Overview

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The Materials Engineering programme from KU Leuven is geared towards educating young people who want to participate in the development of materials solutions as researchers or production engineers. It focuses on basic concepts as well as on emerging trends in materials engineering and covers the study of materials properties and structures, optimising processing routes, manufacturing as well as evaluation of final products. You will have ample opportunity to develop strong analytical skills and problem-solving abilities, for example through case studies and projects, and you will have frequent contact with industrial partners through plant visits, practical exercises and/or internships. In the master’s thesis, you will apply your knowledge to a research topic of choice, usually embedded in a cutting-edge research project in cooperation with other institutions or industrial companies.

The master aims at educating you so that you will be able to design new materials and make sustainable choices, both in an industrial and academic environment. These capabilities will be based on a thorough understanding and use of the relationships between the internal structure (crystal structure, microstructure, architecture) of materials, their properties (mechanical, electrical, chemical) and their processing (the materials triangle).

Programme strengths

• The Department of Materials Engineering (MTM) is a world player in design, characterisation, modelling and development of new materials. Close links with imec and KU Leuven's Biomedical Sciences Group strengthen the programme in addressing upcoming application domains.  MTM is strongly involved in powder processing of metals and ceramics, including 3D printing.
• MTM is one of the few material departments where both structural composites and metals are strongly represented in both research and teaching.
• In a truly international environment, you mingle with fellow-students and assistants (68% non-Belgian) and lecturers (26% non-Belgian) from around the globe. In terms of outgoing mobility, participation in the Erasmus+ programme is encouraged for the Belgian students.

Career perspectives

Materials engineers invent, design, make and use materials for products, processes and services. You are educated for leadership in sectors where materials play a decisive role. Examples are the materials making and processing industries, nanotechnology, chemical industry, automotive and aerospace, but also the biomedical sector.