Department : Department of Materials Science and Engineering

Choosing a future profession: A beautiful name or a successful engineering career?

A hot time is coming for many Belarusian families. One of the members of their family - a son, daughter, grandson - wants to continue his education and he is faced with the task of choosing a future profession and entering a higher educational institution. The correctness of this choice is extremely important, as it sometimes determines the rest of your life. Some young people aspire to enroll in economic and legal specialties that have been fashionable in recent years. Promising job titles seem to guarantee financial wealth and a successful career. Somehow, at a meeting with applicants, the authors jokingly proposed two “new” specialties: “Management of financial flows in Switzerland” and “Management of financial flows in Nigeria”. There were many who wanted to “go” to Switzerland, but for some reason no one wanted to go to Nigeria to “manage finances” ...

Unfortunately, many of these resonant specialties do not give the graduate the main thing - a profession. They do nothing but waste time and money! How many of them walk around the country, deceived graduates with diplomas that no one needs. But a lot of people got education for free! Why do we need such a higher education, which gives only a beautiful diploma, but does not give a profession and prosperity? So certified economists and lawyers of international law work as sellers, loaders for private entrepreneurs or auxiliary workers at numerous public and private construction sites.

In our opinion, young people who have chosen technical specialties as their future field of activity find themselves in much more favorable conditions. "Techies" have always been and will be needed in large numbers. These specialists were valued always and everywhere. By the way, BNTU "techies" are known and in demand abroad

Materials and the technology of their processing in the 21st century are one of the defining directions of the progress of modern civilization. Developed Western countries are leaders in the production of not only computer equipment, but also various alloys and other materials.

Materials specialists determine the optimal choice of metallic and non-metallic materials, the technology for manufacturing parts, reliability and durability in the operation of equipment and building structures. They study the nature of the origin of materials, processing methods, chemical and physical properties, as well as methods and instruments for monitoring and testing their properties. This knowledge is also necessary when finding out and eliminating the causes of failure of mechanisms and devices and increasing their reliability and durability.

Specialists in the field of materials science and heat treatment find worthy application of their knowledge in almost many modern industrial, educational and scientific organizations and are in high demand. The statistics of the distribution of young specialists of BNTU in recent years shows that the need for materials and metallurgists in recent years is satisfied by educational institutions only by two thirds. Even this year, the number of applications traditionally exceeds the number of graduates. In recent years, foreign enterprises with their representative offices in Belarus have shown particular interest in materials engineers.

Future materials scientists study a wide range of modern materials, methods and equipment for thermal and chemical-thermal treatment of tools and machine parts, chemical, physical, atomic emission, X-ray spectral, metallographic, ultrasonic, magnetic and other methods for determining the composition, structure and properties of metals, alloys. The nature of the work of materials scientists and thermists is diverse. For people who are inclined to a thoughtful scientific approach, the specialties "Materials Science in Mechanical Engineering" and "Metal Science, Technology and Equipment for Heat Treatment of Metals" provide unlimited opportunities in scientific activity. It should be noted that in the developed countries of the world, materials scientists annually develop and patent new materials, methods and processing equipment,

Important advice . When choosing a future specialty and university, we advise you to realistically assess the level of your knowledge and experience of entering the chosen specialty in recent years. For example, in the specialty "Materials Science in Mechanical Engineering" and "Metal Science and Heat Treatment" for 2011-2019, the passing score was 140-190. For many "fashionable" specialties, applicants who had less than 240-250 points of the competition did not survive.

ABOUT THE DEPARTMENT "Materials Science in Mechanical Engineering"

The history of the department "Materials Science in Mechanical Engineering" of BNTU has many years and it can rightly be called the history of the Belarusian school of metallurgists.

The formation and development of the department "Materials Science in Mechanical Engineering" is closely connected with the history of the restoration and development of the national economy of Belarus in the post-war years. With the help of the fraternal republics, in a short time, Belarus reached the forefront of science and technology. New branches of machine-building, metal-working industry, and instrument-making were created. Scientific and technical personnel were sent to Belarus from Moscow, Leningrad, Ukraine, from the Urals and other places in the Soviet Union. The Belarusian Polytechnic Institute made up for the acute shortage of qualified engineers and scientists.

In 1953, the Department of Metal Science, created in 1947, was separated from the Department  of Metal Technology , which was headed by a former artillery officer of the tsarist army, St. George Cavalier, Candidate of Technical Sciences, Associate Professor N.F. Margorin.

In 1959, the head of the department was Candidate of Technical Sciences, Associate Professor L.S. Lyakhovich, who previously worked as Vice-Rector for Academic Affairs and Head of the Metallurgy Department of the Chelyabinsk Polytechnic Institute.

In 1963, the first enrollment of students for the specialty "Metal Science, Equipment and Heat Treatment Technology" was held and the department received a new name " Metal Science and Heat Treatment of Metals ".

By the beginning of the 70s, the department became a new research center in the Soviet Union for the study and development of new technological processes for creating protective diffusion coatings on metals and alloys. The department held all-Union scientific conferences on chemical treatment of metals and alloys.

In 1990, the department was headed by Doctor of Technical Sciences, Professor L.G. Voroshnin. Along with metallurgists, the department began training engineers in the specialty "Materials Science in Mechanical Engineering" and received a new name " Materials Science in Mechanical Engineering" .

The achievements of the department "Materials Science in Mechanical Engineering" are due to the high scientific potential of its employees. Since 2006, the department has been headed by Doctor of Technical Sciences, Professor V.M. Konstantinov.

In total, over the years, the department has trained more than 2 thousand specialists for near and far abroad. They work in various industries (engineering, metallurgy, instrument making, related areas of production), and scientific institutes, in the Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Belarus, in ministries. Almost all graduates of the department work (or have worked) in senior positions in various enterprises. In the process of learning, students of our department receive the most modern theoretical and practical training in fundamental and special disciplines.

The educational process is provided by highly qualified teachers. In specialized metallurgical classes, equipped with the most modern technical teaching aids, in a computer class, students can additionally engage in research work.

Students undergo three specialized internships at leading machine-building enterprises. This allows you to decide on the future place of work already in the fourth year.

Our students, who feel like future leaders, add to their inner confidence by studying in depth a foreign language (English, German or another) in order to communicate with colleagues from abroad.

Additional information for applicants can be found on the  "Specialties" and "Applicants" tabs.