If you're a creative problem-solver and looking for an exciting career, Engineering will satisfy your curiosity and give you the challenge you crave. As an engineer, your future could be in an office, a laboratory, an oil rig in the middle of the ocean, or even in outer space.
Engineering courses at Newcastle College focus on giving you hands-on, practical experience and a sound understanding of the theory and principles behind everything you do.
You'll join a group of curious and creative minds to spend time researching, designing, building and testing new technologies and products.
Learning from expert tutors you'll develop your skills in our industry-standard workshops and get to grips with equipment including a full fabrication shop, 5 axis CNC mill and 3D printing and design software.
You could even have the chance to undertake a work placement with employers such as Network Rail or Wood Plc.
What can I study?
Engineering Operations - Level 2
Engineering Operations is designed to give you a broad understanding of the practical sides of engineering and give you a chance to progress to a Level 3 course and beyond.
Length: 1 year
Study: Full-Time
Start date: 1st September 2025
Location: Rye Hill Campus
Engineering (Academic) - Level 3
Study advanced engineering techniques and manufacturing concepts and prepare you to take your first steps toward a career in Engineering.
Length: 2 years
Study: Full-Time
Start date: 1st September 2025
Location: Rye Hill Campus
Engineering (Craft) - Level 3
If you want to join a diverse and forward-thinking industry that is always looking to find solutions, this course is for you! A great first stepping stone towards a career in the engineering industry.
Length: 2 years
Study: Full-Time
Start date: 1st September 2025
Location: Rye Hill Campus
Mechanical Engineering (Design and Development for Engineering and Manufacturing) - Level 3
Study engineering principles in mechanical, electrical and mechatronic engineering, producing mechanical drawings and representations and the relationship between the engineering and business sectors.
Length: 2 years
Study: Full-Time
Start date: 1st September 2025
Location: Rye Hill Campus
Get In Touch
Good to know
College or Sixth Form. What's the difference?
How to Make an Application
16 to 18 Support
Student Life
Meet our students and tutors
Hazel Bone
Course Leader - Engineering"As well as my day to day teaching activities I work with our students encouraging them to take part in Equality and Diversity competitions, Young Engineer for Britain, Greenpower Electric Car competition, Jaguar F1 in Schools, where I have represented the college on many occasions in regional finals with our students. You may You may also recognise me from Robot Wars Techno-games where I competed for a number of years with my robot FireStorm."
What can I do with an Engineering qualification?
Daily tasks:
- Organises and establishes control systems to monitor operational efficiency and performance of materials and systems.
- Ensures that equipment, operation and maintenance comply with design specifications and safety standards.
- Designs mechanical equipment, such as steam, internal combustion and other non-electrical motors for railway locomotives, road vehicles, aeroplanes and other machinery.
- Determines materials, equipment, piping, capacities, layout of plant or system and specification for manufacture.
- Undertakes research and advises on energy use, materials handling, thermodynamic processes, fluid mechanics, vehicles and environmental controls.
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Daily tasks:
- Organises and establishes control systems to monitor the performance and safety of electrical assemblies and systems.
- Ensures that manufacture, operation and maintenance comply with design specifications and contractual arrangements.
- Determines and specifies manufacturing methods of electrical systems.
- Supervises, controls and monitors the operation of electrical generation, transmission and distribution systems.
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Daily tasks:
- Tests, diagnoses faults and undertakes repair of electronic equipment.
- Organises and establishes control systems to monitor performance and evaluate designs.
- Determines and specifies appropriate production and/or installation methods and quality and safety standards.
- Undertakes research and advises on all aspects of telecommunications equipment, radar, telemetry and remote control systems, data processing equipment, microwaves and other electronic equipment.
Powered by EMSI
Daily tasks:
- Prepares specifications for materials and other components.
- Produces final design information for use in preparation of layouts, parts lists, etc..
- Arranges construction and testing of model or prototype and modifies design if necessary.
