School of Engineering and the Environment
The School of Engineering and the Environment is made up of four departments:
Tomorrow's Engineers Code
The Tomorrow's Engineers Code is a commitment to work toward common goals, or pledges, to increase the diversity and number of young people entering engineering careers.
Department of Mechanical Engineering
Mechanical Engineering has strong links with industry leaders, including Delphi, Lotus Engineering, MAN and Thales. Many of our innovative, hands-on projects involve students as well as academics and receive national and global coverage.
Our applied approach to teaching is supported by dedicated laboratories for mechanical, automotive and motorsport engineering.
Facilities include:
- wind tunnels
- state-of-the-art rapid prototyping and manufacturing machinery
- a fully-equipped materials lab
- engine test cells
- an automotive diagnostics lab featuring the latest industrial software packages
- a modern electronics/robotics lab with the recent addition of a robot and electronic equipment from National Instruments.
Students have the opportunity to use leading technology and industry-standard software. They are taught by experts with Chartered Engineer status. Students' learning experience is enhanced through participation in competitions, such as the IMechE Formula Student project, the IMechE Design Challenge competitions for Year 1 and 2 students, the Isle of Man TT-Bike race and the Caterham Academy Championship.
Department of Aerospace and Aircraft Engineering
Kingston University is the UK's largest provider of undergraduate aerospace education. It has played an important role in training aerospace engineers since 1912.
We have a dedicated campus for engineering students at Roehampton Vale, within easy reach of Kingston town centre and Richmond Park. Collaboration between academia and industry is integral to study at Kingston; the delivery of courses is supported by the Industry Advisory Board and other professional bodies.
Renowned companies are involved in course delivery, placements, final year projects and industry talks. These range from global leaders KLM Engineering, Marshall Aerospace and the Defence Group, Airbus UK, Astrium Eads, GE Aircraft, and Lockheed, to small and medium enterprises such as Aero Optimal, Aircraft Research Associates, and Aim Aviation.
We offer a wide-range of specialist facilities on site, supported with software technology and laboratory technicians.
Whether you wish to study at foundation level or a Chartered Engineer route (MEng/BEng), when it comes to aerospace design, aircraft maintenance or space technology, you will find a course at Kingston University to suit your needs.
Department of Civil Engineering, Surveying and Construction Management
The department offers undergraduate (BEng Civil and Infrastructure Engineering) and postgraduate programmes (MSc Structural Design and Construction Management - with a Sustainability pathway). Programmes are fully-accredited by the Joint Board of Moderators (JBM) (under licence from the Engineering Council). This consists of the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE), the Institution of Structural Engineers (IStructE), the Institution of Highways and Transportation (IHT) and the Institute of Highway Incorporated Engineers (IHIE).
We also offer a comprehensive range of undergraduate and postgraduate degree programmes relevant to the built environment.
Our well-established undergraduate courses in the department:
Construction Management BSc (Hons) has dual accreditation by the Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB) and Joint Board of Moderators (JBM). The Building Surveying BSc (Hons) and Quantity Surveying Consultancy BSc (Hons) programmes are accredited by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) and Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB).
Our postgraduate courses:
Management in Construction MSc is accredited with the Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB), whilst our Building Surveying and Quantity Surveying MSc programmes are fully accredited by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) and the Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB).
Degree apprenticeship programmes:
For our civil and infrastructure engineering, building surveying and quantity surveying consultancy courses there is now a degree apprenticeship programme that allows you to carry out your degree whilst in full-time employment. Find out more about degree apprenticeships at Kingston University >
Our programmes are designed with your aspirations, needs and abilities in mind. They develop specialist skills, deepen your understanding and offer new insights and perspectives to equip you for a professional career ahead.
Academic staff in the department are bonded in an interdisciplinary team of civil and structural engineers, material scientists, geologists, hydrologists, construction managers, building and quantity surveyors with professional practice and applied research backgrounds. Many are nationally and internationally-recognised leaders in their areas of specialism and are frequently invited to undertake high-profile external research and consultancy work.
Having developed our courses with the working world in mind, we offer hands-on student experiences. These include testing in our exemplary laboratory facilities in structures, materials, concrete, geotechnics and hydraulics that are used for teaching and research. Knowledge is also gained from field trips for both undergraduates and postgraduates, site visits and industrial placements, employability support via our strong partnerships with industry, professional institutions and learned societies.
Our teaching is engaging and practice-focused and supported by site visits and invited guest lecturers by our industrial liaisons and strong alumni network. Our approach to assessment is project-driven and equips students with a range of competencies and transferrable skills thus boosting their employability prospects.
Department of Geography, Geology and the Environment
Geography-related environmental subjects have been taught at Kingston for over 70 years. They draw upon a wide range of research expertise, from human and physical geographers, GIS specialists, geologists, geochemists, hazard specialists and environmental scientists.
We have invested substantially in the development of laboratories for teaching and research into subjects such as environmental monitoring, geology, geochemistry, mapping / GIS / computing facilities, and specialist instrumentation laboratories (e.g. nuclear metrology; laser raman spectroscopy; 3D mapping).
Our core course offer focuses on geography, human geography and environmental science with an optional hazard pathway. All our courses are accredited by their associated professional body. Our core philosophy is to bring active research into the classroom and provide a learning experience based on real-world scenarios and problem-based techniques: promoting employability at all levels.
As a result of this we actively promote real-world learning. Fieldwork is a vital component of all our courses; students are encouraged to gain hands-on experience by carrying out domestic and international fieldwork, in places such as Cornwall, Southern England, Scotland, Spain, Malta, Tenerife and South Africa.
