Teaching Methods

We pride ourselves on the quality of the education we provide at York. This is recognised nationally by our maximum teaching rating, our top National Student Survey scores and the various prizes our staff have been awarded - details of which can be found on our Teaching Quality page.

Most lecture courses are taught by staff who are active in leading-edge research, ensuring that outdated techniques are eliminated from the course content quickly. Small-group tutorials also ensure that students have close contact with the academic staff. Practical skills are a vital part of any engineering degree course, and it is important that the laboratory and project work should integrate well with the taught courses. As such, not only laboratory experience but also individual and team project work are given a high priority.

Personal Supervision

Personal Tutors are allocated to every student on their arrival. They will supervise his/her progress throughout the course, with regular meetings. This personal contact and guidance is invaluable.

Lectures

The lecture is the method by which we convey the bulk of the theoretical content of our courses.

Tutorials

These allow the subject to be explored in greater depth in a small group. These are supported by problem sheets which students can address in their own time. Large-scale problem classes offer additional support. All of the theoretical material is reinforced by practical and computer laboratory work.

Laboratories

First year students undergo an intensive laboratory introduction programme at the beginning of their course. They will then spend around 6 hours per week in the teaching laboratories. Typically, students work in pairs at each standard workstation and demonstrators are on hand as well as the lecturer teaching the session. The group and individual final-year projects listed below also utilise various laboratory and specialist facilities.

Project Work

A variety of projects occur throughout the course:

In the first year students combine together with other members of their supervision group to design and build a prototype commercial product. The final products are judged by a team of industrial experts and a substantial cash prize is awarded to the winning group.
In the third year all MEng students participate in a major software project. This is organised in teams who operate as self contained units. Teams can trade with each other and buy and sell software modules (with notional money!). The final product is a substantial working piece of software.
In their final year BEng students carry out a personal project supervised by a member of staff. Each year a large number of possible projects are offered to students and there is also the opportunity for students to propose their own project. The final BEng project contributes about one fifth of the final degree marks.
In the final year of the MEng degree the whole of the Spring and Summer terms are devoted to a major project in industry. The project is jointly supervised by members of the academic staff and a supervisor from the sponsoring company. Projects are carefully vetted by the department to ensure that the student undertakes a substantial and industrially relevant project. If an industrial project cannot be arranged then students will undertake an equally substantial project in our research laboratories.

At the end of each course students complete anonymous questionnaires which ask them to rate the course under various headings. These are then used by staff to monitor the quality of the teaching. Students also elect representatives to a staff/student liaison committee, ensuring that their voice is heard on any matter affecting their interests.

Admissions Enquiries: Mrs Helen Lay
Undergraduate Admissions Tutor: Dr Stuart Porter
Tel: (+44) 01904 322365

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