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Masters in Robotics and Intelligent Manufacturing

MEngSc (NFQ Level 9)
Sustainable Development Goals

This course is available through the following application route(s)

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The development and deployment of robotic as well as smart manufacturing technologies have become very important for a significant number of industrial sectors in Ireland and the rest of the world, including biomedical, pharmaceutical, agricultural as well as electronics manufacturing companies.

The main barrier towards implementing modern, smart automation technologies in standard manufacturing practices is the lack of skills of automation experts in the areas of robotics and digital manufacturing. In Ireland, this is manifested in the difficulty Irish robotic and system integration companies have in recruiting engineers who can be readily involved in today’s complex automation cell and line building projects. This is also reflected on the average salary of automation experts, which is among the highest in the country. The main goal of this programme is to produce experts with sufficient scientific and practical skills in the areas of robotics and smart manufacturing.

This programme is delivered by a highly research-intensive school, which is in the top 150 in the QS world subject rankings. An example of this research activity is the coordination of the 2.23-million-euro Horizon Europe iCircular3 Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions project, with one of its main research goals being to take advantage of circular economy principles for improving the efficiency as well as for extending the lifecycle of industrial robots.

Individual Modules:
For students that are not in a position to take on the full programme a number of the modules on this programme can be taken individually via the Advance Centre  catalogue. Most modules are online so that you can fit study around your work and life.

Read our interview with Programme Director
(28) UCD's New Programme MEngSc Robotics and Intelligent Manufacturing: Insights from Programme Director, Nikolaos Papakostas | LinkedIn

About This Course

The College of Engineering and Architecture has invested more than 1 million EUR over the last years on robotics, smart automation, and digital manufacturing technologies. The available equipment, which will be used in a number of lab and training workshops include state-of-the-art industrial and collaborative robots, as well as autonomous industrial / logistics mobile robotic platforms, advanced sensors, and digital manufacturing / simulation software.

  • Knowledge and understanding: The programme will offer multiple sources of knowledge in the areas of robotics and manufacturing.
  • Applying knowledge and understanding: The programme will be including a series of advanced labs and projects thus allowing students to take advantage of modern equipment and apply their knowledge to complex engineering applications.
  • Making judgements: Students will have a lot of opportunities to decide about which resources, processes, potential process / resource configurations may be used in specific applications.
  • Communication and working skills: Students will have multiple opportunities to present their work, work as part of multi-disciplinary teams, communicate with engineering or manufacturing firms and improve their working skills.
  • Learning skills: Students will have the chance to further develop their learning skills and prepare for lifelong learning. On top of the multiple learning sources, they will be using during the programme, they will also be talking part in a real engineering research project thus applying standard and specialised research methods.

At this point of time there is a quite significant lack of automation scientists and engineers in the Irish job market. The prospectives for the programme graduates are excellent. Leading automation companies, such as KUKA Ireland and Cobots.ie, as well as biomedical manufacturing companies, such as STRYKER and Boston Scientific, are continuously looking for automation experts in the Irish job market.

  • KUKA Robotics Ireland Ltd
  • Cobots.ie
  • Tricon Automation Ireland Ltd
  • DesignPro Automation Ltd
  • Eiratech Robotics
  • Robotics and Drives
  • ATA Group
  • Irish Manufacturing Research
  • Reliance Automation

Below is a list of all modules offered for this degree in the current academic year. Click on the module to discover what you will learn in the module, how you will learn and assessment feedback profile amongst other information.

Incoming Stage 1 undergraduates can usually select an Elective in the Spring Trimester. Most continuing undergraduate students can select up to two Elective modules (10 Credits) per stage. There is also the possibility to take up to 10 extra Elective credits.

