131st in the world (Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering)
QS World University Rankings 2025
Course Overview
The International MSc in Computational Mechanics is a 2-year programme for students seeking to acquire the necessary skills for the modelling, formulation, analysis, and implementation of simulation tools for advanced engineering problems, as well as skills for understanding these approaches in the broader context of business and innovation.
This MSc exploits the complementary expertise of Swansea University and the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC) in Barcelona, Spain. Students have the option to undertake the first year of the MSc in Swansea and the second year in Barcelona, or vice versa.
The entire programme is taught in English.
As part of the course, students starting at Swansea will take a compulsory course of Spanish for beginners to enhance their experience during the second year in Barcelona.
After the first year, students will undertake a summer placement in industry before moving to the second institution. This is a unique opportunity to put into practice the skills learnt during the first year of the MSc as well as to enhance their employability. In fact, 20% of the students in the programme are employed after graduation by the company where they undertook the placement.
Graduates will obtain a double diploma from both Swansea University and UPC.
Why Computational Mechanics at Swansea?
Students will be able to tailor the degree by choosing elective modules on a variety of computational topics, including machine learning and Data-Driven methods.
Swansea University has been a world-leading institution in Computational Engineering since the 1960s, when Professor Zienkiewicz joined Swansea University. Professor Zienkiewicz is internationally recognised as the "Father of the Finite Element Method" and founded the International Journal of Numerical Methods in Engineering and the UK Association for Computational Mechanics. Since then, Swansea University has maintained a privileged international position in the field of Computational Mechanics.
In 1976 Prof Eugenio Oñate came to Swansea to do the MSc and PhD thesis under the supervision of Prof OC Zienkiewicz. After that, he returned to Barcelona where he founded the International Centre for Numerical Methods (CIMNE), which is still today one of the most important centres on numerical methods worldwide. The strong connection between Barcelona and Swansea led to Prof OC Zienkiewicz being appointed as UNESCO chair of numerical methods in Engineering at Barcelona. Since then, the collaboration between Swansea and Barcelona has grown and resulted in more than 70 publications being jointly produced between academics from Swansea University and UPC in the last two decades.
The MSc in Computational Engineering with Industry is advised by an Industrial Steering Committee with industrial experts on computational engineering including Rolls Royce, Altair, Siemens, Hexagon, ITI Limited, Rockfield, Peritus and Pebble Engineering.
The MSc Computational Engineering is taught by world-leading academics from the Zienkiewicz Institute for Modelling, Data and AI at Swansea University and CIMNE and LaCaN at UPC. These academics have broad experience in creating new numerical methods and delivering computational tools that have been adopted by industry, including Airbus, BAE Systems, Chevron, NASA, SEAT, Siemens, and Volkswagen.
In addition, these academics have written famous books in the field of Computational Engineering and they have important positions in national and international associations in the field.
Students of the MSc Computational Engineering will be able to choose the topic of their dissertation among a wide range of themes. Students will have free access to all the software required to undertake their studies, both at PCs within the University and at home. For their dissertation they will also have access to the high-performance computing facilities available at Swansea, including the Impact Cluster and the Supercomputing Wales facilities at Swansea, with a total of 4,920 cores and 47 TB of RAM memory.
Did you know? We are:
131st in the World for Engineering – Mechanical, Aeronautical & Manufacturing (QS World University Rankings 2025)
100% world-leading and internationally excellent environment - Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2021
Civil Engineering at Swansea is a key centre for research and training in computational mechanics and engineering. We have pioneered many techniques used in commercial simulation software today.
Why study Computational Mechanics?
Computer modelling and simulation is nowadays a tool that is widely employed in industry, not only to complement experiments and theory, but also as a tool for discovery. The field is quickly growing due to the ever-increasing complexity of the problems faced by industry and society. These problems include the need to mitigate climate change, and the need to engineer new materials and to optimise components, systems, and processes, just to name a few.
