Sustainable Energy Technology (Year 3 entry)

Why study with us?

The BEng (Hons) Sustainable Energy Technology (Year 3 Entry) provides a progression route for FE college FdSc and HND students with either Mechanical, Electrical or Operations Engineering related subjects.

The Year 3 Entry BEng course is designed to provide students with knowledge and skills for the design and analysis of sustainable energy systems.

West Cumbria is fortunate in having a rich variety of renewable energy resources, including onshore and offshore wind, marine, small and micro hydro, geothermal, biomass and anaerobic digestion. There are dozens of live renewable energy projects located close to the Energus Campus of the University of Cumbria. The course team has established good links with the industrial partners, and some of the live renewable energy projects are used as case studies for the BEng course.

At our Energus Campus we are developing unique facilities, such as Renewable Energy Test and Education Centre (RETEC), which will be an excellent field study site for the BEng course.

This course will be of interest to any student wishing to pursue an engineering career in the rapidly developing renewable energy sector

Interested candidates are welcome to get in touch with the course tutors, Professor Xiongwei Liu (Xiongwei.Liu@Cumbria.ac.uk) or Dr Patrick Quinlan (Patrick.Quinlan@Cumbria.ac.uk) to conduct a mapping exercise.

What can this course lead to?

Engineers with a sound understanding of sustainable energy technologies will play a key role in the move to a low carbon economy.

Typical jobs available for qualified sustainable energy engineers include: design engineering, turnkey project management, consultancy, planning and regulatory roles.

Overseas job opportunities are also available as the world begins to deal with global energy issues. Having completed this degree you could continue your studies through MSc and PhD levels in order to develop a career as an academic lecturer or researcher in your chosen field.

Resources and facilities

This course is taught from the University of Cumbria at Energus, Workington. Energus is located close to Workington on Britain’s Energy Coast, an area identified as having job growth potential in the renewable sector.

As well as hosting its own solar PV array, the Energus facility is surrounded by numerous renewable energy sites including:

• offshore and onshore wind farms
• small and large scale biomass boilers
• anaerobic-digestion plants
• small scale hydro sites.

Access to these sites will form part of a suite of practical hands-on activities aimed at giving you a better understanding of renewable energy deployment.

University support

We’re serious about the support and development services we provide to our
students including a dedicated team of experts to meet your needs.

Our modern facilities are fully connected to other campuses and services so you have the great advantage of local access combined with support and guidance. In addition to lectures and site visits, our online IT systems will allow you work with fellow students wherever you have access to the web.

Have a look at our learning resources for Sustainable Engineering.

Student work Sustainable energy degree course goes global
Finding viable ways of producing renewable energy is a worldwide issue, a fact reflected in a new course being offered by the university at Britain’s Energy Coast campus, near Workington. Entry requirements 240 UCAS tariff points to include a minimum grade C in Science, Mathematics or Technology related subject.

GCSE or equivalent at grade C or above in Mathematics.

Find our more about equivalent qualification from the UCAS tariff table.

Credit and UCAS requirements UCAS code: H224E UCAS points: 240 Costs

Click to view information on your study type and home location.

Full-time students

Home

The tuition fee for the 2013/14 academic year has been set at £8,250 (including an automatic £750 fee discount).

As a full-time UK student, you are entitled to a tuition fee loan which doesn’t have to be repaid until you start earning £21,000 per annum (if you're from England) or £15,795 (if you're from Scotland). You may also be eligible for a maintenance loan (up to £5,500) and a maintenance grant (up to £3,354). For more information about student loans and grants, visit our student finance page.

Additional funding

National Scholarship Programme

The National Scholarship Programme is designed to support students with a household income of less than £25,000. Full-time students may be eligible for one of 110 NSP awards for full-time students worth up to £6,000.

Cumbria Bursary

The Cumbria Bursary is an annual cash award of £1,000 for up to three years of study. There are 300 Cumbria Bursaries available in 2013.

More financial support

Access to financial support doesn’t end at registration. We have several awards and support funds available to our current students, including:

• Achievement scholarships
• Outstanding performance awards
• Access to Learning Fund
• Utilities trust

EU

The tuition fee for the 2013/14 academic year has been set at £8,250 (including an automatic £750 fee discount).

