Should I do mechanical or mechatronic? (1 Viewer)

[Root Vegetable]

Hi guys. This year I'm going to do a combined engineering/science degree at USYD, and my ATAR is high enough to do any engineering stream I like. I am particularly interested in the 'space' streams - specifically mechatronic and mechanical - but I'm not sure which one to choose. On one hand, mechanical engineering seems to interest me the most (having no experience or particular interest in computing or robotics), but on the other hand, mechatronic has the highest ATAR to get in. I spoke to one of the lecturers at the open day about this, and he suggested that I take the mechatronic stream seeing as I can more easily go 'down' to mechanical if I don't like it, but I'm still not sure. And another thing - I'm not exactly sure what you learn in the mechanical space stream. I asked the same guy, and I got a vague answer which I can't really remember
So, any thoughts? Is anyone else doing space engineering?

 

[tommykins]

you considering mechatronic as an 'option' becasue its a higher atar makes you a retard

 

[proletariat]

ergh.

Go for mechanical as you've actually thought about it and planned it out to an extent.

Considering something else just because it's harder to get into, as tommykins said, shows you're retarded. Like asian parents ^_^

 

[Root Vegetable]

Nononono, I didn't mean it like that. Doing mechanical (with its lower ATAR) and then transferring up into mechatronic (with its higher ATAR) would be considerably more difficult than doing it the other way around. I spoke to the lecturer about this, and he suggested I do mechatronic for this reason.

 

[tommykins]

i highly doubt it....a distinction wam and 95+ is often all you need to internal transfer which isn't that hard for first year (seeing as it's only around 2-3 courses that aren't common)

 

[red-butterfly]

Try out which ever you want but do you really want to fall for the preconception of getting into a course with a higher atar...

 

[mitchy_boy]

The space stream would be fairly useless in Australia as we don't have a very big space industry. And going to the US would mean competing with their students and stuff, which would mean being raped frequently.

You'd probably end up working in the typical areas that 'normal' mechanical, and mechatronic engineers work in...

 

[Omie Jay]

it all depends on personal interests.

mechanical = mechanical systems, thermodynamics and fluid flow, forces and mechanics and statics and dynamics.
mechatronic = more into robots, so robot theory, programming, some electrical. mechatronic is like mechanical/electrical/computing all combined.

 

[Root Vegetable]

I realise that it's wishful thinking to believe that the degree will certainly get me a job at NASA or similar. I just thought it sounded interesting, and that I may as well. I guess my problem is that I have no experience with computers, so I don't know if I'll like it. I think I'll take mechatronic to see what it's like, and then go into mechanical if I'm not interested.

 

[Shaybay92]

I am doing mechatronics because I want to get into spacecraft systems engineering. It sounds like so much fun.. so yeah, I would say mechatronics. And if I dont get into spacefract systems then its easily applied to so many other modern technologies.