Module Type Module   Trimester Credits
Stage 1 Core Modules
 MEEN40790 Supply Chain Design & Analysis Autumn  5
Stage 1 Core Modules
 MEEN40800 Engineering Project Management - Tools & Techniques Autumn  5
Stage 1 Core Modules
 MEEN41330 Data Analytics for Engineers Autumn  5
Stage 1 Core Modules
 MEEN41350 Introduction to Robotics Autumn  5
Stage 1 Core Modules
 MEEN41090 Eng. Decision Support Systems Spring  5
Stage 1 Core Modules
 MEEN41100 Operations Management Spring  5
Stage 1 Core Modules
 MEEN41390 Industrial Automation Spring  5
Stage 1 Core Modules
 MEEN41440 Robotic Applications Spring  5
Stage 1 Core Modules
 MEEN41470 Applied Robotics Research Proj Summer  30
Stage 1 Options - A)20CR:
OPTION MODULES: All students take 20 credits of Option Modules (4 x 5cr). Students should choose 10 credits of Option Modules in Autumn and 10 credits in Spring. Students should aim for a balanced workload of 30 credits per trimester. Students must consult with the Programme Director and Module Co-ordinator(s) to ensure that they satisfy prior learning requirements for their chosen module(s) and may not have taken module(s) with similar content previously.
EEEN40010 Control Theory Autumn  5
Stage 1 Options - A)20CR:
OPTION MODULES: All students take 20 credits of Option Modules (4 x 5cr). Students should choose 10 credits of Option Modules in Autumn and 10 credits in Spring. Students should aim for a balanced workload of 30 credits per trimester. Students must consult with the Programme Director and Module Co-ordinator(s) to ensure that they satisfy prior learning requirements for their chosen module(s) and may not have taken module(s) with similar content previously.
EEEN40300 Entrepreneurship in Engineering Autumn  5
Stage 1 Options - A)20CR:
OPTION MODULES: All students take 20 credits of Option Modules (4 x 5cr). Students should choose 10 credits of Option Modules in Autumn and 10 credits in Spring. Students should aim for a balanced workload of 30 credits per trimester. Students must consult with the Programme Director and Module Co-ordinator(s) to ensure that they satisfy prior learning requirements for their chosen module(s) and may not have taken module(s) with similar content previously.
EEEN40720 Machine Learning for Engineers Autumn  5
Stage 1 Options - A)20CR:
OPTION MODULES: All students take 20 credits of Option Modules (4 x 5cr). Students should choose 10 credits of Option Modules in Autumn and 10 credits in Spring. Students should aim for a balanced workload of 30 credits per trimester. Students must consult with the Programme Director and Module Co-ordinator(s) to ensure that they satisfy prior learning requirements for their chosen module(s) and may not have taken module(s) with similar content previously.
EEEN40730 Biosensors & Actuators Autumn  5
Stage 1 Options - A)20CR:
OPTION MODULES: All students take 20 credits of Option Modules (4 x 5cr). Students should choose 10 credits of Option Modules in Autumn and 10 credits in Spring. Students should aim for a balanced workload of 30 credits per trimester. Students must consult with the Programme Director and Module Co-ordinator(s) to ensure that they satisfy prior learning requirements for their chosen module(s) and may not have taken module(s) with similar content previously.
MEEN40030 Manufacturing Engineering II Autumn  5
Stage 1 Options - A)20CR:
OPTION MODULES: All students take 20 credits of Option Modules (4 x 5cr). Students should choose 10 credits of Option Modules in Autumn and 10 credits in Spring. Students should aim for a balanced workload of 30 credits per trimester. Students must consult with the Programme Director and Module Co-ordinator(s) to ensure that they satisfy prior learning requirements for their chosen module(s) and may not have taken module(s) with similar content previously.
COMP47670 Data Science in Python (MD) Autumn and Spring (separate)  5
Stage 1 Options - A)20CR:
OPTION MODULES: All students take 20 credits of Option Modules (4 x 5cr). Students should choose 10 credits of Option Modules in Autumn and 10 credits in Spring. Students should aim for a balanced workload of 30 credits per trimester. Students must consult with the Programme Director and Module Co-ordinator(s) to ensure that they satisfy prior learning requirements for their chosen module(s) and may not have taken module(s) with similar content previously.
EEEN40280 Digital & Embedded Systems Spring  5
Stage 1 Options - A)20CR:
OPTION MODULES: All students take 20 credits of Option Modules (4 x 5cr). Students should choose 10 credits of Option Modules in Autumn and 10 credits in Spring. Students should aim for a balanced workload of 30 credits per trimester. Students must consult with the Programme Director and Module Co-ordinator(s) to ensure that they satisfy prior learning requirements for their chosen module(s) and may not have taken module(s) with similar content previously.
MEEN40110 Advanced Polymer Engineering Spring  5
Stage 1 Options - A)20CR:
OPTION MODULES: All students take 20 credits of Option Modules (4 x 5cr). Students should choose 10 credits of Option Modules in Autumn and 10 credits in Spring. Students should aim for a balanced workload of 30 credits per trimester. Students must consult with the Programme Director and Module Co-ordinator(s) to ensure that they satisfy prior learning requirements for their chosen module(s) and may not have taken module(s) with similar content previously.
MEEN41150 Advanced Metals Processing Spring  5