Addressing these challenges is only possible by using computational engineering to complement experimental work. Computational tools also provide a unique avenue for companies to reduce the time-to-market and time-to-manufacture of their products. In the current digital era, the use of big data and machine learning to constantly update the models has also opened the door to the development of digital twins in many areas of Engineering and Science.
The MSc Computational Engineering will equip students with the necessary skills to develop computational tools for the challenges of the 21st century.
Computational Mechanics Employment Opportunities
Graduates of the MSc Computational Engineering have a wide range of opportunities. They can access jobs in industry or academia, depending on their interests.
Due to the unique skills of a Computational Engineer, the expected salary is usually higher than a standard Engineer. For instance, in the UK, the average salary of a Computational Engineering job in December 2024 was £44k (source glassdoor.co.uk), whereas the average salary of an Engineering job is £38K. It is worth noting that employers seeking graduates use either “Computational Engineer”, “Modelling Engineer” or “Simulation Engineer” in their descriptions.
Companies that offer jobs to Computational Engineers include some of the most famous brands worldwide, namely Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Boeing, Chevron, Coca-Cola, ExxonMobil, General Dynamics, HP, IBM, Intel, Meta, Microsoft, Nike, Pfizer, Tesla.
After graduation, some students prefer to pursue a PhD in Computational Engineering. Our graduates have gone on to pursue PhDs in many leading Universities worldwide and many Swansea graduates hold research or academic positions in prestigious Universities and R&D centres.
Modules
The first year of the MSc contains compulsory and optional 10-credit modules on subjects including continuum mechanics, advanced fluid mechanics, finite element computational analysis, computational plasticity, communication skills in a foreign language, a series of modules, and a 30-credit industrial project.
Your second year also contains compulsory and optional 10-credit modules, as well as a compulsory 20-credit case study module and a 60-credit dissertation project module.
The entry requirements for the MSc Computational Mechanics is a first or second class honours degree in Engineering, Applied Mathematics, Physics or a similar relevant science discipline.
We welcome applications by prospective students from around the world and look for evidence of previous study that is equivalent to the entry requirements stated above. The Postgraduate Admissions Office are happy to advise you on whether your qualifications are suitable for entry to the course you would like to study. Please email postgraduate.admissions@swansea.ac.uk for further information.
If English is not your first language you will need an acceptable pass in an approved English Language qualification to make sure you get the full benefit from studying at Swansea. We consider a wide range of qualifications, including the Swansea University English Test, the British Council IELTS test (with a score of at least 6.5 and 5.5 in each component). A full list of acceptable English Language tests can be found at: https://www.swansea.ac.uk/admissions/english-language-requirements
In the first year of the MSc Computational Mechanics course, you will follow a set of core modules leading to examinations in the first university chosen (Swansea or Barcelona). In addition, an industrial placement will take place during this year, where you will have the opportunity to be exposed to the use of computational mechanics within an industrial context.
For the second year of the MSc Computational Mechanics, you will move to the second university, depending upon your preferred specialisation, to complete a series of taught modules and the research thesis.
There will be a wide choice of specialisation areas (i.e. fluids, structures, aerospace, biomedical) by incorporating modules from the four Universities. This allows you to experience postgraduate education in more than one European institution.
Modules on the MSc Computational Mechanics course can vary each year but you could expect to study the following core modules (together with elective modules):
Numerical Methods for Partial Differential Equations
There are opportunities for Welsh speakers to study some elements of this
postgraduate course through the medium of Welsh but there is not yet enough
provision to reach 40 credits in each year. The Programme Director can outline
to you what is available in Welsh.
Academi Hywel Teifi is here to support
you throughout your time at Swansea University. We can offer you:
Access to the Arwain mobile app for the latest information about Welsh-medium courses and modules available to download free on the App Store and Google Play.
An interview through the medium of Welsh when applying for a place.
Personal correspondence in Welsh, English or bilingually.
