About this course
The HND Mechanical Engineering course provides you with advanced technical knowledge and practical skills for the modern engineering industry. This course, designed for both full-time and part-time study, focuses on a broad range of engineering subjects, from thermodynamics to manufacturing systems, preparing you for roles in sectors such as design, aerospace, and production engineering.
With a strong emphasis on real-world applications, you’ll gain hands-on learning experiences in state-of-the-art facilities, including our Engineering Lab and CAD suite. The course ensures you’re industry-ready by combining theory with practical work.
Upon graduation, you can pursue higher-level engineering roles or continue your education with a degree. Additionally, NTU Mansfield’s close ties to local industries provide valuable networking opportunities, enhancing employability.
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You'll have access to a state-of-the-art Engineering Lab, equipped with the tools and technology you need to prepare for a career in Engineering. -
The course is delivered full-time and part-time - enabling you to fit learning around your work and other commitments. -
This course prepares you to progress to a range of roles in the engineering industry and the opportunity to continue your studies on a university degree course. -
Our small classes provide a friendly, flexible, more personalised learning experience.
What you’ll study
You'll study the underpinning engineering theory and get to apply it through practical sessions in our engineering facilities. To develop your engineering skills you'll be applying your skills to real-world situations and problems, making you think and work like a professional engineer.
The modules will focus on relating theory to current engineering topics and issues. You'll explore developing and future technologies so you'll be at the forefront of what's happening in industry.
Professional Engineering Management (15 Credit Points)
Get an insight into how to develop the range of employability skills needed for professional engineers. You’ll learn about the professional standards expected of engineers and will cover topics such as services delivery planning, sustainability, Total Quality Management (TQM), engineering management tools and managing people.
Advanced Mechanical Principles (15 Credit Points)
Develop your advanced knowledge of the mechanical theories associated with engineering applications. During this module you’ll look at Poisson’s Ratio and typical values of common materials; the relationship between the elastic constants; the relationship between bending moment, slope and deflection in beams; calculating the slope and deflection using Macaulay’s method; analysing stresses in thin-walled pressure vessels; and stresses in thick-walled cylinders and flat and v-section belt drive theory.
Computational Modelling in Virtual Engineering (15 Credit Points)
Apply relevant Computer Aided Design (CAD) and analysis engineering tools and learn about standards, regulations and legal compliance in the context of engineering. You'll learn how to perform a computational fluid dynamics (CDF) simulation and explain the identification of faults in simulation techniques.
Further Thermodynamics (15 Credit Points)
Building on knowledge from previous modules, you'll learn how thermodynamics plays a significant role in everyday life from the refrigerators in our homes to power stations that generate the electricity we use.
Further Engineering Maths (15 Credit Points)
In this module you’ll develop the skills to analyse and model engineering situations and tackle engineering problems using mathematical techniques. You’ll cover number theory, complex numbers, matrix theory, linear equations, numerical integration, numerical differentiation, and graphical representations of curves for estimation all within an engineering context.
Manufacturing Systems Engineering (15 Credit Points)
You’ll develop your understanding of the complexity within a modern manufacturing environment. Exploring how to manufacture products that meet customers’ requirements, you’ll cover - production engineering, plant and maintenance engineering, product design, logistics, production planning and control, forecast quality assurance and accounting and purchasing.
Lean Manufacturing (15 Credit Points)
Learn to become an effective and committed practitioner of lean manufacturing during this module. You’ll be introduced to the principles and processes of lean manufacturing and explore the tools and techniques that are applied by organisations practicing lean. Topics included are scoping and defining lean manufacturing, benefits and challenges of adopting Lean, The Toyota Production System (TPS) and process improvement.
Advanced Manufacturing (15 Credit Points)
You’ll learn how to analyse and evaluate the potential of using advanced manufacturing technologies to improve an organisation’s competitive advantage. Understanding of advanced manufacturing technologies, digitalisation and a range of advanced manufacturing technologies will also be developed.
We regularly review and update our course content based on student and employer feedback, ensuring that all of our courses remain current and relevant. This may result in changes to module content or module availability in future years.
How you're taught
The course is delivered full-time and part-time, enabling you to fit learning around your work and other commitments.
The full-time course is studied over one year.
The part-time course is studied over 18 months (one day per week).
The course is predominantly coursework-based with some practical assessments and class tests.
Outside of timetabled sessions, you'll need to undertake self-directed independent study. This will include preparing for seminars, researching, completing coursework, and directed reading to expand your knowledge.
Seminars and lab sessions
You'll have seminars and lab sessions, where you'll apply theory learned to real-world situations. These sessions involve active learning and are driven by collaboration with your tutors and classmates. Due to the smaller class sizes, this approach enables individualised support to ensure you reach your learning potential.
