About us

The Materials Science discipline, in general, is the underlying science of high-performance materials including metals, ceramics and polymers, electronic materials, nanomaterials, composites and biomaterials. Materials scientists and engineers are involved in every aspect of technology, ranging from the design of materials for use in integrated circuits, transport vehicles, battery devices and medical implants through to sustainable materials processing and developing new materials for green energy generation.
 
The school, founded in 1952, was one of the first schools of the university. It has grown over the years to be amongst the most highly ranked materials programs in the Asia-Pacific region and plays a central and major role in research and teaching of materials science in Australia. We aim to be recognised as a world leader in research and a provider of world-class educational programs that generate outstanding graduates with the skills, attributes and knowledge required to practice as professional scientists and engineers across all areas of industry from metallurgy to microelectronics to biomedical fields.
 
The school offers an undergraduate degree program in Materials Science and Engineering (Honours), as well as combined degree programs with Chemical Engineering, Biomedical Engineering and Commerce. It also offers a one- to two-year coursework masters program in Materials Technology. Our students receive training from highly talented teaching staff who are international leaders in their respective fields of research.
 
Each of our degree programs integrates state-of-the-art lecturing methods with practical hands-on laboratory work through to research and design projects. They include components of professional communication, ethics and management. Contact with industry plays an important part in our programs through visits to industrial facilities, speakers from industry and formal industrial training. Our ultimate aim is to generate a self-motivated graduate who is a problem solver, critical thinker, good communicator, team player, and is economically, environmentally and socially aware. 
 
A central feature of our undergraduate programs is their full accreditation by Engineers Australia, which enables our graduates to work as professional engineers and scientists in every major country in the world as our degrees are internationally recognised through the Washington Accord.
 
The school also offers a suite of higher degree research programs at masters and doctoral levels. We are a research-intensive school and the staff attract a large number of research students from all corners of the globe. Here, each student receives individual supervision from a select group of academic staff with expertise in the student's research field. Within the school, there are several focused research groups across the broad materials discipline, including the Centre for Sustainable Materials Research and Technology, UNSW Materials and Manufacturing Futures Institute and ARC Centre of Excellence for Future Low-Energy Electronics Technologies.
 
As proud as we are of our achievements, we understand the continual need to attract new bright minds, as students and researchers, and foster new partnerships in industry and science. If you wish to study materials science or are a company with either a specific research challenge or just an interest in attracting our graduates, please take a browse through our website and get in touch!