- Prepares working designs for steam, aero, turbine, marine and electrical engines, mechanical instruments, aircraft and missile structures, vehicle and ship structures, plant and machinery equipment, domestic electrical appliances, building systems and services, and electronic computing and telecommunications equipment.
- Assesses product requirements, including costs, manufacturing feasibility and market requirements.
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Daily tasks:
- Designs, controls and constructs process plants to manufacture products.
- Undertakes research and develops processes to achieve physical and/or chemical change for oil, pharmaceutical, synthetic, plastic, food and other products.
- Liaises with materials buying, storing and controlling departments to ensure a steady flow of supplies.
- Advises management on and ensures effective implementation of new production methods, techniques and equipment.
- Investigates and eliminates potential hazards and bottlenecks in production.
- Devises and implements production control methods to monitor operational efficiency.
- Recommends optimum equipment and layout and prepares drawings and specifications.
- Studies existing and alternative production methods, regarding work flow, plant layout, types of machinery and cost.
Powered by EMSI
Daily tasks:
- Provides technical consultancy services.
- Examines and advises on patent applications.
- Prepare sketches, drawings and specifications showing materials to be used, construction and finishing methods and other details.
- Devises and implements control systems to monitor operational efficiency and performance of system and materials.
- Designs new systems and equipment with regard to cost, market requirements and feasibility of manufacture.
- Establishes principles and techniques to improve the quality, durability and performance of materials such as textiles, glass, rubber, plastics, ceramics, metals and alloys.
- Researches into problem areas to advance basic knowledge, evaluate new theories and techniques and to solve specific problems.
Powered by EMSI
Daily tasks:
- Visits and advises clients on the use and servicing of mechanical and chemical engineering products and services.
- Inspects completed aircraft maintenance work to certify that it meets standards and the aircraft is ready for operation.
- Diagnoses and detects faults and implements procedures to maintain efficient operation of systems and equipment.
- Prepares estimates of materials, equipment and labour required for engineering projects.
- Sets up equipment, undertakes tests, takes readings, performs calculations and records and interprets data.
- Plans and prepares work and test schedules based on specifications and drawings.
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Daily tasks:
- Carries out service tasks such as cleaning and insulation testing according to schedule.
- Re-assembles equipment, tests for correct functioning and makes any necessary further adjustments.
- Dismantles equipment and repairs or replaces faulty components or wiring.
- Uses electronic testing equipment to diagnose faults and check voltages and resistance.
- Examines equipment and observes reception to determine nature of defect.
Powered by EMSI
Daily tasks:
- Maintains documentation to track and log work in progress and completed.
- Advises on and installs operating soft/firm ware and may carry out upgrades.
- Repairs or replaces defective components.
- Diagnoses hardware related faults.
- Installs, tests and maintains computer-related hardware (processors, memory chips, circuit boards, displays, sensors, data storage devices, printers, etc.) according to given specifications.
Powered by EMSI
What can I do with an Engineering qualification?
Mechanical engineers
Daily tasks:
- Organises and establishes control systems to monitor operational efficiency and performance of materials and systems.
- Ensures that equipment, operation and maintenance comply with design specifications and safety standards.
- Designs mechanical equipment, such as steam, internal combustion and other non-electrical motors for railway locomotives, road vehicles, aeroplanes and other machinery.
- Determines materials, equipment, piping, capacities, layout of plant or system and specification for manufacture.
- Undertakes research and advises on energy use, materials handling, thermodynamic processes, fluid mechanics, vehicles and environmental controls.
Powered by EMSI
Electrical engineers
Daily tasks:
- Organises and establishes control systems to monitor the performance and safety of electrical assemblies and systems.
- Ensures that manufacture, operation and maintenance comply with design specifications and contractual arrangements.
- Determines and specifies manufacturing methods of electrical systems.
- Supervises, controls and monitors the operation of electrical generation, transmission and distribution systems.
Powered by EMSI
Electronics engineers
Daily tasks:
- Tests, diagnoses faults and undertakes repair of electronic equipment.