Careers and employability
This course focuses on specialist technical skills and knowledge and provides you with a clear set of skills and goals for entering employment. Following this course, you can enter a wide range of engineering roles, including:
- CAD / CAM Designer
- Engineering Technician (Design of Rail Rolling Stock)
- Technical Engineer (Metal Packaging Production)
- Design Engineer (Aerospace Connectors).
As this is a vocational course part-time students would typically already be working in industry. This course is suitable for applicants planning to progress to the first level of supervisory responsibility in their career.
Employability team
Our expert employability team will work closely with you at every stage of your career planning, providing personal support and advice. You can benefit from this service at any time during your studies and for up to three years after completing your course.
NTU Enterprise
You'll also have the opportunity to turn your ideas into a viable business with help from NTU Enterprise, NTU's purpose-built Centre for Entrepreneurship and Enterprise, a support centre to help students create, develop and grow their own businesses.
Campus and facilities
As an NTU Mansfield student, you’ll benefit from the latest facilities and modern technology to support your studies and help you get the most out of student life.
We are continually investing in our facilities and enhancing our learning and teaching environment to make it an inspiring place for students.
Plus, as an Engineering student at Nottingham Trent University in Mansfield, you will have access to an Engineering Lab, a high-performance CAD suite, industry-standard robotics, hydraulics and pneumatics test equipment and electronics equipment.
Facilities and services include:
- University Centre
- Teaching and Learning Centre
- Engineering Lab with robotics, 3D printing, CNC machining and automation equipment
- CAD suite
- Electronics equipment
- Library
- Dedicated study zones, including PC suites
- On-site café
- Social spaces
- Sports facilities
- Student Support Services
- Nottingham Trent Students Union (NTSU) drop-in events.
Entry requirements
UK students
- Standard offer: Higher National Certificate in General Engineering or equivalent
- Other requirements: GCSE English and Maths grade C / 4.
To find out what qualifications have tariff points, please use our tariff calculator.
Additional requirements for UK students
The following qualifications will also be considered:
- Other related Level 4 qualifications
- Relevant work experience, or an international equivalent to the above qualifications.
Contextual offers
If you don’t quite meet our entry requirements, we might be able to make you a lower offer based on a range of factors, including your background (such as where you live and the school or college you attended), your experiences and your individual circumstances (you may have been in care, for example). This is called a contextual offer, and we get data from UCAS to help make these decisions. We do this because we believe everyone with the potential to succeed at NTU should have the opportunity to do so, no matter what barriers you may face.
Other qualifications and experience
NTU welcomes applications from students with non-standard qualifications and learning backgrounds, either for year one entry or for advanced standing beyond the start of a course into year 2 or beyond.
We consider study and/or credit achieved from a similar course at another institution (otherwise known as credit transfer), vocational and professional qualifications, and broader work or life experience.
Our Recognition of Prior Learning and Credit Transfer Policy outlines the process and options available for this route. If you wish to apply via Recognition of Prior Learning, please contact the central Admissions and Enquiries Team who will be able to support you through the process.
Getting in touch
If you need more help or information, get in touch through our enquiry form.
International students
This course is not suitable for students who require a Student Visa
Additional requirements for international students
We accept qualifications from schools, colleges and universities all over the world for entry onto our undergraduate and postgraduate degrees. If you’re not sure how your international qualification matches our course requirements please visit our international qualifications page.
We have undergraduate Engineering courses which are suitable for Student Visa applicants. Here is a list of all the undergraduate courses we offer.
English language requirements
View our English language requirements for all courses, including alternative English language tests and country qualifications accepted by the University.
If you need help achieving the language requirements, we offer a Pre-Sessional English for Academic Purposes course on our City campus which is an intensive preparation course for academic study at NTU.
Other qualifications and experience
If you have the right level of qualifications, you may be able to start your Bachelors degree at NTU in year 2 or year 3. This is called ‘advanced standing’ entry and is decided on a case-by case basis after our assessment of your qualifications and experience.
You can view our Recognition of Prior Learning and Credit Transfer Policy which outlines the process and options available, such as recognising experiential learning and credit transfer.
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Getting in touch
If you need advice about studying at NTU as an international student or how to apply, our international webpages are a great place to start. If you have any questions about your study options, your international qualifications, experience, grades or other results, please get in touch through our enquiry form. Our international teams are highly experienced in answering queries from students all over the world.
Policies
We strive to make our admissions procedures as fair and clear as possible. To find out more about how we make offers, visit our admissions policies page.