UCD ranks 1st in Ireland and in the top 50 worldwide in the QS Sustainability rankings 2023, which focus on what institutions are doing to tackle the world’s greatest environmental, social and governance (ESG) challenges

Brian Cooney 
CEO – KUKA Robotics Ireland

KUKA Robotics Ireland Ltd to fully supports the new UCD Masters Programme - MEngSc Robotics and Intelligent Manufacturing.  

KUKA is a global automation corporation with sales of around EUR 4.0 billion and around 15,000 employees. As a leading global supplier of intelligent automation solutions KUKA offers its customers everything from a single source: from robots and cells to fully automated systems and their networking in markets such as automotive, electronics, general industry, consumer goods, e-commerce/retail and healthcare. The KUKA Group is headquartered in Augsburg, Germany.

KUKA Robotics Ireland is located in Dundalk Ireland and is a wholly owned subsidiary responsible for sales, service, training and application engineering.

There are a lot of Irish companies that seek engineers and scientists with a strong foundation in robotics, automation and intelligent manufacturing technologies.

Hundreds of robotics and automation engineering jobs are currently available in Ireland mainly in sectors like pharmaceuticals, medical devices, food processing and discrete manufacturing.

Engineers and scientists with a strong background in robotics and automation are among the best paid practitioners and when employed they are typically involved in many challenging large-scale projects, developing state-of-the-art solutions for leading corporations and organisations. They typically progress to senior roles and management positions quite fast.

This Masters Programme offers the necessary skills to engineers and scientists that will allow them to enjoy a dynamic and rewarding career path in a technology area that will be becoming increasingly important in the future.

 

Dr Nikolaos Papakostas, Programme Director

A significant part of today’s major economic activities, including manufacturing, construction, logistics, and transportation are being transformed by robotics, data analytics, machine learning and artificial intelligence platforms. It is expected that robots, automation, and intelligent technologies will constitute the foundation underlying all future scientific and engineering projects.

The MEngSc programme provides students with an understanding of the tools that are required for designing and deploying novel production and business environments. These tools include digital manufacturing, simulation, data analytics, machine learning and artificial intelligence software, industrial, collaborative, and mobile robots, advanced sensors, and smart devices. Graduates will be capable of getting involved in advanced robotics and smart automation projects.

Masters in Robotics and Intelligent Manufacturing (T405) Full Time
EU          fee per year - € 9600
nonEU    fee per year - € 25000

***Fees are subject to change

  • An honours undergraduate degree (NFQ Level 8) with a minimum upper second class honours or international equivalence in a relevant Engineering or Science programme.
  • Applicants whose first language is not English must also demonstrate English language proficiency of IELTS 6.5 (no band less than 6.0 in each element), or equivalent.
  • A detailed explanation of the student’s interest in the programme must be provided.
  • Students meeting the programme’s academic entry requirements but not the English language requirements, may enter the programme upon successful completion of UCD’s Pre-Sessional or International Pre-Master’s Pathway programmes.
  • These are the minimum entry requirements – additional criteria may be requested in the future.

Full Time option suitable for:

Domestic(EEA) applicants: Yes
International (Non EEA) applicants currently residing outside of the EEA Region. Yes


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General application route(s) for Irish/UK/EU applicants* for International (non-EU) applicants* to Masters in Robotics and Intelligent Manufacturing:

ROWCLASS Apply to   Application Type  
showAudience-audienceEU showAudience-audienceInt T405
Masters in Robotics and Intelligent Manufacturing
Master of Engineering Science		 Full-Time
Commencing 2024/2025 September		 Graduate Taught Apply
* you can change options at the top of the page
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