Bachelor of Science (Hons) in Product Design and Management (Optional placement year)

at Aston University United Kingdom

What you’ll learn
In the first year, you’ll get a grounding in product design principles and an understanding of how design can affect the profitability of a business.

In the second and final year, you will take a common core of design modules to support your projects, integrating your design specialism with the core aspects of product design. You’ll also continue to develop skills that are relevant to your future career, whichever path you choose to take, including presentations and team working. Your final year will culminate in the opportunity to showcase your project work at the Aston Inspired final year design show.

We teach using a hands-on framework called CDIO - Conceive, Design, Implement, Operate – supported by 50 of the world’s top technical institutions. This enables you to apply real-world skills as you learn, enabling you to maximize your learning. You’ll do your learning in our state-of-the-art facilities, which include advanced 3D printing facilitates and a dedicated design studio with specialist equipment designed just for you.

We’ll support you to find a paid, professional placement of direct relevance to your studies. This placement will give you invaluable practical experience in a real work environment and will further enhance your career prospects.

You’ll also have the opportunity to network with employers and showcase your work as part of the Mechanical Engineering and Design Industry Club, where you’ll be given opportunities to meet employers.

Applications for September 2022 entry will open on 1 October 2021. You will be able to apply via a link which will be available from this course information page.

Understand human behaviour in the work place on our Business Psychology MSc.

Whether you’re interested in a leadership role, career paths in human resources, marketing, employee relations, or any role that would benefit from understanding other people in the work place, this course is for you. You will develop your critical understanding of the main theories of effective leadership and organisational behaviour and how they can be applied in real-life business scenarios.

You’ll also develop your own skills in relation to human behaviour and leadership in the workplace, preparing you for a wide range of business and management roles across a variety of sectors.

The study of international business is more important than ever. Technological, political and economic developments mean that daily business transactions can be conducted on a global scale, and international managers have added advantages in the employment market.

What you’ll learn

Aston Business School’s International Business and Management BSc will equip you with a solid understanding of strategic management in international business. Discover how differences in culture can influence the way we do business and understand how to operate in challenging environments abroad, both through theoretical knowledge and practical experience.

This degree has been developed in response to demand by alumni and our own advisory panel of international employers. It offers a core strategic management focus within an international business context. You will gain a solid foundation in your first year across a breadth of business topics before shaping your second and final years to concentrate your study on chosen specialisms.

Think you know about chemical engineering? Join our course here at Aston to learn how chemical engineers shape the world and get ready for a career in this exciting industry.

What you’ll learn
This course is designed to develop your engineering skills, in the context of a firm grounding in chemistry.?To ensure this, you will share your first year with chemists, giving you a good grounding in the subject before gaining a deeper insight into the industrial processes.

In later years you will specialize at a more advanced level in the core engineering topics as well as studying business, management, and sustainability, designed to further develop your problem-solving skills.?There will also be a focus on computer modeling skills with a strong emphasis on process simulation.

You have the option to spend a year on placement in the industry in your third year.?Many students take advantage of this option and find the experience extremely beneficial both for their development as an engineer and their final year performance.

This brand new course gives you the skills to devise and develop artificial intelligence solutions alongside broader business strategy - a strong combination.

What you’ll learn

We'll teach you, specialist, technical information together with a deep understanding of how businesses work, to enable you to create ethical, well-justified, and appropriate AI solutions.

Our focus on this course is the application of your AI technical information and knowledge in a business setting, with a focus on machine learning and data mining to improve business processes. You’ll have the opportunity to design and plan, implement, test, evaluate and document your solutions with this focus in mind.

As well as the development of your technical and business knowledge, you’ll also grow your communication and team working skills as you work on your own and with others on projects and presentations. One of these projects gives you the opportunity to develop a computer game, work as part of a team, and present your solution to the rest of your class.

You’ll master key theories and concepts of economics and finance, and gain quantitative skills that are in high demand in the global job market. Developed in collaboration with industry practitioners, this course will equip you for a range of career paths including one within the financial sector.

This course will provide you with the tools for a variety of financial positions in a range of organizations, from blue-chip companies to not-for-profit groups.

You’ll enjoy a stimulating range of teaching methods including lectures, seminars, simulations, and lab sessions. You will use advanced statistical software packages and have access to Datastream, a global financial and macroeconomics data platform, to enhance your practical skills.

There is also the opportunity to develop other practical business skills, such as writing business plans, and country and market reports. You’ll be able to benefit from visits of guest speakers who are leading industry experts in the field of economics and finance.

Mechanical engineers are innovators, building machines, structures and devices of all sizes and for all uses. Study Mechanical Engineering at Aston and we’ll equip you with the tools you need to bring your ideas to life, helping to solve the world’s problems for generations to come. Our Mechanical Engineering degree course offers highly relevant modules in sought-after engineering and scientific subjects.?It is driven by the demands of industry to produce graduates with extremely strong engineering and scientific skills. We also support you to develop strong project management and teamwork skills, as well as commercial awareness.

