Giving to Engineering Science

The Department of Engineering Science at Oxford is the only unified department in the UK that offers accredited courses in all the major branches of engineering.

Every year, new engineering graduates go off to a huge variety of occupations – into designing cars, building roads and bridges, developing new electronic devices, manufacturing pharmaceuticals, into healthcare and aerospace, into further study for higher degrees and in many other directions. Some of our graduates also develop their managerial, financial or entrepreneurial skills, and go into commerce, financial services, or start their own companies.

In the department, there are no barriers between the different branches of engineering, and we are involved in a great deal of multi-disciplinary research collaborating with groups in other departments from Archaeology to Zoology. The department’s new Institute of Biomedical Engineering was officially opened in April 2008, and provides a focus for collaboration between engineers, biologists and clinicians. Practical engineering solutions are essential for many of the major challenges we face today, and the department plays a major role in other interdisciplinary research areas, such as energy and sustainability.

This broad view of engineering, based on a scientific approach to the fundamentals, is part of the tradition that started with our foundation in 1908 – one hundred years of educating great engineers and researching at the cutting edge!

As we move into our second century, the department is looking to expand its activities – particularly in the fields of biomedical and environmental engineering – to address, in our teaching and research, those most important issues where engineers will make a real difference. We are seeking funding for new posts, and facilities. As part of our centenary year celebrations, we are also establishing a range of postgraduate studentships, a top priority to enable Oxford to attract the best and the brightest young engineers, regardless of their financial circumstances.