- Organises and establishes control systems to monitor performance and evaluate designs.
- Determines and specifies appropriate production and/or installation methods and quality and safety standards.
- Undertakes research and advises on all aspects of telecommunications equipment, radar, telemetry and remote control systems, data processing equipment, microwaves and other electronic equipment.
Powered by EMSI
Design and development engineers
Daily tasks:
- Prepares specifications for materials and other components.
- Produces final design information for use in preparation of layouts, parts lists, etc..
- Arranges construction and testing of model or prototype and modifies design if necessary.
- Prepares working designs for steam, aero, turbine, marine and electrical engines, mechanical instruments, aircraft and missile structures, vehicle and ship structures, plant and machinery equipment, domestic electrical appliances, building systems and services, and electronic computing and telecommunications equipment.
- Assesses product requirements, including costs, manufacturing feasibility and market requirements.
Powered by EMSI
Production and process engineers
Daily tasks:
- Designs, controls and constructs process plants to manufacture products.
- Undertakes research and develops processes to achieve physical and/or chemical change for oil, pharmaceutical, synthetic, plastic, food and other products.
- Liaises with materials buying, storing and controlling departments to ensure a steady flow of supplies.
- Advises management on and ensures effective implementation of new production methods, techniques and equipment.
- Investigates and eliminates potential hazards and bottlenecks in production.
- Devises and implements production control methods to monitor operational efficiency.
- Recommends optimum equipment and layout and prepares drawings and specifications.
- Studies existing and alternative production methods, regarding work flow, plant layout, types of machinery and cost.
Powered by EMSI
Engineering professionals n.e.c.
Daily tasks:
- Provides technical consultancy services.
- Examines and advises on patent applications.
- Prepare sketches, drawings and specifications showing materials to be used, construction and finishing methods and other details.
- Devises and implements control systems to monitor operational efficiency and performance of system and materials.
- Designs new systems and equipment with regard to cost, market requirements and feasibility of manufacture.
- Establishes principles and techniques to improve the quality, durability and performance of materials such as textiles, glass, rubber, plastics, ceramics, metals and alloys.
- Researches into problem areas to advance basic knowledge, evaluate new theories and techniques and to solve specific problems.
Powered by EMSI
Engineering technicians
Daily tasks:
- Visits and advises clients on the use and servicing of mechanical and chemical engineering products and services.
- Inspects completed aircraft maintenance work to certify that it meets standards and the aircraft is ready for operation.
- Diagnoses and detects faults and implements procedures to maintain efficient operation of systems and equipment.
- Prepares estimates of materials, equipment and labour required for engineering projects.
- Sets up equipment, undertakes tests, takes readings, performs calculations and records and interprets data.
- Plans and prepares work and test schedules based on specifications and drawings.
Powered by EMSI
Science, engineering and production technicians n.e.c.
TV, video and audio engineers
Daily tasks:
- Carries out service tasks such as cleaning and insulation testing according to schedule.
- Re-assembles equipment, tests for correct functioning and makes any necessary further adjustments.
- Dismantles equipment and repairs or replaces faulty components or wiring.
- Uses electronic testing equipment to diagnose faults and check voltages and resistance.
- Examines equipment and observes reception to determine nature of defect.
Powered by EMSI
IT engineers
Daily tasks:
- Maintains documentation to track and log work in progress and completed.
- Advises on and installs operating soft/firm ware and may carry out upgrades.
- Repairs or replaces defective components.
- Diagnoses hardware related faults.
- Installs, tests and maintains computer-related hardware (processors, memory chips, circuit boards, displays, sensors, data storage devices, printers, etc.) according to given specifications.
Powered by EMSI
How can I progress?
University Centre
Choose from over 60 degrees developed in collaboration with employers, so you'll graduate with the skills you really need to secure your dream job.
Apprenticeships
Earn while you learn with an apprenticeship at Newcastle College.
Levels Explained
Trying to make sense of your grades? Not sure what you can study? Read our handy 'levels explained' guide.