What you’ll learn
In your first year, you’ll cover fundamental disciplines of mechanical engineering, through academic classes in engineering, science, and maths. You’ll also take on large, integrated projects in practical settings, and we’ll help you to understand new technology and concepts. The course reflects industry practice, as you work in groups to take products from initial concepts through to built and tested prototypes.

During your second year, you’ll begin to develop the skills and technical knowledge you need to become a professional engineer. Then, in your third year, you’ll undertake a major project, involving design, experimental or analytical work that can be tailored to suit your own interests or to suit your target vocation.?

If you choose to spend a year in industry during your degree, we’ll support you to find a paid, professional placement of direct relevance to your studies. This placement will give you invaluable practical experience in a real work environment and will further enhance your career prospects.

In the final year, you will study advanced-level science and applied maths and exploit this knowledge in a major project, involving design, experimental or analytical work. This allows you to demonstrate your skills, knowledge, and abilities to potential employers through independently tackling a significant engineering challenge.

Electronic engineering impacts on so many areas of every day life so it is perhaps no surprise to find that it is the most extensive and pervasive of all the engineering disciplines.

Our courses are developed in collaboration with a wide range of industry sectors to give a broad but relevant degree so teaching won’t just be standard lectures and you’ll be encouraged to discover how science fiction becomes fact. Designing your own products and working with cutting-edge equipment will be a core part of the course. Our ground-breaking, fast-track, higher level Electrical and Electronic Engineering MEng course allows you to gain an MEng qualification in four years, rather than the traditional five years, making it a more time and cost-effective choice.

What you’ll learn

The first two years of the MEng are taught alongside the BEng degree. You’ll begin by covering the fundamental principles of the field, such as digital and analogue electronics, computing, mathematics and project management, rapidly developing the analytical skills to understand and begin designing electrical circuits and systems.

In the second and final years you’ll specialise by selecting from a broad range of career-focused options, including systems analysis, data acquisition and control, digital system design, telecommunications systems, optoelectronics and signal processing. The final year is taught alongside our masters programmes and you can choose to study a broad range of modules, or specialise in one particular area, such as communications, sensing, computing or electrical power. You will also undertake an in-depth project, based on your areas of specialism.

You’ll have access to an extensive network of computer facilities throughout your course, including high performance PCs for industrial standard ECAD, Unix workstations and a large number of embedded processors for lab work. These resources are complemented by specialist electronics, telecommunications and networked laboratories and research facilities.

If you want to build an exciting career in engineering management, this could be the course for you.

Engineers and engineering skills are in very high demand across a range of sectors around the world. Our Engineering Management masters course will give you the knowledge and skills you need to develop an exciting career in advanced technology.

We aim to equip you with the specialist strategic and operational knowledge you’ll need to become a future leader. We also develop your understanding of sustainability and environmental issues, important skills for any senior leader.

Our team has close links with businesses across the region and internationally, making Aston a great place to learn and develop the skills you’ll need.

What you’ll learn

You’ll gain in-depth knowledge and understanding of the theoretical and applied perspectives of engineering management and leadership. You'll also have the opportunity to develop your areas of interest through a range of specialist modules and completion of a major project.

You’ll undertake real-life projects throughout your course with modules taught using industry-related case studies and current research in the field. We're uniquely positioned, in the heart of UK engineering and manufacturing, to be able to welcome guest speakers from leading companies to share their experiences with you. Field trips to regional businesses will give you a real insight into industry.

The BSc Human Resources and Business Management course draws on psychology, human resources and general management theory to develop insight into the world of work, preparing students with key skills in communication, negotiation and effective decision-making.

What you’ll learn
During your studies you will have the opportunity to gain real-world experience through your placement. You will develop a deeper understanding of psychological mechanisms that play a role in decision-making and team work, as well as how leaders can strategically bring about change processes, and why individual employees play an important role in organisational productivity. Your placement will also help you to develop key skills in decision-making, negotiation and communicating effectively.

In the first year, you will develop an understanding of the historical context within which work has developed and changed in the last century. This will equip you with an appreciation of how information technology and globalisation have altered business structures. You will also develop knowledge of key elements of business management such as economics, marketing, law and accounting.

The second year shifts focus to a deeper understanding of the issues around individual attitudes and behaviours. You will study modules on ‘Creativity in Organisations’ and the ‘Psychology of Work’, alongside continuing to develop knowledge of the wider business management issues through modules including ‘Employee Resourcing’ and ‘Digital Marketing’. In addition, you will develop skills such as data analysis, contributing to your decision-making and negotiation acumen.

At the end of your second year you begin your placement year, where you will have an opportunity to practice and apply the knowledge and skills you have so far developed.

The final year brings all of your learning together with a study of strategy and management, where the combination of human resources and business management takes focus through modules such as ‘Strategic HR and Leadership’.

You will develop specialised knowledge of employment law and the skills to use evidence to make persuasive arguments. You will draw on your placement experiences to make sense of critical HR issues like productivity, work engagement, burnout and stress at work. All this will prepare you to start either a specialised career in HR or a more general management role within organisations across a range of different sectors. On successful completion of your degree you will be able to apply for Associate CIPD membership.