all doing a Beng/Meng Motorsport engineering degree.
I ultimately aim for a job as some kind of formula 1 engineer, and aerodynamics and tyre/chassis dynamics really interest me, as i have been reading millikens "race car vehicle dynamics" and cant put it down!
so my question for you is this; which university course will be the best for me, should more than one give me an offer? or is there courses i have missed off this list etc.
I posted a similar question this time last year, I chose Brookes and haven't looked back.
I came here for several reasons, primeraly its in the centre of 'Motorsport Valley' with several major teams within cycling distance, we run 3 Formula Student cars including a hybrid, the lecturers are acclaimed throughout the motorsport world and by week 11 we were setting up a 1996 Indycar, reassembling gearbox, clutches and suspension on various race cars and generally learning loads.
Here's our Automotive Lab http://s121.photobucket.com/albums/o206 ... kes%20Uni/
I've not seen much of the other universities, I went to an open day here and at Brunel, Brunel was pretty dissapointing all together but I suggest you go to as many open days as you can to get a feel of the places.
Oxford is also a real student city so if you want to go for a night out its usually pretty safe and alot of fun.
I do Motorsport Technology and I'll move up to Engineering next year which is considered the more prestigeouse course, at the end of the day though with the right attitude you'll be happy wherever.
Good luck.
Murphy's 9th Law of Technology:
Tell a man there are 300 million stars in the universe and he'll believe you. Tell him a bench has wet paint on it and he'll have to touch to be sure.
Focus on aero, physics(dynamics), composite structures and controls. They are the disciplines that are most in demand. And become proficient with CAE/CAD tools such as NASTRAN/PATRAN, CATIA, FLUENT, ADAMS, etc. that are widely used in both the automotive and aerospace industries.
While working for a race team may seem glamorous, the number of engineering positions available are very limited. And entry level race engineering jobs typically pay very little. There are probably 1000 applicants for every opening. The race teams know this, so they pay low wages and work you long hours. If you don't like it, there's a hundred eager newbies waiting to take your place. Another drawback with the racing business, in general, is that they are reliant on sponsorship for their budgets. It's a fickle situation and when the economy is slow, teams are quick to lay off. So keeping a steady job with a racing team is very difficult.
If you really are determined to work in racing, get it out of your system while you're young, before you have a wife and kids to support. Because the cold, hard reality is that you'll probably starve to death on the wages you'll make as an entry level race engineer. If you're smart, you'll go into aerospace, where you'll be paid twice the money to do half the work.
If you have a good solid education in aero and are good with FLUENT, or if you know composite structures and NASTRAN/PATRAN, you will always be able to get a very good paying job in aerospace if the racing thing doesn't work out.
I must admit to being a hypocrite on this issue. When I was younger, I got the itch to work in racing. I managed to land an engineering job with a factory race team here in the US. The salary was low and the hours during the race season were very long. In fact, on an hourly basis, I doubt I was even making minimum wage! After three seasons, I had enough, quit, and went to work for an aerospace company, immediately doubling my salary.
In retrospect, the race job was fun, and a good learning experience. But I wouldn't do it again. I also find that the engineering consulting work I now do in aerospace is much more challenging, interesting and rewarding.
Good luck to you. And remember, regardless of what field of engineering you choose to pursue, employers will always value your competence (attention to detail and not making stupid mistakes), independence (demonstrating personal initiative and the ability to do a task without hand-holding) and learning (keep your ears open and your mouth shut), over any raw technical ability or educational credentials.
"Q: How do you make a small fortune in racing?
A: Start with a large one!"
Certainly helps if your uni has connections to motorsport, but really isn't necessary.
At the undergrad level its really about what you put in, and what you get out. Formula Student is a great thing to get involved in. Gets you accustomed to working long hours for no pay!
As has been said, DAQ and Aero are the two best ways to get into racing. Having CFD experience, and/or experiencing setting up looms and pulling useful metrics from your DAQ makes you valuable for racing as well as other fields.
