Bachelor of Engineering

"B.E." redirects here. For the Buddhist Era, see Buddhist calendar.

The Bachelor of Engineering (commonly abbreviated as BEng or BE) is an undergraduate academic degree awarded to a student after three to five years of studying engineering at university or college. The nature of the qualification varies around the world, hence it may or may not be a professional degree and it may or may not involve undertaking some engineering work. The course may or may not be accredited by a national professional society.

In the United States, universities award the Bachelor of Science (BSc Eng) Engineering, Bachelor of Engineering Science (BESc), Bachelor of Science in Engineering (BSE), or Bachelor of Applied Science (BASc) degree to undergraduate students of engineering study. For example, Canada is the only country that awards the BASc degree for graduating engineers. Other institutions award engineering degrees specific to the area of study, such as BSEE (Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering) and BSME (Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering)

A less common variety of the degree is Baccalaureus in Arte Ingeniaria (BAI), a Latin name meaning Bachelor in the Art of Engineering. It is awarded by the University of Dublin, Ireland and is more commonly referred to as Bachelor of Engineering; some South African Universities refer to their Engineering degrees as B.Ing. (Baccalaureus Ingeniaria).

Engineering fields

A Bachelor of Engineering degree will usually be undertaken in one field of engineering, which is sometimes noted in the degree postnominals, as in BE(Aero) or BEng(Elec). Common fields for the Bachelor of Engineering degree include the following fields:

• Aerospace Engineering
• Automotive engineering
• Biological/Chemical Engineering: Including Biochemical, Biomedical, Biosystems, Biomolecular, and Chemical engineering
• Chemical Engineering: Deals with the process of converting raw materials or chemicals into more useful or valuable forms
• Clean Technology:Use energy, water and raw materials and other inputs more efficiently and productively. Create less waste or toxicity. Deliver equal or superior performance.
• Computer Engineering
• Civil Engineering: This is a wide-ranging field including building engineering, civil engineering, construction engineering, industrial, manufacturing, mechanical, materials and control engineering
• Electrical and Computer Engineering/Electronic Engineering: Very diverse field including Computer Engineering, Communication/Communication systems engineering, Information Technology, Electrical Engineering, Electronics Engineering, Microelectronic Engineering, Microelectronics, Nanotechnology, Mechatronics, Software Engineering, Systems, Wireless and Telecommunications, Photovoltaic and Power Engineering
• Electrical Controls Engineering: A relatively new and more specialized subdiscipline of Electrical Engineering that focuses on integrating Electrical Controls, and their programming.
• Engineering Management: Which is the application of engineering principles to the planning and operational management of industrial and manufacturing operations
• Environmental Engineering: Includes fields such as Environmental, Geological, Geomatic, Mining, Marine, and Ocean engineering
• Fire Protection Engineering: Is the application of science and engineering principles to protect people and their environments from the destructive effects of fire and smoke.
• Geomatics Engineering: The acquisition, modeling, analysis and management of spatial data. Focuses on satellite positioning, remote sensing, land surveying, wireless location and Geographic Information Systems (GIS).
• Geotechnical Engineering: A combination of civil and mining engineering, and involves the analysis of earth materials.
• Industrial Engineering: Which studies facilities planning, production management, statistical quality control, etc.
• Instrumentation engineering: which is a branch of engineering dealing with measurement
• Manufacturing Engineering: Includes operations management and production management
• Materials Engineering: Includes metallurgy, polymer and ceramic engineering
• Mechanical Engineering: Includes engineering of machines and engines. Explores the applications of the theoretical field of Mechanics.
• Nuclear Engineering: Customarily includes nuclear fission, nuclear fusion, and related topics such as heat/thermodynamics transport, nuclear fuel and/or other related technology (e.g., radioactive waste disposal), and the problems of nuclear proliferation. May also include radiation protection, particle detectors, and medical physics.
• Systems Science: Focuses on the analysis, design, development and organization of complex systems

International variations

Australia

In Australia, the Bachelor of Engineering (BEng) is a four-year undergraduate degree course and a professional qualification. It is also available as a six-year sandwich course (where students are required to undertake a period of professional placement as part of the degree) or an eight-year part-time course through some universities. The Institution of Engineers, Australia (Engineers Australia) accredits degree courses and graduates of accredited courses are eligible for membership of the Institution. Bachelor of Engineering graduates may commence work as a graduate professional engineer upon graduation, although some may elect to undertake further study such as a Master's or Doctoral degree. Chartered Professional Engineer (CPEng) status or the various State registration requirements are usually obtained in later years. Graduates with formal engineering qualifications in Australia are often referred to as Professional Engineers to distinguish them from other professions where the term "Engineer" is used loosely.

Canada

In Canada, a degree for studies in an accredited undergraduate engineering program is either named Bachelor of Engineering (B.Eng., B.Ing. in French), or equivalently, Bachelor of Applied Science (B.A.Sc.) or Bachelor of Science (B.Sc.). Graduation from an accredited program, which normally involves four years of study, is a required first step to becoming a Professional Engineer. Regulation and accreditation are accomplished through a self-governing body (the name of which varies from province to province), which is given the power by statute to register and discipline engineers, as well as regulate the field of engineering in the individual provinces.

