It looks like some here have knowledge about these type of courses.

Right now I am finishing up my Mechanical Engineering B.S. and looking into grad school options. I have always dreamed of being an engineer for a race team but never seriously looked into it till now. The race car aerodynamic course at Southampton looks impressive to me but I don't know if I would have any chance if I really could get in. My grade point average is around 3 out of 4 points (about a B) for most of my upper division classes. I feel somewhat comfortable with fluid mechanics but I still would want to learn alot more before moving into heavy aerodynamics. It looks like they don't have any postgraduate exam like the GRE for English speaking students? Imperial looks nice but costly and I am even more doubtful they would consider me.

The motorsport engineering courses like Cranfield look nice but I don't see too much outside of the motorsport world in it. At least I can apply aerodynamics to other fields if I can't get a job.

Does anybody have any insight on what I should expect?

Thanks.
Kurt

Your best bet is to talk to the course leaders of the courses you are interested in, they won't bite!
You might find universities like foreign students, they can be more profitable.

Yup, you pay them the money and they'll let you in.

Make sure your calculus is good, second year undergraduate course maths was that div curl grad rubbish that I've never used since and never had a feel for.

I'm thinking the universities would like foreign students because of the money factor. Every class I have taken used calculus in one way or another but not too much deriving with multivariable obscure calculus. I would have to go out and relearn that stuff.

There's also a program in Spain (conducted in English) that co-operates with the Epsilon Euskadi Le Mans team.
http://www.epsiloneuskadi.com/

I finished my B.E.Sc. from Canada in 2000, worked several years in industry in North America and am finishing up an M.Sc. in Germany specialising in Combustion Engines that I've been doing part-time while also employed in the same field. Currently looking for PhD opportunities.

Oxford Brookes have an excellent reputation with their engineering-related courses. They're situated right in the heart of 'Motorsport Valley' and have links to all the big teams (Williams, Renault, Red Bull etc) so might be something to have a look at?

Correction: Oxford Brookes has engineering courses<ref http://www.professional-cv-writingservices...ering.html#>. They're situated near the middle of England and have links to some of the big teams.

HTH

Which is what I said?

No, they are seeking international reputations and excellence. Every student in a local country pays tuition that is topped up with country funds. Foreign students pay more because governments don't subsidize for non-citizens.
So money is not the factor. Foreign students are typically an administrative burden.

Here in Australia, the Universities are paid less for Government subsidised places (no surprise the biggest customer has some negotiating power.)

I figured it would be more difficult for an international student to get in and it is more based on 'how good' they are. A few students in grad school here from India / Asia come straight out of primary school into grad school. School system in those areas are way beyond what I've seen in the U.S. They actually teach statics/dynamics/controls!

I think it would be better for me to at least get a masters in the U.S. in aero then if I fell that I want to go beyond I'll look in to Southampton or see if I can sneak in to Imperial.

I really don't want to take a Motorsports masters because it seems like the job field would just be too narrow. Aero is small enough!

Villes, it is a bit more complicated than that. International reputation/excellence is not hugely a function of the students, more of the staff. In some countries the students don't pay fees. Generally the government dictates the fees it pays to universities (and caps the number they will pay for) whereas the universities are free to charge overseas students as they please and would tend to charge more if they can get the customers to pay. I don't think overseas students are more of an administrative burden than home grown ones, they tend to be left to fend for themselves and use the student services that are provided for everybody.

This does of course depend on the laws in the different countries, but international reputation is generally more about research and staff than more basic education.

Here in Sweden the universities are payed by the government based on the number of stundents and their result. There is also a budget cap for each university. The students themselves pay no tuition, not even foreign students although the latter is about to change for students from non EU countries. But this means that the universities are looking to get as many students as they can as that will maximize their income.

Do you mean that I could, assuming I meet entrance requirement, pursue a degree in a Swedish university tuition-free if I'm carrying an EU passport?

I am fairly sure you can in Denmark.

Bjørn

Do you offer courses in anything really easy?

Best get brushing up on my language skills...

Right now it's tuition free without limitation on citizenship. I think they're going to limit it to EU citizens (and a few other european countries) in 2011 or something like that.

Some courses and programs are also offered in english, and some can also be taken at distance using the internet.

http://www.kth.se/studies/master/financial?l=en_UK
http://www.chalmers.se/en/sections/education
http://www.lth.se/english

If you want to be a race engineer and work in motorsport, Cranfield is the university to go for, its name carries a lot of weight in the motorsport industry, especially in the EU. I started the course a couple of weeks ago and I already have weekend work for next year working for 2 teams in 2 UK series. There is also a lot of networking opportunities available, everything from going to shows, F1 factories and working at the British Grand Prix.

You also shouldnt have a problem getting in as there are a few American/Canadians on the course, in fact most of the people are from outside the UK.

Whatever you choose, good luck!

There was a similar thread a while back. Cranfield, Brunel and Oxford Brookes may have the adverts out there, Imperial, Southhampton and Cambridge actually supply the teams you have heard of with more engineers.

Incidentally I should point out that Oxford Brookes is not a part of Oxford University.

Could I also point out that interviewers are more likely to have an appreciation for which institution is 'best' than interviewees?

I still say Oxford Brookes is the best place to go to for a motorsport related engineering course. Their reputation in the industry is greater than any other institution.

They have their own four post rig testing machine. Wind tunnel is being installed in the not too distant future, Pat Symonds developed most of the courses they run, David Richards has contributed financially, Fernando Alonso pays for half-a-dozen Spaniards to learn there... Prodrive, Renault, Williams, Red Bull are within a 30 mile radius...

So they don't have a windtunnel?

case closed.

Don't dig a hole for yourself, and check their rating in the university guides.

Unfortunately, just because you say it's "case closed" doesn't mean it is. It's not like they have exclusive use of the old Red Bull wind tunnel near Bicester or anything at the moment...

And personally I couldn't give a monkeys about snobbish attitudes to university x is better than university y. All I know is that teams within the higher echeloens of motor racing hold Oxford Brookes and its graduates in high esteem.

Shrugs. How can they have exclusive use of a windtunnel that is being used by an F1 team?

It isn't snobbery, I just check the rankings of universities for subjects, and cross reference them with 30 years of experience. O-B rates 55th in the country for engineering. Pardon me if I don't think that is a sign of excellence.

Exclusive in the form that they are the only ones who are allowed to use it when Toro Rosso aren't.

Exclusive !=sloppy seconds

I'll give up on this scintillating discussion now then.

I am glad to have run across this thread as I am a US student graduating soon. Are these schools basing everything strictly off GPA? My GPA will be is on the high side of 3 out of 4.

Can you explain what GPA means?

GPA is Grade Point Average, it is basically and average of all your grades. Most American Universities work on a 4.0 scale, meaning 4.0 is the highest you can achieve.

and the GPA is related to letter grades like this.

A = 4
B = 3
C = 2
D = 1

Most postgraduate schools in the U.S. require a minimum of a 3.0 to get in.

Thanks for the explanation. For courses here there is normally a minimum enterance qualification. If you don't fill the class everyone is in, if oversubscribed up the entry qualifications until you aren't qversubscribed! Not really involved with postgraduate courses but I think a more overall look at qualifications is likely rather than a one number score.