Core modules

• Design and Manufacture 1
• Fluid Dynamics 1
• Materials 1
• Mathematics and Computing 1
• Mechanics
• Mechatronics 1
• Professional Engineering Skills 1
• Stress Analysis 1
• Thermodynamics 1

Core modules

• Design and Manufacture 2
• Dynamics
• Fluid Mechanics 2
• Heat Transfer
• Materials 2
• Mathematics and Computing 2
• Mechatronics 2
• Professional Engineering Skills 2
• Stress Analysis 2
• Thermodynamics 2

Core modules

• Design, Make and Test Project
• Professional Engineering Skills 3
• I-Explore

Your I-Explore module offers you choices from a range of subjects hosted outside of the department. You will be taught alongside students from other courses with options including business, management and many more.

Optional modules

You will study both modules from at least one of the groups A, B or C. You will choose a further three modules from groups A to D. 

Group A

• Stress Analysis 3A
• Fracture MechanicsA

Group B

• Thermodynamics 3A
• Fluid Mechanics 3A

Group C

• Mechatronics 3A
• Machine Dynamics and Vibrations A

Group D

• Embedded C for Microcontrollers A
• Design, Art and Creativity A
• System Design and Optimisation A
• Structure, Properties and Application of Polymers A
• Computational Continuum Mechanics A
• Finite Element Analysis and Applications A
• Manufacturing Technology and Management A
• Introduction to Nuclear Energy
• Tribology A
• Mathematics A
• Statistics A

This is an indicative list of the optional modules available. You will be given notice of which options are available ahead of making your choices. If you have taken a level six version of a module (variant A) you cannot take the level 7 version (variant B) for credit.

Opportunities

The final year consists of an agreed programme of study at an approved university in either Australia, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Singapore, Switzerland or the USA. We currently have exchange agreements with:

• University of Melbourne, Australia
• University of Sydney, Australia
• Ecole Centrale de Lyon, France
• Centrale Supelec, France
• RWTH Aachen, Germany
• Technical University of Delft, Netherlands
• National University of Singapore, Singapore
• ETH Zurich, Switzerland
• University of California, USA

This is an integrated year abroad so the grades you achieve will count directly towards your Imperial degree.

Conditions

Language proficiency

Teaching is in the language of your host country in France and Germany, so you will need to reach an acceptable proficiency in the relevant language before you go. Free language classes are available at the College to help you prepare.

Availability

There are limited places available on the Year Abroad programme, which means that competition for selection is strong and a placement cannot be guaranteed.

Normally, only students with marks of 60% or above will be eligible for placements in France and Germany. Only students with marks of 70% or above will be eligible for placements in Singapore and the USA.

Other

• Please note the above is an illustrative list of universities located abroad which the Department is currently partnered with. Partnerships with universities are subject to continuous review and individual partnerships may or may not be renewed.
• There may be limitations placed upon your ability to live and study in these locations. If applicable you will need to successfully apply for the relevant visa. This applies to all students, including Home students, in light of the UK's decision to leave the European Union. Find the latest information on Imperial and the EU.
  • Study abroad placements in Europe are currently available through the Erasmus scheme. Imperial College now has approval to continue implementing its 2020-21 Erasmus project into 2021-22. Find the latest information on the Erasmus scheme.

Minimum entry standards

Our minimum entry standard for 2023 entry is A*A*A or A*AAA overall, to include:

• A* in Mathematics
• A/A* in Physics (A* is required if applying with three A-levels. At least an A is required if applying with four A-levels)
• A in a third and/or fourth subject

General Studies and Critical Thinking are not accepted.

Students taking English exam board science A-levels will be required to pass the practical endorsement.

Typical offer range

As a guide, here are the typical offers made to at least 80% of A-level applicants for 2021 entry:

• Three A-level offer: A*A*A*
• Four A-level offer: A*AAA-A*A*AA

Practical endorsement (practical science assessment)

If you are made an offer you will be required to achieve a pass in the practical endorsement in all science subjects that form part of the offer.

The practical endorsement is part of the reformed English linear A-levels.

Additional Mathematics support

Our A-level Mathematics online course covers a range of key topic areas to help you gain a deeper understanding of the skills and techniques required to succeed in your A-level Mathematics exams.

This optional course has been built around the A-level syllabus with the aim of developing your thinking skills, fluency and confidence.

Please note: this course is not compulsory and does not form part of the entry requirements for this course. It is available free of charge via the EdX website. It is self-paced so you can start it at any time.

Minimum entry standards

Our minimum entry standard for 2023 entry is 40 points overall, to include:

• 7 in Mathematics at higher level
• 7 in Physics at higher level

Typical offer range

As a guide, the typical offer made to at least 80% of IB applicants for 2021 entry was 40 points overall.