Always have other options though. For years in school I was convinced I wanted to be an open wheel engineer. Then after having a.. interesting relationship with someone, made me realize there were other things in life that I was missing out on. But then that chick turned into a nutcase and we ended things so now I'm ready to go back into the race scene
Grip is a four letter word. All opinions are my own and not those of current or previous employers.
It's funny I started out Uni wanting to go into Motorsport afterwards, however now I am in my final year I'm looking at going into Industry instead, which to me anyway seems to offer similar challenges and oppurtunities.
I'd suggesting going and looking at as many of the Unis as possible, I was also thinking about applying to three on your list a few years ago, but decided on another and a straight mechanical engineering degree instead. I'd personally go for Brookes or Herfordshire, they've got the best facilities and industry contacts, and some pretty handy karting teams in the BUKC...
Tom wrote:I posted a similar question this time last year, I chose Brookes and haven't looked back.
I came here for several reasons, primeraly its in the centre of 'Motorsport Valley' with several major teams within cycling distance, we run 3 Formula Student cars including a hybrid, the lecturers are acclaimed throughout the motorsport world and by week 11 we were setting up a 1996 Indycar, reassembling gearbox, clutches and suspension on various race cars and generally learning loads.
Here's our Automotive Lab http://s121.photobucket.com/albums/o206 ... kes%20Uni/
I've not seen much of the other universities, I went to an open day here and at Brunel, Brunel was pretty dissapointing all together but I suggest you go to as many open days as you can to get a feel of the places.
Oxford is also a real student city so if you want to go for a night out its usually pretty safe and alot of fun.
I do Motorsport Technology and I'll move up to Engineering next year which is considered the more prestigeouse course, at the end of the day though with the right attitude you'll be happy wherever.
Good luck.
i second that. brookes is by far the best uni for motorsport in my opinion, im in my second year doing BEng motorsport Engineering and i am enjoying every bit. Our formula student programme is pretty cool too recently i been testing with last years car and although cold i learnt so much just getting basic on hand experience.
Hiya Matt_74. I'm currently studying Aerospace Enginnering @ Kingston Uni and I can definately recommend the university. I've spoken to some colleagues I have or had shared modules with and all give positive feedback on the Motorsport engineering degree. Also worthy of note is that we have a couple of bikes, a Lotus Exige & a "Formula Jedi" race car as well as a maxed out Caterham 7. All of which are at your disposal on your course. As is our windtunnel which incidentally, Richard Hammond was using to film a program for National Geographic (to be aired in Canada some time in the new year)
I can't comment personally on the Motorsport Engineering degree as I'm personally studying Aero. But from a students veiw:
24/24 for teaching standard from UCAS blah blah blah, important stuff: Easy to get to campus (unless the A3 is shut down for a fire and/or explosion - a rarity), lots of parking (on residential roads & in the nearby ASDA supermarket) the ASDA supermarket which is a cheap place to get all equipment (paper pens etc) a McDonalds @ the same ASDA, which also happens to have lots of food @ stupidly low prices, and the best canteen of any campus at our uni. Oh and friendly lectures and people blah blah.
University inter-site bus service is good and regular, and stops @ Kingston town centre right near the 3 local nightclubs which is also useful.
Hope that helps to some degree, not much academics behind my post (I don't do the course you're looking for) but I hope some info you woudn't find anywhere except from a student who's currently studying there. Any questions feel free to ask here or PM me.
Silence is golden when you don't know a good answer.
I too will be going into uni (kingston I hope) as thats the nearest to where I live, to study motorsport engineering. Im keeping my fingers crossed as im going in as a mature student. I have my "level 2" qualifications which I gained recently. Just hoping and praying now !! I will be doing the 5 year course though - A foundation degree in engineering first, followed by a sandwich degree, so that I can get in some industry experience. Ideally, id like to work for a formula one team as a trackside engineer; but after my degree, I shall probably take the same route as the drivers, starting with the bottom class open-wheelers and work my way up.
all doing a Beng/Meng Motorsport engineering degree.
I got accepted to all of those above, and dude, my favourite and best one is missing University of the West of England - Joking apart, they have loads of facilities due to our aerospace heritage, and hence our course is just as well equipped.
