Study Mechanical and Sports Engineering

Associate Professor Bassam Dally, University of Adelaide

Mechanical and Sports Engineeringis a field closely related to Mechanical Engineering and is also available as an internationally recognised and soon to be accredited degree program at The University of Adelaide. As a Mechanical and Sports Engineering graduate, you will have highly developed skills in mechanical engineering, biomechanics and exercise physiology, ideal for the interdisciplinary needs of sports-based employers. In addition, you will be able to find employment in the defence, disability equipment and automotive industries. As a graduate, you will also be familiar with the disciplines of human physiology, exercise physiology, anatomy, human movement and ergonomics, and how these are integrated with mechanical engineering to produce state of the art sporting equipment, sports apparel and sports facilities as well as exercise and rehabilitation equipment and equipment for disabled athletes. The defence and automotive industries are interested in Mechanical and Sports Engineering graduates because of their expertise in human factors engineering and ergonomics.   Examples of projects that a sports engineer may work on include applying damping technology in tennis racquets to reduce the incidence of "tennis elbow" injury, analysing how a tennis ball bounces, how a cricket or golf ball flies through the air, optimizing the hull of a racing yacht, developing a new surface for a sports facility to improve performance or reduce injuries, determining the relationship between foot placement and accuracy of kicks in soccer, or developing and applying novel materials to enhance sports equipment performance, racing bicycles, or equipment for water sports and sky sports. As a graduate of the Mechanical and Sports Engineering program, you will have the knowledge to practice as either a Sports or Mechanical Engineer. As a Sports Engineer, you can seek employment at a national and international level in a variety of sports-related organisations, institutes, orthopaedic and industrial design companies. You will have the skills to design more efficient models, materials, equipment, uniforms, facilities, and infrastructure that will improve and enhance the performance of athletes.  All our programs at The University of Adelaide involve 4-years of full-time study (including work required to achieve an Honours degree) and all except Mechanical and Sports Engineering and Mechanical and Sustainable Energy Engineering are also offered as 5-year double degrees with Mathematics and Computing Science.  In addition, a double degree in Science is offered for Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering. A double degree with Law (6.5 years), one with Petroleum Engineering, one with Economics and one with Finance (5-years) are available with the Mechanical Engineering program only. The Aerospace,  Mechanical and Mechatronic degrees and double degrees are all accredited by The Institution of Engineers, Australia and recognised all over the world. The Sports and Sustainable Engineering programs commenced in 2008 and our first graduates will emerge at the end of 2011.

The City of Adelaide has a population of just over one million people. The University of Adelaide is located in the centre of the City Business and Shopping Area. There are many great things about Adelaide. It has wonderful weather; even in winter there are many sunny days, with blue skies and temperatures around 20 degrees- and it never snows! Although there are some hot days in summer, the humidity is very low, so it is not too uncomfortable. One of the many noticeable things about Adelaide is the lack of traffic jams, and the fast 15 minute drive from the airport to the centre of the city, where The University of Adelaide has its main campus. Adelaide is just one hour away from three famous wine-making areas, where you can sample the great wines free of charge at the cellar doors. Just a few hours north of Adelaide lie the mighty Flinders ranges, with colours that have inspired many famous landscape artists, and which are characterised by numerous lonely water holes and many kilometers of outstanding bushwalking tracks. Australians regard recreation and sport as an important part of life. The number of different recreational activities and types of sporting clubs in and around Adelaide are too numerous to mention. Many of the activities are represented by clubs based at the universities, thus helping overseas students to become involved in local culture and activities.

Adelaide is considered to be the hi-tech capital of Australia, and can offer mechanical,  aerospace, mechatronic, sports and sustainable energy engineers many interesting jobs. Also, current immigration laws have been relaxed for graduates, making it much easier to obtain permanent residence on completion of a university degree.

 Contact:

Associate Professor Bassam Dally

Head, School of Mechanical Engineering

University of Adelaide

S.A. 5005

Australia

Phone: +61 8 8303 5460

Fax: +61 8 8303 4367

Email: info@mecheng.adelaide.edu.au

Web:   http: //www.mecheng.adelaide.edu.au

University of Adelaide

http: //www.adelaide.edu.au

School of Mechanical Engineering

http: //www.mecheng.adelaide.edu.au

Sports Engineering

http: //www.adelaide.edu.au

Program Finder

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General Enquiries

phone + 61 8 8303 4148