As a full-time EU student, you are entitled to a tuition fee loan which doesn’t have to be repaid until you start earning £21,000 per annum (or the equivalent in your country). For more information about student loans, visit our student finance page.

Additional funding

National Scholarship Programme

The National Scholarship Programme is designed to support students with a household income of less than £25,000. Full-time students may be eligible for one of 110 NSP awards for full-time students worth up to £6,000.

Cumbria Bursary

The Cumbria Bursary is an annual cash award of £1,000 for up to three years of study. There are 300 Cumbria Bursaries available in 2013.

More financial support

Access to financial support doesn’t end at registration. We have several awards and support funds available to our current students, including:

• Achievement scholarships
• Outstanding performance awards
• Utilities trust

International

The tuition fee for the 2013/14 academic year is £9,960.

Fees are billed annually and may be paid by the student or a sponsor. 75 percent of the annual tuition fees must be paid before or at registration. For students requiring a Tier 4 Student Visa, a deposit of £3,500 is expected as a minimum before a CAS (Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies) will be issued. For more information, visit our international student finance page.

Early payment discount

If you are paying your own fees, you may be eligible for an early payment discount of £1,000. This discount is awarded to students who pay in full before registration.

Additional funding

National Scholarship Programme

The National Scholarship Programme is designed to support students with a household income of less than £25,000. Full-time students may be eligible for one of 110 NSP awards for full-time students worth up to £6,000.

Cumbria Bursary

The Cumbria Bursary is an annual cash award of £1,000 for up to three years of study. There are 300 Cumbria Bursaries available in 2013.

More financial support

Access to financial support doesn’t end at registration. We have several awards and support funds available to our current students, including:

• Achievement scholarships
• Outstanding performance awards
• Utilities trust

Additional contact information

Name: Dr Elspeth Lees
Title/Role: Senior Lecturer
Email/Tel: elspeth.lees@Cumbria.ac.uk

UCAS Link

Visit UCAS

Course summary Semester 1 (September to January) modules

• Module 1: Solar Power & Emerging Energy Technologies (20 credits). Monday (9:00-12:00 and 13:00-14:00)

This module aims to provide the students with the knowledge and understanding of solar energy systems (including active solar thermal systems, large scale solar thermal electricity and solar PV systems) biomass power systems and emerging technologies, and skills to select, apply and analyse appropriate solar power systems and biomass power systems for specific applications.

• Module 2: Wind Technology & Energy Generation (20 credits). Tuesday (9:00-12:00 and 13:00-14:00)

This module aims to provide the students with the knowledge and understanding of wind turbines and wind energy systems, and skills to select, apply and analyse appropriate wind energy systems for specific applications.

Semester 2 (January to May) modules

• Module 3: Control of Energy Power Systems (20 credits). Monday (9:00-12:00 and 13:00-14:00)

This module aims to provide the students with the skills to apply analytical tools to analyse and solve control problems associated with energy systems.

• Module 4: Marine & Hydro-technology & Energy Generation (20 credits). Tuesday (9:00-12:00 and 13:00-14:00)

This module aims to provide the students with the knowledge and understanding of hydro and tidal power systems and turbines, and skills to select, apply and analyse appropriate hydro and tidal power systems for specific applications.

Year long module

• Module 5: Research or Industrial Project (40 credits). Monday & Tuesday (14:00-15:00)

This module aims to

• Consolidate and further a chosen area of study
• Integrate knowledge and skills acquired on other parts of the course
• Prepare a work schedule aimed at achieving a specified objective
• Demonstrate appropriate engineering skills
• Communicate in a logical, concise and grammatically correct way
• Work independently.

Case studies

I had looked at many different engineering courses around the UK but looking at the course content, found this one to be the most appealing.

The Energus building has all the facilities that we need. There's also the learning gateway for university students to study, including access to rooms and labs for assignments.

The lectures have all been a part of industry and are available to see anytime. I would highly recommend the course."
Tom Fisher