“A mechatronics engineer is the jack of all trades and master of none.” – a lot of people
As someone who knows jack about trades and has mastered nothing, that phrase might very well be true.
Welcome back to the blog, dawgs 👋🌲 I’m still Arren, my licked-batteries-count is still four, and you’re seemingly still trying to pick your engineering specialisation. Now that we’ve gone into what your first semester of mechatronics engineering would look like, let’s dive intowhy I picked tron,what tron really is, itsprosandcons, and possible career paths.
why I picked mechatronics🧩
I enjoyed almost all of the first year classes, so all specs were free game. I thought biomedical was cool and a great way to have a direct impact on people’s lives, but I kept hearing about how low the job opportunities were in New Zealand. I liked CHEMMAT 121 and I knew of chemical and materials engineering’s very broad industry opportunities, but I didn’t feel a personal gravitation towards the discipline. The only specialisation I had ruled out completely was electrical because ELECTENG 101 was my #1 opp. Surprisingly, ENGGEN 131 is where the decision clicked into place for me, despite my not taking software right now. I had never coded before (high school me thought that coding was for nerds), but the 131 assignments and projects had me HOOKED. I knew I had to have coding in my career, but I loathed the idea of sitting behind a screen all day. I wanted to make things. I wanted to design physical objects. I wanted… to be a mechanical engineer? The gears in my head began to turn. If only there was a multidisciplinary specialisation that involved coding and mechanical design… oh!
Mechatronics itself can be a mystery to a lot of people, and it is relatively new and niche compared to the other engineering specialisations (civil and chemical engineering have existed for, like, ever #geriatric — whereas smart systems, robots and microprocessors are only a few decades old). Mechatronics is a lot of different things, and mechatronics engineers go a lot of different places. So let’s break it down.
a dive into mechatronics🌿
- It blends multiple engineering disciplines together, including mechanical, electrical, software, and computer engineering.
- According to the University website: “Mechatronics Engineering focuses on the design, intelligence, control and programming of smart devices, robots, and intelligent systems… Mechatronic engineers develop select sensors and actuators, control algorithms, and advanced functional materials for mechanical systems in a variety of industries. These include anti-locking brakes and engine control units in transportation, surgical robots and artificial hearts for healthcare, and small smart components for cameras and mobile phones.”
- Mechatronics stretches across fields of robotics, smart devices, intelligent systems, transportation, defence, healthcare, aerospace, automotives, smart farming, automation, and even more. Where things move or require electrical/computer processes, you can find a mechatronics engineer.
- If you’re curious about the specific mechatronics classes and electives you can take further in your degree, here’s the course viewer link: https://uoaengineering.github.io/courseviewer/mechatronics-engineering/
pros🌴
- This is a new and rapidly expanding industry. As advancements in automation, robotics, and smart technology develop (which they are), so does the demand for mechatronics engineers.
- You develop a wide range of skills that are applicable in a variety of roles. Tron students will often do internships in mechanical, software, and electrical roles too!
- With mechatronics having quite a high GPA requirement (you’ve got this, don’t worry!!), the cohort is very intelligent. Honestly, it can feel daunting being around such intelligent people. But I can tell you that being around high achievers will only make you better yourself! Take it from someone who came into this cohort with crazy impostor syndrome. If you’re curious, you can find the previous years’ spec GPA requirements here: https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/engineering/current-students/planning-your-study/engineering/undergraduate-course-details/choosing-engineering-specialisation.html?_ga=2.103697664.1608274140.1754905916-1811759951.1753074657
cons🌵
- We don’t dive as deep into mechanical engineering concepts as a mechanical engineering student, and we don’t go as deep into electrical engineering concepts as an electrical engineering student. We learn a necessary amount of software and practical electrical knowledge needed to integrate electrical and mechanical engineering knowledge together to create solutions that a sole electrical or mechanical engineer would not be able to achieve on their own. This results in a broad, ‘non-specialised’ level of knowledge (you are still employable though, don’t let the haters get you down).
career paths🧪
- Possible paths include, but are not limited to: Mechatronics Engiener/Technician, Automation Engineer, Roboticist/Robotics Technician, Industrial Engineer, Control Systems Engineer, Embedded Systems Engineer, Instrumentation Engineer, Product Development Engineer, Avionics/Flight Engineer, Software Developer/Engineer, Mechanical Design Engineer, Automotive Engineer, etc.
Now that the two of us have broken it down-
-I hope you can see just how broad mechatronics engineering really is. Maybe we are the jacks of all trades, but we are also the masters of our destinies (wow #deep). At the end of the day, YOU end up choosing what you want to do with your degree after university. I don’t want you to feel pigeon-holed into a ‘robotics’ role if you end up choosing tron, because that’s only *one* part of this extremely versatile specialisation.
I hope this post gave y’all some clarity 👍 My next post will be a complete and comprehensive guide for cool clubs to join as a mechatronics student (or as a passionate lover of life and engineering), opportunities you have to take advantage of (to look cool on linkedin and to have a great time), and all the hacks you nedd to upgrade your CV and have a fire time while doing it🔥
Have a good one and don’t forget to enjoy yourself dawg! From one master of destiny to another 🥂