with STEM™ CAREERS JOB KIT
Mechanical Engineer
Design, create and improve the machines and systems that power our world
School of Mechanical and UNSW Engineering
Machine dream
Mechanical engineering is critical to Australia’s health, wealth, prosperity and long-term sustainability. From transportation and energy to healthcare and manufacturing, mechanical engineers drive our economy and improve our quality of life by creating, building and maintaining ingenious machines, tools and complex systems that keep our world moving.
Mechanical engineering is all about making things work efficiently, reliably and sustainably, whether that’s building a simple mechanism or engineering complex robotic systems.
As a mechanical engineer, you’re vital to a vast range of industries: you could design autonomous robots for advanced manufacturing, make heating and cooling systems for buildings, manage a city’s water infrastructure to ensure clean supply, create wind turbines to power communities, or invent breakthrough products that improve lives around the world.
The best mechanical engineers are curious, analytical and creative. They are driven by a desire to understand how things work and how to make them better. They’re creative thinkers who harness human ingenuity and the power of generative AI.
We need engineers who can imagine what doesn’t yet exist and bring it to life. That means inventing new designs, pioneering new systems and designing solutions for global challenges.
Smart and efficient
If you love designing, tinkering, building and improving machines and systems, I highly recommend you take a look at UNSW’s Bachelor
of Engineering (Honours) in Mechanical Engineering
At UNSW, our mechanical engineering program equips students with not only in-demand skills for first jobs but also enduring and transferrable skills for future careers. Students will integrate engineering domain knowledge with critical and creative thinking through collaborative teamwork and real-life projects.
We are deeply connected with industry, providing outstanding opportunities to our students, such as internships, industry-led projects and spinning out new companies. We’re focused on setting students up to be successful throughout their career, not just in their first job.
From robotics and transport to space exploration and manufacturing, mechanical engineers work at the forefront of innovation, solving real-world problems and shaping the future. Why don’t you join us?
Scientia Professor Chun Wang Head of School
UNSW
School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering
Scientia Professor Chun Wang Head of School
Cleaner, smarter, faster
Shape the systems that keep our world moving
Mechanical engineers are in demand in exciting fields like renewable energy, smart buildings, high-tech manufacturing and medical technology. Whether it’s making aircraft more cost-effective, designing safer transport systems or creating autonomous technologies, mechanical engineers work across industries like robotics, automotive, energy, construction and manufacturing.
pick a path
Mechanical engineering is a broad field. You could secure jobs like:
Automotive engineer: design and test next-gen electric vehicles
Robotics engineer: develop machines that can help make life better
Biomechanical engineer: create prosthetic limbs, implants and mechanical medical devices
Energy systems engineer: work on clean energy tech like wind, solar and beyond
Manufacturing engineer: make essential products more efficiently and sustainably
HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) engineer: design heating, ventilation and cooling systems
Simply the best
UNSW’s engineering faculty consistently ranks as the best in Australia. You’ll get hands-on experience, access to global research, industry placements and flexible double degree options.
Where to work?
Recent UNSW grads have found roles at:
MicroTau advanced materials and manufacturing
Hydro Tasmaniarenewable energy
OCIUS autonomous maritime systems
Saber astronautics space systems
Cochlear medical devices
Precise Air HVAC and building services
How much?
In Australia, mechanical engineers earn around $115,000 a year.
Source: Seek.com, Talent.com
Future you
Mechanical engineering is at the forefront of change. You could find yourself working to:
• Build autonomous vehicles
• Design green energy systems to combat climate change
• Create robotic assistants for hospitals and households
• Develop space habitats and life-support for future astronauts
• Invent smart prosthetics that operate like real limbs
Can’t decide?
If you’re practical and like the sound of engineering, choosing mechanical engineering is an excellent option. When you study mechanical engineering, you have the chance to dream broadly: Will you specialise in aerospace? Create new vehicles? Dive into sound equipment? Create a handy robot? Change the way we use energy? Choose mechanical engineering and take the time you need to explore – and discover the career you’re most passionate about.
Degree snapshot
Choose a Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) in Mechanical Engineering at UNSW, and you’ll get skills, experience and qualifications in:
Year 1: Engineering design, maths, physics, mechanics and computing
Year 2: Solid mechanics, fluid mechanics and thermodynamics
Year 3 and beyond:
Advanced solid mechanics, thermofluids, mechanical design and more, plus get involved with opportunities like the ChallENG project
What does it take?
You could be a great mechanical engineer if you:
Love physics and maths
Like to build and tinker
Are hands-on and happy to test, fix and try again
Have a knack for creative problemsolving
Are curious about how things work
What do mechanical engineers do?
✔ Design and test engines that power vehicles, aircraft and machines of every kind
✔ Build robots for factories, hospitals, deep-sea exploration and even space missions
✔ Develop renewable energy systems such as wind turbines, solar trackers and wave-energy devices
✔ Advance medical technology with innovations in prosthetics, surgical tools and assistive devices
✔ Engineer advanced systems for comfort and sustainability, from skyscraper climate control to next-generation submarines and aircraft
Racing ahead
Kevin Shen credits his time at UNSW with discovering his passion
Co-lead a team of 120 engineers. Design, build and race a car. Score a dream job before you’ve even finished your degree. These are just some of Kevin Shen’s big moments as part of his Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) in Mechanical Engineering at UNSW.
