavour. You will need to make sure you budget properly for your expenses. You will also want to pick a university that will best suit your personal and career goals, here are some important criteria:
Diversity of programmes
Whether you are interested in the more classical fields such as civil or mechanical engineering, or some of the newer and more cutting-edge ones like photovoltaics and software engineering, it is always good to have variety at your fingertips. One can often get an idea of the calibre of an engineering institute from the range of programmes it offers. The cross-disciplinary exchange and access to top class facilities offered by large engineering schools is priceless in terms of value added to your overseas study experience.
Industry connections
Let’s be realistic, most of us aren’t studying engineering just for the fun of it. When choosing an engineering institution, look for those that display a range of deep and strong connections with industry. These connections could take the forms of industry-sponsored career development and networking events held regularly, funding and donations for school facilities and various research projects, as well as staff positions and bodies at the school which are sponsored by various organisations in the industry. A well-connected engineering institute indicates that one is in touch with current real-world developments and equipped with best-practice industry knowledge.
Reputation and ranking
Ranking isn’t everything, but it can be a great indication of a school’s overall performance in generating cutting-edge research and delivering quality teaching to its students. Don’t just look at an engineering university’s overall ranking, also take note of the ranking of the university in the specific fields that interest you. For example, electrical or chemical engineering.
Innovation
Great institutes are never standing still, always looking to innovate and change the way they deliver content and approach new research challenges. In this world in which change and disruption are accelerating like never before, you will be well-placed to consider a school that will equip you with the skills you need to be flexible and adaptive in the workplace of the future.
Campus life
Last, but by no means least, how does the quality of life on campus stack up? Studying engineering can be arduous, and it is great to be able to break up those late nights working on assignments and long class hours with some fun and social activities.
The author is completing his bachelor of civil engineering (Hons)/ commerce (finance) degree from The University of New South Wales.