Mathematics Higher Level

The Mathematics Analysis and Approaches or the Applications and Interpretation syllabi will be accepted at higher level, but Analysis and Approaches is preferred.

Additional Mathematics support

We have launched an A-level Mathematics online course, which is available free of charge via the EdX website.

Although this optional course has been built around the A-level syllabus, it is relevant to your curriculum too.

Please note: this course is not compulsory and does not form part of the entry requirements for this course. It is self-paced so you can start it at any time.

The grades detailed below are the minimum requirements for students offering only Advanced Placements as their exams for entry to Imperial.

If you are studying a High School Diploma that is accepted by Imperial alongside Advanced Placements, requirements may apply to both your Diploma and Advanced Placements.

Please consult our country index to check whether we accept your High School Diploma programme for admission.

Our minimum requirement for this course is grades 5, 5, 5, 5 to include:

• 5 in Calculus BC
• 5 in Physics C (Mechanics)
• 5 in two further subjects

Language requirement

You may also require a relevant language qualification for this year abroad degree.

Additional Mathematics support

We have launched an A-level Mathematics online course, which is available free of charge via the EdX website.

Although this optional course has been built around the A-level syllabus, it is relevant to your curriculum too.

Please note: this course is not compulsory and does not form part of the entry requirements for this course. It is self-paced so you can start it at any time.

Assessing your application

Admissions Tutors consider all the evidence available during our rigorous selection process and the College flags key information providing assessors with a more complete picture of the educational and social circumstances relevant to the applicant. Some applicants may be set lower offers and some more challenging ones.

Completing your UCAS application

Please tell us in your personal statement about the things you have done to find out about mechanical engineering.

In particular, describe any work placements, industrial visits, or relevant projects or hobbies.

We are also interested in your general motivation as evidenced by extracurricular activities and part-time work, as well as your wider contribution to your school or community life.

Admissions test

If your application passes initial screening, you'll be invited to take a 60-minute, online admissions test.

The test will be held in November (for applications received by 15 October 2021) and in February (for all other applications).

The test will mostly be based on areas in mathematics and physics which you study in your final years of secondary school.

You'll have the chance to take a readiness test a few days before, which we'll send to you by email, to familiarise yourself with the platform and test format.

Find out more about the Department of Mechanical Engineering admissions test

Interview

We look holistically at candidates' UCAS applications and admissions test scores when deciding who to invite for interview.

Interviews will be held with academic staff on Wednesday afternoons between November and March.

If invited, you'll be asked about your motivation to study mechanical engineering, your personal statement and your written workings from the admissions test. You'll also be assessed on your problem solving skills.

Interviews will be held in person for those able to travel to the college. Otherwise, they will be held online.

You'll find out about the outcome of your interview in March, after all interviews have been completed.

Find out more about the Department of Mechanical Engineering's interviews

A foundation course is a one-year preparation course, designed for international students, which leads to undergraduate programmes in the UK. Foundation programmes are normally for school-leavers who have studied a non-British curriculum but wish to pursue a degree at a UK university.

Foundation programmes are offered by many UK universities, but only two would be considered for entry to Imperial: 

1. UCL’s Undergraduate Preparatory Certificate for Science and Engineering (UPCSE), and 
2. Warwick’s International Foundation Programme (IFP) in Science & Engineering

UCL UPCSE

A year-long programme for international students whose school leaving qualifications do not allow them direct entry to UK universities. Students must complete four modules across the year – two compulsory and two elective modules:

To be considered for admission to Mechanical Engineering, international students studying UCL UPCSE must achieve:

• 80% overall
• 80% Mathematics + Physics

Warwick IFP Science and Engineering

A year-long programme for international students whose school leaving qualifications do not allow them direct entry to UK universities. 

To be considered for admission to Mechanical Engineering, international students studying Warwick IFP Science and Engineering must achieve:

• 80% overall
• 80% Mathematics + Physics

To meet these requirements, students should choose from the following IFP pathways:

• Engineering

We want to make sure that the Imperial learning community is as diverse as the society we serve. So to make our admissions process as fair as possible, we have introduced admissions schemes for Home students that allow us to consider your application in the full context of any additional barriers you may face.

Find out if you meet the eligibility criteria for our contextual admissions schemes. 

If your predicted grades meet the minimum College entry standard of AAA at A-level or an equivalent level qualification in the relevant subjects, this department will guarantee you an interview.

Read more about the contextual admissions scheme in this department and others.

An ATAS certificate is required for all visa-nationals, with the exception of EEA/Swiss nationals and nationals of the following countries: Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea and the USA.

To apply for an ATAS certificate online, you will need your programme’s Common Aggregation Hierarchy (CAH) code and ‘descriptor’, as well as your university supervisor name. For this course, these are:

Your student visa application, or extension of stay, will automatically be refused if you need an ATAS certificate and cannot provide one.

