I'm Kind of Lost

Hey guys,

I'm an undergraduate at King's College London, studying Mechatronics engineering.

I want to work in the yachting field as a naval architect, I've been drawing yachts on Rhino for a while now and i really enjoyed it.

I'm thinking of doing a master but I don't know which one to do and in which university. If you guys could help me out that would be great

Thanks

Victor

 

By the way... Is it possible to make a Bachelor of Engineering in Mechanical Engineering and then make a Master in Naval Architecture? Does that even has any sense? Or is it better to move on to Bachelor in NA as soon as possible?

( I'm currently studying Mechanical Engineering on Warsaw University of Technology in Poland, but I''m thinking of making Master on Southhampton University (Naval Architecture) )

 

Honestly, I would contact marine surveyors in your area and other marine related refit or fiberglass type companies. That is a great learning experience in your field. It is best to get someone that is patient and even open to learning a few things from you. If you're ever in West Palm Beach, send me an email and I would be more than happy for you to come along with me on a survey.

 

Eric Sponberg has some good advice aobut education and small craft design on his website: http://www.sponbergyachtdesign.com/ArticlesDesigner.htm

 

Research in the area (geographically) where you want to work and see what the industry is needing/wanting/lacking and design your education on that. Also, get out your crystal ball and look into the future to see what the market will look like when you graduate.

Good luck!

-Tom

 

First of all are you sure you are talking about Naval Architecture and not yacht design? While Rhino is a very useful program to know in the marine field, very few naval architects will spend most of their days “drawing boats” in Rhino. Naval architecture is the engineering of the vessel. A naval architect will generally be responsible for the design of the hull and related components. This includes the hull form development, the ship structure, choosing the power plant, weight estimate and the vessel stability. An individual may specialize in one area or may find themselves more of a generalist. A naval architects job is very similar in both commercial ship design and yacht design. He will follow class rules or other engineering principles to design a safe efficient vessel. In reality the naval architect may be able to find a wider range of tasks and responsibilities available to them on the commercial side. In commercial design the naval architect will be responsible for the interior arrangement of the vessel and the exterior look. He will actually have a good opportunity to "draw boats". However, in most yacht design firms of any size there will be industrial designers or stylists or interior designers who handle most of those artsy aspects. This is a general response of course because every individual is different as is every company. But if what you really want to do is the artist side a masters in naval architecture won't be the quickest route.

Second if you really are interested in doing the engineering aspects of marine design I’d recommend just applying to marine design firms and shipyards with your current degree. Go get that masters after you’ve gotten a little experience and you know what areas you’d like to specialize in. I’ve worked with many mechanical engineers who do a lot of traditional naval architecture tasks and many naval architects who do traditional mechanical engineering tasks. In a small company up to 100% of this work will be interchangeable. A design for an HVAC system comes in and we have a naval architect with nothing to do, guess who is designing that? A client needs a stability book ASAP and all of the naval architects are busy, well that’s a good time for the new mechanical engineer to learn GHS. I’ve never met a metatronics engineer but if you know anything about electrical design you’d be that much more valuable to most firms. Like with any career start by applying to the places that interest you the most but if you have to accept a “boring” place remember that it is a foot in the door and it will help you build that resume.

 

In response to BTG, yes you can do a master's in naval architecture with a mechanical engineering degree. Here are some sample entry requirements for masters degrees I just looked up.

Chalmers in Sweden:
"The programme was developed for students who do not have prior knowledge in naval architecture from the bachelor’s level. A solid background in mathematics, structural mechanics and fluid mechanics is required, however."

University of Michigan USA:
"Applicants for the M.S.E. or M.S. degrees normally hold a Bachelor of Science degree in naval architecture and marine engineering with an average grade of 3.5 on a 4.0 scale. However, the graduate program has been structured so that students with a bachelor's degree in other engineering disciplines that require knowledge of basic mechanics such as mechanical engineering, applied mechanics, aerospace or civil engineering may also start directly on their master's program."

University of Southampton UK:
“2:2 honours degree (or equivalent) or above in engineering, mathematics or a science-based subject; applicants with relevant employment experience will be considered”

 

David, Thanks for your input it was very useful to me i need to find out more about yacht design, i'm still not sure what i want to do between naval architect or yacht designer although i really enjoy drawing on Rhino..
As for the entry requirement this was very useful too for masters they look at engineering in general and not only graduates in ship design.

thanks

victor