Germany

In Germany, the Bachelor of Engineering was introduced as part of implementation of the Bologna process. However, this degree is in fact mostly offered by German Fachhochschule-institutions Universities of Applied Sciences. German technical universities award a Bachelor of Science in engineering rather than the BEng degree.

Finland

Main article: Insinööri (amk)

The situation is similar in Finland as in Germany. Universities of applied sciences (ammattikorkeakoulu) grant professional Bachelor's degrees (insinööri (amk)). The degree does not traditionally prepare for further study, but due to the Bologna process, a completely new degree of ylempi insinööri (yamk) has been introduced for engineers who wish to continue studying after some work experience. Before 2005, academic universities (see Education in Finland) did not make an administrative distinction between studies on the Bachelor's and Master's level, and the Master's level diplomi-insinööri was the first degree to be received. Due to the Bologna process, an intermediate "Bachelor of Science in Engineering" (tekniikan kandidaatti) has been introduced.

Netherlands

In the Netherlands the Bachelor of Engineering was also introduced as part of implementation of the bologna process, the same as in Germany. The degree is only offered by Dutch Hogeschool-institutions and is equivalent to the Dutch engineer's degree "ingenieur" (ing.). A Dutch BEng involves a rigorous study of four years and is only awarded in the field of aeronautical engineering, mechanical engineering, software engineering, or electrical engineering. Completion of a Dutch engineer's study in the field biochemical engineering, biomedical engineering, chemical engineering, environmental engineering, material engineering is however awarded with a Bachelor of Applied Science degree. Dutch technical universities award a Bachelor of Science in engineering (BScEng) instead of the BEng degree.

India

In India, BE/BTech/B.Sc Engineering (Bachelor of Engineering/Bachelor of Technology/Bachelor of Science Engineering) is a degree awarded by universities to students who have completed four years (eight semesters) worth of coursework related to a specific branch of engineering. Most colleges operate on an annual basis, which means during the 4 years of study, students have to appear in one annual exam every year. After the 1st Year, students appear in the 1st annual exam, and so on for the 2nd/3rd/4th years. The 4th year is also known as the final year.

Eligibility for entry is 10+2 years of school education. Generally the first year (first two semesters) is common to all branches, and has the same subjects of study. Courses divert after first year. The medium of instruction and examination is English. Most universities follow the Marks System for grading instead of the Credit System. Generally, universities in India offer BE/BTech/B.Sc Engineering degrees in the following branches: Civil Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical (and Electronics), Electronics (and Communications and/or Telecom) Engineering, Instrumentation and Control Engineering, Computer Engineering, Information Technology, Chemical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Systems Science and Biomedical Engineering.

The AICTE and the Indian Government are responsible for approving engineering colleges and branches/courses. Only those universities which have been approved by these bodies can award degrees which are legally valid and are accepted as qualifiers for jobs in the central/state government and in the private sector.

Pakistan

In Pakistan, the Bachelor of Engineering, Bachelor of Technology Hons, and Bachelor of Engineering Technology Degrees with names (B.Sc. Engg. / B.S. Engg. / B.E./ B.Tech Hons. / BSc Engg.Tech) Bachelor of Engineering Degree is awarded to a student who has completed four years course in engineering,Technology and Engineering Technology which consists of eight semesters. The entry to an engineering programme is after 12 years of schooling. Students are required to appear in an entry test and final evaluation is made by calculating their Intermediate (HSSC / F.Sc. Pre Engineering) Marks and entry test marks. Students having three years diploma of Associate Engineering (D.A.E.) can also appear for entry test. The rest of the procedure is same. Due to recent growth in Telecommunication market of the country, students are more interested to become a Telecommunication Engineer. Pakistan Engineering Council (PEC), the regulatory body of Engineering profession in Pakistan, registers and awards registration certificates to those graduates only, who complete their engineering studies from Universities/Institutes offering Accredited Engineering Programmes, thus declaring them bona fide Professional Engineers, capable of carrying-out any professional engineering works in private or public sector and are entitled to use the prefix (Engr.) with their names in general and (R.E. / P.E.) titles in particular as per registration status. Engineers are registered in two categories namely: Registered Engineer (R.E.) & Professional Engineer (P.E.). Graduate Engineers are registered as Registered Engineers and 5 years of further experience after graduation gets them registered as Professional Engineers.Recently Govt of Pakistan establishing a Separate Council for B.Tech Hons / BSc Engg Tech graduates due to Role of PEC which is not registering these graduates since last 35 years.The new council will work as NTC. National Technology Council under Higher Education Commission of Pakistan ( HEC ) later on it will be converted in to PTC, Pakistan Technology Council like wise PEC, Pakistan Engineering Council.Now PEC influencing on GOVT departments for delaying the NTC due to Jalecy.

See also

• Bachelor's degree
• Bachelor of Applied Science
• Bachelor of Science in Information Technology
• Engineer's degree
• Master of Engineering (M.E. or MEng)
• Vocational university