For further guidance on obtaining an ATAS certificate please see the information on our International Student Support website.

All candidates must demonstrate a minimum level of English language proficiency for admission to the College.

For admission to this course, you must achieve the standard College requirement in the appropriate English language qualification. For details of the minimum grades required to achieve this requirement, please see the English language requirements for undergraduate applicants.

2023 entry

£9,250 per year.

Please note, this fee is set by the UK government and is subject to change until it has passed into legislation. We will update this page when this happens.

Year abroad

For the 2022-23 year abroad, the fee was £1,385 for that year.

Read more about funding for year abroad placements.

For each subsequent year, you should expect and budget for your tuition fee to increase by an amount in line with inflation. The measure of inflation used will be the Retail Price Index (RPIX) value, taken from April in the calendar year in which the academic session starts.

For example, the RPIX value in April 2023 will apply to fees for the academic year 2023–2024.

Fee status

Whether you pay the Home fee or not depends on your fee status.

Your fee status is assessed based on UK Government legislation and includes things like where you live and your nationality or residency status.

Find out more about how we assess your fee status.

Home fee eligibility

You can find the conditions you need to meet to pay the Home rate of tuition fees from the UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA). These apply to higher education courses in England and reflect the regulations as they currently stand, noting that these are subject to amendment.

Because of the UK’s exit from the European Union, some frameworks of eligibility have been amended. Individuals affected by the amended frameworks should refer to the UKCISA publication, Who pays ‘home’ fees for higher education in England [PDF].

Government funding

If you're a Home student, you can apply for a Tuition Fee Loan from the UK government to cover the entire cost of tuition for every year of your course.

You can also apply for a means-tested Maintenance Loan to help towards your living costs.

2023 entry

The fee for Overseas students has not been confirmed for the 2023-24 academic year. The fee is controlled by the College and we will update this page when it is announced.

As a guide, the Overseas fee for 2022-23 was £35,100.

Year abroad

For the 2022-23 year abroad, the fee was 100% of the relevant fee for that year.

Read more about funding for year abroad placements.

For each subsequent year, you should expect and budget for your tuition fee to increase by an amount in line with inflation. The measure of inflation used will be the Retail Price Index (RPIX) value, taken from April in the calendar year in which the academic session starts. For example, the RPIX value in April 2023 will apply to fees for the academic year 2023–2024.

Fee status

Whether you pay the Overseas fee or not depends on your fee status.

Your fee status is assessed based on UK Government legislation and includes things like where you live and your nationality or residency status.

Find out more about how we assess your fee status.

Home fee eligibility

You can find the conditions you need to meet to pay the Home rate of tuition fees from the UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA). These apply to higher education courses in England and reflect the regulations as they currently stand, noting that these are subject to amendment.

Because of the UK’s exit from the European Union, some frameworks of eligibility have been amended. Individuals affected by the amended frameworks should refer to the UKCISA publication, Who pays ‘home’ fees for higher education in England [PDF].

This section outlines additional costs relevant to this course. These are not included in your tuition fees. It's possible that all, or only some, of these will be relevant to you.

Figures are approximated, usually based on costs in the most recent academic year. They are likely to change each year but it's useful for you to be aware of the things you may have to pay for. This can help you budget for life at Imperial.

Mandatory costs are those that you will need to pay to fully participate in and complete your studies. Optional costs are not essential to your studies so you can opt-out of these.

Personal Protective Equipment

Wearing personal protective equipment is compulsory for some activities on this course. Where this applies, the Department of Mechanical Engineering will provide you with the necessary PPE free of charge to ensure you can undertake lab work safely. This includes:

• Boiler suit
• Goggles
• Lab coat

Laptop 

Although College machines will be available for you to use on campus, you may wish to have a laptop of your own. As a guide, our recommended laptop specification is listed below.

• Windows 10 operating system 
• Intel I7 3.6 GHz CPU 
• 16 GB RAM 
• 512 GB SSD drive 

A laptop with I5 processors and SSD drives of 256GB will work almost as well. 

Placements and year abroad

If you are undertaking a placement or year abroad, you may have to consider the costs involved. These will vary, depending on the location of your year abroad or placement.

Costs may include flights, transport, visas, travel insurance, health insurance and living expenses such as accommodation.

Find out more about the types of placement costs

Student status with the Year Abroad

If you spend an academic year abroad, you will retain your student status at Imperial so that you will normally remain eligible for the same loans and grants that you would receive in the UK. As an exchange student, you will not pay tuition fees to the host institution abroad.

Living costs, including accommodation, are not included in your tuition fees.

Most Imperial undergraduates choose to live in our halls of residence in their first year. You can compare costs across different accommodation options.

Read our rough guide to university spending in London.