Architectural Engineering Heriot-Watt University

Overview

Architectural Engineering from Heriot-Watt University covers a broad spectrum of engineering disciplines including mechanics, construction, energy, thermal performance, water and wastewater, acoustics, and human behaviour. You’ll gain the knowledge and skills needed by industry to design buildings that not only provide sustainable and low energy environments that have a positive influence on the health and wellbeing of the people who use them, but buildings that are also resilient and adaptable to future climate change. In the later years of the degree, you’ll focus on practical inter-disciplinary design and management skills, with an emphasis on your personal development as an Architectural Engineer within the professional environment.  

This industry-focused degree will ensure you have the knowledge and skills required for the specification, design, and management of engineering services required in buildings with an emphasis on energy efficient and sustainable solutions.    

Your learning environment  

Our MEng Architectural Engineering is taught though a combination of lectures, seminars, tutorials, field trips, and laboratory practicals, allowing you to get to know and build relationships with your teaching staff, academics, and peers. You’ll be assessed by a combination of coursework and examination.  

During your studies, you’ll benefit from and have access to our specialist equipment, computing software and laboratories, including: 

• a building services lab containing laboratory testing rigs for drainage, 
• an anechoic chamber which is a specially constructed room in which the walls, floor, and ceiling are covered with sound absorbing material, and where specialised recordings are created,  
• acoustic labs which measure the sound power level of sources as well as absorption properties of materials for vertical and horizontal transmitters, 
• a Sun Emulator Heliodon used to track the sun’s movement by latitude and longitude anywhere in the world, 
• the thermodynamics lab is used to test the ventilation, heating, and cooling requirements of a building. 

Gaining employability skills is at the heart of our programme and you’ll have lots of opportunity to gain practical experience. In year two you can participate in a week-long field course, “Constructionarium”, which provides hands-on construction working alongside professional engineers and tradesmen to construct scaled down versions of buildings, bridges, dams, and other engineering structures from all around the world. You’ll also participate in a 12-week industry placement in year five, working with local employers. 

Customise your learning 

You’ll take eight mandatory courses in year one and six mandatory courses in year two. You can customise your learning by choosing two options in year two from five options, including hydraulics and hydrology, surveying and geographical information software, global communications in English, cost modelling and measurement, and global challenges.  

At the end of year two, you can change programme to another eligible programme within the built environment disciplines if you want to.  

All the courses that you’ll take in years three and four are mandatory. There is an overseas residential field trip in year three which you can choose to participate in. During year four, you’ll participate in a collaborative group exercise as part of a design project, or you can apply to participate in an exchange programme to one of our partner universities. The exchange programme allows you to spend your year four abroad at a partner university, returning to Edinburgh to complete year five. 

You’ll take four mandatory courses in year five, one of which is worth 30 credits and you can further customise your learning by taking three optional courses. If you participated in an exchange during year four, then you’ll take seven mandatory courses in year five.  

Throughout your studies, you’ll have the opportunity to transfer to our Dubai campus for a year or semester through an inter-campus transfer. 

An exchange or inter-campus transfer is administered by Heriot-Watt’s Go Global programme and allows you to expand your horizons by taking your studies to worldwide destinations.  

Year five will provide you with the opportunity to increase your employability through participating in a 12-week industry placement, working with local employers. You’ll also take three further mandatory courses and three optional courses from a list of specialist options.  

Industry  

We work closely with industry to ensure our course content is up-to-date and reflects the current and emerging needs of industry and employers. You’ll gain the right blend of knowledge, practical skills, and soft skills to set you up for life after graduation. Strong industry mentoring is involved in the year four Design project. 

Accreditation

MEng Architectural Engineering is accredited by the Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers (CIBSE) and the Energy Institute (EI).