The Department currently runs undergraduate exchanges with the CentraleSupelec (formerly known as Ecole Centrale Paris) and the National University of Singapore. Cambridge students spend their third year abroad and an equivalent number of students come here.
The University reluctantly took the decision to terminate the exchange scheme with MIT, and it ran for the final time in 2016-17. We are actively looking at ways to continue to be able to offer an international dimension to our undergraduate engineering course, but it is likely to be a summer research opportunity rather than a year-long exchange
Exchange with CentraleSupelec Paris (CSP)
Overview
We offer two or three places to spend an academic year at CSP in place of Part IIA Engineering or MET. Students taking part in the exchange will take a selection of modules from the second year options offered at CSP. The exchange will be available for students wishing to study materials, structures, fluids, heat engineering, energy, aeronautical engineering, process engineering and electrical engineering. Nearly all teaching at CSP is conducted in French and so students wishing to participate in the exchange should have a good level of the language. Extra tuition (including a one week residential language course at Vichy) may be available to help students prepare.
At the end of the year abroad, the Cambridge students will be graded in the French system and, provided they achieve the equivalent of a third class honours pass, they will be able to return to Cambridge to take Part IIB Engineering or MET.
The academic year at CSP starts in September and finishes in June. The exchange will run under the framework of the Erasmus scheme from the European Union. Participating students will not have to pay any additional fees to take part in the exchange. They will be charged 15% of the full fee for UK/EU students, or 50% of the full fee for overseas students, and will receive a non-means tested monthly allowance to cover additional travelling and living expenses.
Further information
Students interested in this exchange should contact the Director of the Language Unit as soon as possible to discuss their language ability. You are also welcome to discuss the program further with the Coordinator for the ECP Exchange, Dr Alexandre Kabla.The application form (available from the CSP exchange website) should be completed by the due date early in the Lent Term. Decisions will be announced by e-mail.
Exchange with National University of Singapore (NUS)
Overview
Up to two places are offered for Engineering or Manufacturing Engineering students to spend the third year of their degree at NUS. Singapore is widely considered as 'soft landing' into Asia and provides a great introduction into technological innovations occurring in the region.
The course at NUS starts in July and ends in May of the following year. Exchange students will be assessed at NUS (by a combination of examinations, coursework and project work) and, subject to a satisfactory performance (i.e., the equivalent to a Cambridge third class honours or above) will be deemed to have deserved honours at Part IIA. Note that, as with students participating in the other exchanges, students do not receive a degree classification for their third year.
Students applying for the exchange programme:
- must be available from mid July, when the course starts, until it finishes in May of the following year.
- should normally have obtained at least a II.1 at Part IA of the Engineering course and be expected to do likewise at Part IB.
- should be open to experiencing a different culture and different style of education.
- should not normally be natives of Singapore or of a country with a closely related culture. This is because the exchange would not represent an 'international experience' to the same extent for such students.
Courses at NUS are given in English so there is no linguistic requirement for the exchange.
Each student going from Cambridge to NUS will receive a Shell Engineering Exchange Scholarship to contribute to their additional costs while on exchange. They will be charged 15% of the full fee for UK/EU students, or 50% of the full fee for overseas students. Cambridge students will be responsible for paying for all their accommodation and living costs when they are away. There is a good chance that rooms in a hall of residence will be available. NUS is very experienced at supporting international exchange students and hosts them from all over the world.
Further information
Applications to NUS exchange
If you are interested in applying for the exchange you should contact the NUS coordinator, Dr Stuart Haigh to register your interest. You will need to submit a completed application form, a reference and a 1-2 page Curriculum Vitae to your College Referee (DoS) by 9am on 24 January 2018. The refereee must then complete the reference form and submit all documents to the Senior Tutor for counter signature by Wednesday 31st January who should then forward the application to the Language Unit Administrator here in CUED by Wednesday 7th February 2018. The application form may be found on the CUED-NUS website along with the reference form. Students will be selected on the basis of their ability and the extent to which they would be likely to benefit from the exchange. They will be informed of the outcome of their application by e-mail.
Last updated on 11/12/2017 16:55