MSc Advanced Materials
Frequently updated, with strong industrial input and personal attention to each student, this is probably the broadest-based and most flexible modular Masters programme in materials.
The aim of the programme is to:
- Increase and update the knowledge of those with some years’ experience in materials
- Be a conversion course for graduates in other subjects who are moving into materials
- Equip graduates with a thorough understanding of a wide range of advanced materials and the techniques used for their characterisation
- Cover the use of materials in many engineering applications
Full-time and part-time students study seven modules taught as one-week short course modules (from thirteen currently available). These cover metals, polymers, ceramics, composites, nanomaterials, analytical techniques, bonding, surfaces, corrosion, fracture, fatigue and research methods. There is also a research project planning module that is linked to the project. Each module is followed by an open book assessment. Generally, the assessment is to be completed within six months of the end of the short-course week by part-time students, and within six weeks by full-time students. Each assessment is intended to take approximately 120 hours.
A materials-based project is also undertaken for the MSc. The project is assessed by a thesis and viva voce examination. There are no formal written examinations.
This MSc has led to promotions, new jobs, PhDs and EngDs. It is excellent for career development and continuing education. Many part-time students are funded by their employers.
Scholarships
We offer a Performance Scholarship (for full-time students) which is intended to help and encourage students to perform well in the Advanced Materials MSc programme.
The Performance Scholarship has two distinct components: for overseas students, £1000 is paid to the student (£400 for a Home/EU student) when the student achieves an average of 60 per cent or more in the first four of his/her MSc modules. A further £1000 (£400 for Home/EU students) is paid to the student on successful completion of the programme with an average of 60 per cent or more.
The Performance Scholarship can vary from year to year, so please contact us for current details.
Graduates of the University of Surrey who intend to study the MSc full-time can also apply for the Littauer Award (worth £1500) which is awarded to the most deserving Surrey graduate (in terms of academic achievement and other factors) joining the Advanced Materials MSc programme.
Entry standards
First or Second class honours degree (or overseas equivalent) in an appropriate science or engineering subject. Alternatively a combination of academic qualifications, training and several years of experience which is considered to be a suitable background for the programme.
English language requirements
Non-native speakers of English will normally be required to have IELTS 6.5 or above, with a minimum of 6.0 in each component (or equivalent).
Please note that the University of Surrey offers English language programmes and is also an IELTS Test Centre.
MSc Advanced Materials - structure and modules
Module Overview
Of the seven short-course modules that make up the MSc in Advanced Materials, the modules Introduction to Materials Science and Engineering and Research Methods are compulsory. In addition, a further three from the following five modules are chosen: Characterisation of Advanced Materials, Introduction to Physical Metallurgy, Ceramics and Hard Coatings, Polymers: Science, Engineering and Applications, Introduction to Composite Materials. Additional modules are taken from the module list to make up the seven taught modules required for the MSc degree.
Optional Modules
In addition to the compulsory modules Introduction to Materials Science and Engineering, Research Methods and Research Project Planning, the list of optional modules includes:
- Characterisation of Advanced Materials
- Introduction to Physical Metallurgy
- Structural Ceramics and Hard Coatings
- Polymers: Science, Engineering and Applications
- Introduction to Composite Materials
- Nanomaterials
- Surface Analysis: XPS, Auger and SIMS
- Materials Under Stress: An Introduction to Fracture Mechanics and Fatigue
- Composite Materials Technology
- Corrosion Engineering
- The Science and Technology of Adhesive Bonding
All of the modules are taught by experts from the University. Almost all of them also include lectures and presentations from users of the technology in industry and research organisations. Most modules include practical demonstrations or laboratory work, as well as tutorial sessions. Some also include site visits to see processes in operation. Modules usually start on Monday morning and finish at Friday lunchtime.
The project and dissertation, approximately 18 weeks of work, are undertaken in the Faculty laboratories by full-time students and in their place of work by part-time students working on a project which is part of their normal work. Part-time students who do not have access to experimental facilities may take an independent study option and write a dissertation which is a theoretical piece of work. This carries less credits than an experimentally based project, so the student takes two additional short-course modules.
Programme Structure
Typically, the entire programme will be made up of 210 contact hours and 1590 hours of self-study.
Each module carries 15 credits. The project carries 60 credits. The MSc degree is awarded on the attainment of 180 credits, the Postgraduate Diploma at 120 credits and the Postgraduate Certificate at 60 credits.
Credits are obtained from short-course modules or guided studies (and accompanying written assessments), and from projects or independent studies.
MSc Advanced Materials - entry standards
Entry standards
First or Second class honours degree (or overseas equivalent) in an appropriate science or engineering subject. Alternatively a combination of academic qualifications, training and several years of experience which is considered to be a suitable background for the programme.
