Mechatronic Engineering Degree Programmes

This page provides information on mechatronics undergraduate courses at The University of Western Australia. The official reference information is located at the Course Information web pages of the Faculty of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics. You can also refer to the faculty Faculty Handbook. If you find a discrepency between the handbook and this page, please let us know by E-mail.

James Trevelyan: Mechatronics Discipline Chair

Mechatronics Courses

Study guides for degree courses are available at the faculty course information web site (see link above). These show the recommended enrolment for each year and the list of electives units.

This document presents the course structure in one simple list: Mechatronics at a Glance.pdf.

Students who started before 2003 can enrol in the overloaded combined degree courses. Other students should enrol in the standard course.

If you are not sure whether you have completed the requirements for the course you have selected, remember to check the exclusions and equivalence table (below). This shows which of the old or obsolete units you may have completed provide credit for completing the core units in your current degree.

Guide for Choosing Electives

This document (note that unit codes need to be updated) shows a list of the electives, showing desirable pre-requisites, to help you choose appropriate electives to match your interests. You may choose other units not shown here, with our approval from (and from the head of the Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering). This is an unofficial list.

The range of electives open to Mechatronics Engineering students will depend on the units they have already taken before, particularly for science engineering combined courses. For example, students majoring in Computer Science will have already taken Java and may also have taken C Programming.

Many units appear to have pre-requisites that would prevent Mechatronics Engineering students from taking them. However, these pre-requisites may be waived for Mechatronics Engineering students. For example, programming experience in MATLAB or other languages will normally provide sufficient skills for students to take Computer Vision. Certain Physics units will provide sufficient background for other electives. Students should seek advice where necessary. Pre-requisite requirements stated in the handbook will be waived in appropriate circumstances, by the coordinator for the unit or the head of the respective school.

Exclusion and Equivalence for Prior Units

Some students will have done units that are now obsolete. The equivalence and exclusions guide shows which new units these are equivalent to.

For example, if you completed Maths 217 in second year, you will find it "excludes" Maths 235, (and Maths 2040 the current second year maths unit). This means that Maths 217 fulfills the requirement for you to have completed Maths 2040 and the points that you earned by passing are credited towards the total for your degree.

Overloads

Students may over-enrol beyond the normal full semester load of 24 points, subject to the faculty policy and obtaining appropriate permission.

However, students should realise that most employers value communication and leadership skills more than technical skills. Active participation in the leadership of student organisations such as the Guild, UEC or Young Engineers Group, sporting clubs etc. (or off-campus organisations) will often put you ahead of other applicants when companies choose graduate engineers.

Particpation is fun and rewarding and provides experience that complements the technical knowledge gained in formal coursework.

Timetable

The timetable is published on the web but changes nearly every day until the start of each semester. However, lecture timetables are normally not changed. Given the wide range of electives, some clashes are inevitable. Lecture and workshop clashes are likely to cause significant problems for most students and should be avoided if possible.

(Updated Aug 2007).

Going on Exchange? Want to obtain full credit for overseas courses?

If you are planning one or more semesters as an exchange student, you should ensure that the courses you choose while on exchange contribute towards the credit you need to graduate. Please check these requirements first!