new horizons - Institute of Technology Blanchardstown

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80 Part-time Prospectus 2009 | 2010
Engineering Courses 81
Student Profile
School of Informatics and Engineering
“When I got a job in Intel I took up the
Mechatronics course as it’s a really relevant
qualification. There are a lot of people being
moved around in the departments and there are
jobs opening up, so this opens up opportunities
for me. I enjoyed the course, it’s very
challenging, especially on family life. But it was
worth it, I think I will go on and get the higher
degree – just not yet!”
George Fox, Mechatronics
“Mechatronics is a mixture of different kinds of
engineering together. I work for Intel, so in order
to progress in my job I had to go back to college.
They give the time and the money, and I do the
study! I work shift work so it’s easier to be more
flexible. I just live in Tyrrellstown so I can drop
down anytime. In the current climate, it’s harder
to get jobs. Having further education increases
your chances. It’ll definitely be worthwhile when
I get the piece of paper at the end!”
Jason Rafferty, Mechatronics
“This is my last year of a five year degree. I’m
working two days a week on an internship with
a company that does equipment calibration.
Hopefully come September they’ll take me on
fulltime. I came to the open day here, and I
liked the fact that it was small numbers, small
classes and so hands-on. I work a lot better in
a small group, I figured that out in the first few
years of secondary! That the equipment here was
new was very attractive as well, because in this
industry the technology moves on all the time.”
Niall Fagan, Engineering
HIGHER CERTIFICATE
IN ENGINEERING IN
MECHATRONICS
Programme Code: BN903
Programme Title: Higher Certificate in
Engineering in Mechatronics
Award Type: Major
Award Title: Higher Certificate in
Engineering
NFQ Level of Award: 6
ECTS Credits in Award: 120
Minimum entry requirements:
Applicants must have a pass in five
subjects (ordinary level) in the Leaving
Certificate, to include Mathematics
and English or Irish, or an equivalent
qualification.
The minimum entry requirements for
graduates of FETAC level 5 or 6 awards
is any full award.
This award must include Mathematics
(C20139) or Mathematics for Computing
(C20175) or Mathematics for
Engineering (C20174).
Mature applicants (i.e. those who are
aged 23 years or more on January 1st
in the year of entry) applying for the
first level of programmes are exempt
from this requirement.
Schedule: Tuesday 6pm – 10pm and
Thursday 2pm – 10pm
Fee: €3,200 per year
Duration: 3 years
COURSE AIMS
Mechatronics is the integration of precision
mechanical engineering, control theory,
computer science and electronics in:
• Product design process, for creation
of more functional and adaptable
products.
• Process control and automation.
• Quality control/Management.
• System efficiency enhancement,
including ergonomics.
Employment opportunities exist in
(among other key industries):
• Industries requiring automated
manufacturing processes for mass
production and quality control (e.g.
pharmaceutical industry, vehicle
manufacture and assembly, food
processing etc.)
• Design and development of
intelligent machines (e.g. robots) and
autonomous vehicles for application in
hostile environments e.g. fire fighting,
bomb disposal etc.
• Medical devices industry incorporating
sensors, control and machine vision.