English language requirements
Non-native speakers of English will normally be required to have IELTS 6.5 or above, with a minimum of 6.0 in each component (or equivalent).
Please note that the University of Surrey offers English language programmes and is also an IELTS Test Centre.
Start date
September (full-time students); anytime of year (part-time students)
Programme Director
MSc Advanced Materials - fees and funding
Fees
Full time:
UK/EU - £6,400
Overseas - £14,440
Part time (per 15 credits and for the dissertation):
UK/EU - £1,325
Overseas - £1,325
MSc Advanced Materials - professional context
Industrial Links
The Advanced Materials MSc programme has been running successfully for over 20 years and the programme structure and content is strongly influenced by the requirements of UK industry.
One of the two external examiners for the MSc programme is an industrialist, and over 25 lectures on the programme are given by industrial experts. Part-time MSc students registered on the programme have been, or are, employed by international companies such as Intel, Airbus, Dow Corning, Corus, Ford, Imerys, Grundfos, Chemineer and Goodrich. Our students also come from UK-based SMEs and large UK companies and institutions, such as QinetiQ, the National Physical Laboratory and Dstl.
Professional recognition
The MSc in Advanced Materials is accredited by the Institution of Materials, Minerals and Mining (IoM3) and by the Institute of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE).
Accreditation
The Advanced Materials MSc is accredited by the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining (IoM3) and by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE). Students completing this MSc programme will have fulfilled the Masters level requirements for Chartered Engineer (CEng) status awarded through either of these institutions.
MSc Advanced Materials - teaching
Teaching hours
Each module corresponds to 150 hours of work, which includes about 30 hours of lectures/tutorial/practical classes within a one-week short course.
Teaching
Short courses are the main building blocks of this MSc programme. Each short course has its own assessment package which requires an in-depth study of the material of the module (including use of available research literature, when appropriate). It is expected that 120 hours of study is required to answer the questions within the assessment package.
Full-time students undertake their projects within the Faculty laboratories. For part-time students, the project is normally undertaken in the student’s place of work. However, this can also be carried out, by arrangement, in the Faculty laboratories. An independent study module may be taken by part-time students who are unable to undertake a project. The independent study consists of a 10,000-word dissertation on a materials topic of current interest.
A number of the short courses run in alternate years and therefore are not all available to full-time students who attend for twelve months. Such students have the possibility of selecting two of these short courses to take as guided study modules. If a student selects a guided study module, the student is given the notes from the course when it was last run and a series of tutorials. Guided studies are only available for part-time students in exceptional circumstances.
Staff perspective
Prof Steve Ogin
Full-time students undertake their MSc modules and their research projects at the University. Part-time students, who will have completed the majority of their modules before they begin their project, carry out the project at their place of work. We take every effort to ensure the project is relevant to the needs of the student and the company.
The short-course format of the MSc means that both full-time and part-time students have the chance to interact easily with many other materials science and engineering practitioners in industry. Many of the short-course modules have a significant number of lectures/demonstrations given by industrialists who are invited to contribute to the programme because they are specialists in their field.
Consequently, in addition to the Masters students, many students attending the short courses will be people from industry who are extending their knowledge through attending the short course as part of the continuing professional development (CPD) required by their professional institute, or our own EngD (Engineering Doctorate) students based in industry who return to take some of our Masters-level short courses.
During the MSc programme, then, our full-time and part-time Masters students interact with a wide range of industrialists and students from the UK and all over the world. And so, of course, do the lecturers – which makes teaching on the programme continually interesting!
MSc Advanced Materials - learning
Facilities and Equipment
The laboratories employed for teaching on the MSc programme are well equipped and maintained. The facilities span the activities of fabrication, characterisation, testing, design and modelling. Some of these laboratories are used for practical classes and demonstrations during the modules, and all of the laboratories are available for student project work.
With regard to materials fabrication and thermal processing, standard facilities for the manufacture of metal and polymer matrix composites, bulk ceramics and metals are utilised.
For materials characterisation, we are particularly well equipped. We are home to Europe’s largest surface analysis laboratory, including small-area XPS, time-of-flight SIMS, Auger microscopy and scanning probe microscopy instrumentation, and an electron microscopy facility comprising five electron microscopes, plus associated analytical techniques.
Other facilities include: XRD, optical microscopy, particle-size analysis, thermal analysis (DSC, TGA), non-destructive analytical techniques (acoustic emission, X-radiography, ultrasonics) and dilatometry.
