Engineering First-Year
In your first-year, you learn about the foundations of professional engineering and experience a little taste of what each engineering discipline contributes to solving complex challenges that matter to people.
Looking forward to your first-year
A common highlight for our first-year students is the boat design-challenge in ENGEN180. This challenge pits first-year teams against one another in a race to collect and remove rubbish from Oranga Lake at the university.
The one-day event is always a blast and is open to the public, so you can invite your family and friends to watch and enjoy.
First year papers
The guide below will help you know which papers to take as part of your engineering first-year depending on your initial programme selection.
Jump Start (February)
Joining the Engineering Jump Start programme helps you prepare to succeed in your first-year of engineering. Jump Start is optional for students that meet the BE(Hons) entry requirement for their specified programme.
- Common
A-Trimester (March - June)
The first trimester of study comprises four 15-point papers that are common to all engineering programmes, except Software Engineering. This means you have the option to reassess your BE(Hons) programme selection after A trimester.
- Common
B-Trimester (July - November)
The second trimester has two common papers across all engineering programmes and two papers specific to your programme. You can change your specified programme after B trimester to another programme that follow the same set of 100 level papers.
B Trimester
Programme
Specified
Programme
Specified
- Common
- Programme-specified
Programme-specified papers
Frequently asked questions
What is fees-free for new students?
If you qualify, you can get the equivalent of one year’s full-time study (up to the value of $12,000) fees-free for your first calendar year (1 Jan.-31 Dec.) of university study, meaning it can help pay for the H trimester (Jumpstart) papers that start in January through to the G trimester second-chance papers that end in December.
Your fees-free entitlement will cover: tuition fees, compulsory course costs, and compulsory student services fees.
Refer to the official website www.feesfree.govt.nz to check if you qualify and for official information.
Can I study in Tauranga?
Yes! You can complete the engineering first-year in Hamilton or Tauranga. If you live in Hamilton and want to "get away" from home for a time to reset, studying in Tauranga for Year 1 is a great option. The first-year programmes currently available at Tauranga are: Civil, Mechanical, Mechatronics, Materials & Process, and Electrical & Electronic Engineering.
What if I fail a paper in my first-year?
We offer some engineering first-year papers during summer school (Nov.-Feb.).
You can repeat up to two papers as a second-chance to secure entry into the BE(Hons) second-year of your choice. Repeating papers will also consolidate your knowledge and have a significant positive impact on your future studies.