Master of science in Electromechanical Engineering

The advantages of this programme result from the compromise between, on the one hand, important base skills preparing engineers for work in design and management and, on the other hand, a specialisation in a particular discipline.

Electromechanical engineers will also find wide-ranging career opportunities in engineering companies, industry, public authorities, research and higher education, and in the services sector.

Though there are a large number of openings in companies in the area of process automation, computerised management, electricity, electronics, etc., the majority of companies in other sectors (chemicals, petrochemicals, metallurgy, etc.) also have a growing need for skilled and versatile electromechanical engineers.

Aeronautics, automation, mechanical engineering and design, vibrations, robotics, electrical motors, renewable energy, transportation, piston engines, CAD, management, logistics, quality, etc. These are all examples showing that the majority of companies, whatever the sector they belong to, have a growing demand for engineers skilled in electrical, mechanical or electromechanical engineering. And this is why this programme has so many different facets. Students opting for the electromechanical engineering specialisation in their third block of the Bachelor course (block 3 of BA) can carry on and take a Master degree in electromechanical engineering, specialising in either management and technology or electro-mechanics. The latter, organised together with the VUB since 2011-2012, is taught in English and is part of the BRUFACE initiative.

Graduates of this programme benefit from a compromise between, on the one hand, important base training preparing students for work in design and management and, on the other hand, a specialisation in a particular discipline.

A wide-ranging base curriculum opening the door to various options

The technology specialisation offered by the electromechanical engineering department is based on wide-ranging training backed up by various options.

Block 3 of BA and the first half of block 1 of MA constitute a common base, ensuring that students gain a firm understanding of electricity, electronics, automation, fluid mechanics, electrical and thermal machines and their associated calculation methods. These lead to the following MA2 options: aeronautics, mechatronic construction, energy and, last but not least, transportation.

A special case: the "Management and Technology" specialisation

Students heading straight for a management career can opt in block 1 of MA for the "Management and Technology" specialisation. This is held jointly with the Solvay Brussels School of Economics and Management (SBS-EM). This Masters course has no particular prerequisites and can be taken whatever the option taken in block 3 of BA.

The projects, end-of-course dissertations, work placements, international exchanges

Looking at the electromechanical engineering specialisation, the block 3 of BA project only accounts for 2 ECTS, thereby hardly encroaching on the wide-ranging base curriculum. This is a CAD project, with either an electrical or mechanical dimension. Block 1 of MA also contains an individual project worth 5 ECTS (with the exception of teamwork-based development cooperation, Eco-Marathon and Robotics Cup projects). Students indicate their preferences, choosing from a large range of subjects with a technological dimension (mechanical, electrical or combined), before the department optimises which students are assigned to which projects. Students can also elect to lead groups of BA1 students, should they want to develop their organisation and leadership capabilities.

In Block 2 of MA , the end-of-course dissertation (worth 20 ECTS) is done in one of the electromechanical departments or in another department providing appropriate subjects, possibly in conjunction with an industrial company or with a Belgian or foreign research centre. The subjects suggested by the departments are closely connected to their research activities, and dissertations are therefore supervised by people full of motivation and wanting to see successful research results. Departments very often suggest subjects where a student will be in contact with a company directly interested in the results.

All Masters programmes in the electromechanical engineering field offer the opportunity of doing a 12-week work placement (11 weeks in the aeronautics sector). Supervised jointly by a company supervisor and a Faculty supervisor, work placements may be linked with the end-of-course dissertation. Work placements are done between the beginning of July and the end of October, with the exception of aeronautics placements which end in mid/late September. Students taking the Management and Technology specialisation choose between a mandatory placement and an international exchange.

As with the Faculty's other Master courses, the electromechanical engineering department allows student to take part in an international exchange programme for a term or a year, either in block 1 or 2 of MA. The one exception here is the Management and Technology specialisation, where the exchange must take place in Block 2 of MA. A further option is to take a twin degree, such as that offered by Sup'Aéro in Toulouse.