For mechanical testing, the facilities include a full range of quasi-static and fatigue testing instruments, which have recently been upgraded with state-of-the-art software, and standard and micro-hardness testing machines. Design and modelling activities primarily employ the finite element analysis software ANSYS and ABAQUS, and this is installed on the Faculty’s dedicated computing suite.
Project Example – Sai Vadlamani
After graduating in engineering from the Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Technology, Hyderabad, I worked for an NGO in India before joining the Advanced Materials MSc course as a full-time student.
My project is concerned with the relationship between the flexural modulus of a new type of composite material (based on a 3D woven fabric) and damage development within the composite when it is overloaded. Interestingly, although there has been much work around the world on the in-plane properties of composite materials, there hasn’t been as much work on their bending behaviour.
The material that I am studying is a new type of fabric reinforcement which has tows of fibres woven in three dimensions – a 3D weave. The material has been specially made for my project by an American company which specialises in novel fabrics for composite materials.
At this point in my project, I have done a literature review and begun the experimental work by manufacturing some composite specimens and carrying out my first flexure experiments. In the next stage, I will monitor the damage development in the 3D woven fabric composite as the load is increased and then try to model the experimental results (with the help of existing models on 2D fabric composites in the literature).
If all goes to plan, after writing my dissertation, I hope it will be possible to see my work published in a relevant journal.
Assessment
When the assessment package for a module has been marked, the mark is given subject to confirmation by the statutory University bodies. The official awarding of credits is made subsequently by the appropriate University body with information from the MSc Board of Examiners.
The credit system is in line with that initiated by the Council for National Academic Awards (CNAA). The intention is that credits are transferable between institutions using the Accumulation and Transfer Scheme (CATS).
MSc Advanced Materials - graduate profile
Student Profile: John Williams
MSc Advanced Materials
As a composite design engineer with Williams F1 for the last 21 years, I was looking for a course that was relevant to my job. Surrey offers an MSc in Advanced Materials as a part-time programme made up of separate modules.
This means that I was able to choose subjects closely related to my field of work. A part-time course was essential as I was not able to take extended periods off work. As I was working full time during the course, I needed to use the six months period allowed for each set of assignments.
I found the short courses and notes very informative, interesting and a good base for the research that was required to complete the assignments. The project gave me the opportunity to research a subject that was of mutual interest and benefit to my company and me.
I have a better understanding of the materials that I work with and a greater knowledge of a wide range of materials that I don’t normally use. The programme has given me an appreciation of material properties, structure and mechanics of failure. I also have a greater awareness of the latest processes and technologies.
My professional experience with both Williams F1 and British Aerospace, and my previous academic qualifications, helped secure my place on the MSc programme.
Student Profile: Kyoko Schimzu
MSc Advanced Materials
After finishing my first degree in applied chemistry, I worked as a material analyst at a chemical analysis company in Japan for over five years. I decided to do an MSc in Advanced Materials to develop a wider knowledge of materials science and engineering, and also to enhance my surface analysis technique.
The course structure was very flexible – I could choose the modules I was interested in. The short courses were very useful and practical. Some modules had an engineering slant and challenged me because of my chemistry background. However, everything I learned is now useful for my PhD study!
The MSc project was interesting, practical and challenging. I discovered a lot by doing the project. The supervisors and staff were very helpful, kindly and gave me a lot of support and advice.
I really enjoyed studying the course. After graduating, I started to study a PhD at Surrey, sponsored by the multinational adhesive and chemical manufacturer, Huntsman, having the same supervisors as with my MSc project.
I like to live in Guildford because there are many shops, a nice atmosphere and it is convenient to go to London. The studying environment in UK was completely different compared to Japan. It was really good to study in such a multicultural environment.
MSc Advanced Materials - more
Programme Aims and Objectives
We aim to provide you with a broad knowledge of the properties, manufacture, selection, characterisation, design, usage and economics of materials in science and engineering applications. We will equip you with a thorough understanding of the major classes of advanced materials and the means by which they are selected, characterised and utilised.
MSc Advanced Materials - apply
You can apply for this programme online using the link(s) below. We recommend making an application as soon as you can, even if you do not have all the necessary supporting information ready at that time.
As part of the application process, you will be asked to enter a username and password. If you've used our application system before, please enter your details or click the forgotten password link.
If you are a new user, you will need to create a username and password by clicking the New User button.
Start date
September (full-time students); anytime of year (part-time students)
Programme length
12 months full-time, up to 72 months part-time
Programme Director
For general enquiries
T: 0800 980 3200 or
+44 (0)1483 681681
E: pg-enquiries@surrey.ac.uk
For admissions enquiries
T: +44 (0)1483 686069
E: feps-pg@surrey.ac.uk