A keen Formula One fan, Kevin loves motorsport, road cycling and getting creative with mechanics. “I like tinkering with bicycles. Currently in my garage, I have four bikes, and I just bought a used car.”
Although Kevin started his degree with a major in aerospace engineering, he switched to mechanical in his second year after getting involved in Redback Racing, UNSW’s student-led motorsport team.
“As a new member, I was fabricating metal components, bending things, breaking things,” he says. “Then in 2022 and 2023, I moved into suspension design, and that’s what has driven my interest in mechanical engineering. I discovered that there was so much more you could do in mechanical systems that is very creative.”
Redback racer
In 2024, Kevin was made Redback Racing’s mechanical technical director. “I don’t know when’s the next time I’m going to be coleading a team of 120 students to build a race car in a year,” he laughs. “I’ve made so many friends. I’ve learned so much about engineering, but also about communication and teamwork. It has definitely been the highlight.”
And employers seem to agree. “In job interviews, you can see the interviewer light up. You can show you have developed competencies that are not represented by grades.”
Kevin’s already lined up a new job with the R&D team at Australian aircon company Daikin. “There are so many exciting opportunities. I get to give my input in design and manufacturing and maximise my potential.”
If you’re still trying to find your passion, Kevin’s advice is to stay open. “I discovered that instead of focusing on the context of the work, like racing, it’s better to think: what is it about the work itself that intrinsically interests you?”
I really like the creative aspect of mechanical engineering and I found that really surprising.”
Kevin Shen Graduate Engineer, Daikin
Build your own adventure
Aruldoss
For UNSW Bachelor of Engineering (Mechanical and Manufacturing) graduate Elena, uni was so much more than lectures and lab work. Her time on campus was full of invaluable, hands-on learning experiences with the student-led solar car project, Sunswift, up there as a highlight. “It allowed me to understand the full engineering workflow, from the initial ideation to physically building and implementing what I’d designed,” she says. “It gave me a solid grounding in the principles I now apply in my role.”
Elena even credits the experience to helping her land her first grad gig, an engineering cadetship at audio tech manufacturers RØDE Microphones. “Sunswift was instrumental,” she stresses. “But my part-time job as a gym receptionist helped too. It taught me how to communicate and show my personality in interviews.”
Now working as a mechanical/automation engineer in RØDE’s production sustaining engineering team, Elena loves that no day – or week – is ever the same. She spends her time mixing it up between design and problem-solving.
“Some days I’m at my desk using CAD [computer-aided design] software to design a mechanical jig, and others I’m on the assembly floor collecting data or doing maintenance.”
And her advice to young undergrads keen to get into mechanical engineering? Get hands-on early and volunteer for all the extra stuff. “Do internships, join student-led projects or work on your own passion builds,” she says. “It prepares you to contribute meaningfully from day one and shows employers your passion”.
I’ve always believed in a holistic learning experience, as it equips you to connect big ideas and uncover deeper insights.”
Day in the life 8am
Arrive at work in time for our stand-up team meeting – coffees essential.
9am
Collect data and insights from production lines. 11am
Update and release required process changes based on the data collected.
12
Lunch
1pm
Standby support for production through routine maintenance of systems.
2pm
Back to my desk to CAD a mechanical jig for a heat press process for a new product.
5pm
Time to head home.
Elena Aruldoss manufactured her dream engineering career
Study
If you’re keen on mechanical engineering, make sure you focus on maths, physics, IT, and design technology at high school.
Explore
Chain reaction Rube Goldberg machine (YouTube)
Watch this intensely satisfying, world-record breaking display of mechanical engineering in action thanks to Guinness World Records.
Besiege
Design and test medieval machines with physics-based destruction.
Automation – The Car Company Tycoon Game
Design cars from the engine up: mechanics, performance, aerodynamics and more.
Kerbal Space Program
Build rockets, launch missions and learn orbital mechanics.
Join the Young Women in Engineering Club and check out some engineering challenges
Take apart and reassemble something mechanical: an old bike, a toy or even an old appliance.
Enter the Warman Design and Build Competition and develop practical solutions to theoretical problems to win big.
Watch
Pacific Rim (2013)
Giant mechanical robots are humanity’s last hope in this sci-fi action adventure.
Apollo 13 (1995)
Based on the true story of a real-life engineering crisis solved with creativity, teamwork and ingenuity.
Ford v Ferrari (2019)
Follow engineers and drivers at Le Mans in the 1960s for a showcase of mechanical problem-solving under extreme pressure.
Plan
It’s never too early to plan your dream career. Check out the latest mechanical engineering jobs around the world.
Follow
• Follow UNSW Redback Racing on Facebook
• Check out some of mechanical engineer Victor Li’s videos at @EngineeringGoneWild
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