Your degree in Materials Engineering

Skills you’ll develop

While studying Materials Engineering, you’re learning to formulate material-selection solutions to diverse product design challenges. You’ll develop important skills to discover and manufacture new materials from extraction to recycling.

These skills may include:

• Application of principles of thermodynamics, mass, momentum and energy transport, as well as kinetics and mechanics to develop economical and sustainable material solutions
• Analysis of the physical, chemical, and mechanical structure and properties of materials in relation to how it performs using micro-analytical techniques
• Production of specifications for moulding, shaping and forming metals, alloys, ceramics, and other materials
• Creation of systems and procedures to extract, synthesize, and process raw materials into advanced composites and biomaterials
• Conducting research, corrosion, and failure analyses, operational testing, and quality assurance reviews
• Development and design of equipment, systems, and processes to manufacture new materials
• Performing material performance evaluations and developing qualification test plans and reports

Explore career possibilities

Career opportunities vary widely across a range of fields including electronics and advanced computers, automotive, medicine, consumer products, mining, equipment design and development, aerospace and manufacturing, and others.

There are many career paths that can combine your academic backgrounds, skills, and experience with your different interests. Read through the job titles below for ideas. Some career options may require further education or training.

Visit the National Occupational Classification website to research basic requirements and responsibilities of jobs in your field.

Make the most of your program

Your experiences will open doors to new opportunities and help clarify your values and interests.

• UBC Materials Joint Student Chapter
  Participate in social events and industry nights, and learn about opportunities in metals and materials engineering.
• UBC Orbit
  Gain hands-on technical experience in developing new satellite technologies.
• UBC Rapid
  Collaborate with a team working with open source software or get experience with 3D printing.
• UBC SUBC
  Work in a team to design, build, test and race a submarine at the annual competition.
• UBC Concrete Canoe
  Design, fabricate and race a 20-foot long canoe made of concrete and participate in an annual competition.
• UBC WasteNauts
  Apply your technical skills to design and build products and automation systems from campus waste products.
• Materials Engineering Research Colloquium
  Learn about graduate research work within the department during this day-long event in December and April of each year.
• Departmental research opportunities
  Reach out directly to faculty members to ask about potential research positions.
• UBC Engineering Co-op
  Gain work experience in materials engineering between study terms.
• Canadian Biomaterials Society, BC Student Chapter
  Meet like-minded individuals who share your interest in research in the biomaterials field.
• The Minerals, Metals, and Materials Society Annual Meeting and Exhibition
  Attend the annual meeting held in February and participate in undergraduate student competitions and events.
• Women Who Rock
  Connect with a mentor in the mining community, get inspired, and learn about career opportunities in the field.
• AME Roundup Convention
  Attend a mineral exploration industry convention in term 2 and network with professionals.
• ASM International, BC Chapter
  Join local events to learn about the applications of material processing in industries related to your areas of interest.
• Canadian Materials Science Conference
  Participate in the student poster competition at the annual conference held in June.
• Metallurgy and Materials Society of CIM, Learning Centre
  Access the online library for live recordings of conference sessions, workshops, interviews, webinars, and presentations.
• Engineering job board
  Check out engineering employment opportunities.

Build your network

Employers often hire people they know, so help them get to know you. You can build your network through clubs, classes, informational interviews, and more. There are so many ways to make connections and find mentors.

The professional associations below are also great resources for meeting people, learning about specific industries, and finding job and volunteer opportunities. Most have reduced membership rates for students and new grads.

• Applied Science Technologists and Technicians of BC
• The Materials Information Society
• Association for Iron and Steel Technology
• Association for Mineral Exploration BC
• Association of Consulting Engineering Companies Canada
• Canadian Aeronautics and Space Institute
• Canadian Association for Composite Structures and Materials
• Canadian Biomaterials Society
• Canadian Coalition of Women in Engineering, Science, Trades, and Technology
• Canadian Fuels Association
• Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum
• Canadian Society for Bioengineering
• Canadian Society for Mechanical Engineering
• Canadian Society for Professional Engineers
• Canadian Textile Industry Association
• Centre for Textile Technologies
• Electronic Device Failure Analysis Society
• Engineering Institute of Canada
• Engineers and Geoscientists BC
• Engineers Canada
• Failure Analysis Society
• Heat Treating Society
• International Metallographic Society
• Metallurgy and Materials Society
• Mineralogical Association of Canada
• Mining Association of British Columbia
• National Association of Corrosion Engineers
• Semiconductor Industry Association
• Shape Memory and Superplastic Technologies
• Society for Biomaterials
• Society for Mining, Metallurgy, and Exploration
• Society for the Advancement of Material and Process Engineering
• Society of Manufacturing Engineers Canada
• Standards Council of Canada
• Textile Exchange
• The American Ceramic Society Canadian chapter
• The Institute of Textile Science
• The Minerals, Metals and Materials Society
• Thermal Spray Society
• Young Mining Professionals

Connect with alumni on LinkedIn

Find UBC Materials Engineering graduates on LinkedIn to learn about where they’re working, and their career and academic paths.

More information

From your Applied Science degree, you’ll develop skills and experiences that can translate into many career paths. Check out other things you can do with your Engineering degree.