The option to create and submit your coursework or sit exams through the medium of Welsh (even if you have chosen to study in English), and your work will be assessed in Welsh.
A Welsh-speaking Personal Tutor.
One-to-one support to improve your academic Welsh language skills.
An opportunity to gain an additional free qualification that serves as evidence of your Welsh language ability for future employers.
The Computational Mechanics course is accredited by the Joint Board of Moderators (JBM).
The Joint Board of Moderators (JBM) is composed of the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE), the Institution of Structural Engineers (IStructE), the Chartered Institution of Highways and Transportation (CIHT), the Institute of Highway Engineers (IHE), and the Permanent Way Institution (PWI).
This degree is accredited as meeting the requirements for Further Learning for a Chartered Engineer (CEng) for candidates who have already acquired an Accredited CEng (Partial) BEng(Hons) or an Accredited IEng (Full) BEng/BSc (Hons) undergraduate first degree.
This degree has been accredited by the JBM under licence from the UK regulator, the Engineering Council.
Accreditation is a mark of assurance that the degree meets the standards set by the Engineering Council in the UK Standard for Professional Engineering Competence (UK-SPEC). An accredited degree will provide you with some or all of the underpinning knowledge, understanding and skills for eventual registration as an Incorporated (IEng) or Chartered Engineer (CEng). Some employers recruit preferentially from accredited degrees, and an accredited degree is likely to be recognised by many countries that are signatories to international accords.
The MSc Computational Mechanics is taught by various academics from the following universities; Swansea University and Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (Spain), and in cooperation with the International Centre for Numerical Methods in Engineering (CIMNE, Spain).
Tuition fees for years of study after your first year are subject to an increase of 3%.
You can find further information of your fee costs on our tuition fees page.
You may be eligible for funding to help support your study.
To find out about scholarships, bursaries and other funding opportunities that are available please visit the University's scholarships and bursaries page.
Current students: You can find further information of your fee costs on our tuition fees page.
You may be eligible for funding to help support your study.
If you're a UK or EU student starting a master’s degree at Swansea University, you may be eligible to apply for Government funding to help towards the cost of your studies.
To find out more, please visit our postgraduate loans page.
To find out about scholarships, bursaries and other funding opportunities that are available please visit the University's
scholarships and bursaries
page.
Academi Hywel Teifi at Swansea University and the Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol offer a number of generous scholarships and bursaries for students who wish to study through the medium of Welsh or bilingually.
For further information about the opportunities available to you, visit the Academi Hywel Teifi Scholarships and Bursaries page.
Access to your own digital device/the appropriate IT kit will be essential during your time studying at Swansea University. Access to wifi in your accommodation will also be essential to allow you to fully engage with your programme. See our dedicated webpages for further guidance on suitable devices to purchase, and for a full guide on getting your device set up.
You may face additional costs while at university, including (but not limited to):
Travel to and from campus
Printing, photocopying, binding, stationery and equipment costs (e.g. USB sticks)
As well as subject specific support by college teaching staff and your
personal tutor, the Centre for Academic
Success provides courses, workshops and one-to-one support in areas
such as:
Academic writing
Maths and statistics
Critical thinking
Time management
Digital skills
Presentation skills
Note taking
Revision, memory and exam techniques
English language skills (if English is not your first language).
In addition, if you have a Specific Learning Difficulty (SpLD), disability,
mental health or medical condition, the Centre for Academic Success have
Specialist Tutors to support your learning, working alongside the Disability Office and Wellbeing Service to support all your needs and
requirements whilst studying at Swansea University.
The International MSc in Computational Mechanics is one of the three Computational MSc courses offered by Swansea University. See the full list of programmes: Computational MSc courses
EU students - visa and immigration information is available and will be regularly updated on our information for EU students page.
We recommend that you submit your application to our courses as early as you can in advance of our application
deadlines. Courses will close earlier than the application deadlines listed if all available places are filled. You can
find further information on our Application Deadlines webpage.
