The Research Degree in Engineering Design is aimed at training students to carry out research and development in the area of Tool and Equipment Design for agriculture and related industry. This will cover field equipment from hand tools and special accessories for local crops and products, to handling and preprocessing equipment for the food industry. Farm machinery design and development for small farm usage and for tropical crops will be encouraged.
The Research Degree in Crop Processing & Post-harvest Technology is aimed at the training of graduate students in post-harvest technology, crop processing and agribusiness development. The emphasis will be on primary crop processing and post-harvest technology of perishables (high moisture content, biological products, e.g., cereal grains, vegetables, fish and meat) and durable (lower moisture content, e.g., cereal grains, oilseeds). Product and process development will be encouraged all within a framework of agribusiness development for the Caribbean. Developing improved systems to process and store tropical crops/foods and by-products can lead to increased agribusiness activities in the Caribbean. These include packing-houses for fruits, vegetables, root crops and cut flowers both for domestic and export markets and food processing industries which utilise tropical fruits, vegetables, fish meat, etc.
The Research Degree in Soil & Water Engineering is aimed at the training of graduate students in Irrigation and Drainage Engineering, Soil Erosion and Conservation Engineering, Theory and Practices of Soil Cultivation and General Water Resources Planning and Development related to agriculture. Emphasis will be placed on modern methods of irrigation design and planning as well as on techniques of modifying the soil mechanical properties in order to improve soil workability by farm machinery and to minimise soil erosion. The research work in Soil & Water Engineering will also assess the effectiveness of new and existing techniques to reduce the related problems of soil erosion and degradation, poor drainage status and soil compaction under the impact of mechanical forces.
The normal University Regulations will apply for entry into the MPhil programme specifically an Honours Degree in any of the following disciplines viz.:
as well as any other suitable degree. The suitability of the applicant's undergraduate training as generally specified above will be matched to the specific degree of interest. Students with Pass Degrees will be accepted only under special circumstances principally related to postgraduate experience.
These being Research Degrees, students will be expected to produce a satisfactory Thesis (MPhil or PhD) as stipulated in the University's regulations.
Additionally, students depending upon their academic background, will be required to take three (MPhil) or four (PhD) Departmental courses
These courses will be used to direct the student's approach towards the research topic in particular, strengthening their knowledge base in their area of interest and to research methodology in general.
Finally, the student will be asked to give a mandatory research Seminar within three (MPhil) or four (PhD) Semesters of first registration.
The Degree structure therefore comprises the following:
For all three Degrees, both at the MPhil and PhD levels, the structure is therefore as follows: -
| COURSE CODE | COURSE TITLE |
|---|---|
| AENG 6000 | Research Methodology (Agriculture Economics) |
| AENG 6001 | Processing & Storage of Perishable Crops |
| AENG 6002 | Processing & Storage of Durable Crops |
| AENG 6003 | Physical Properties of Agricultural Products |
| AENG 6004 | Special Topics in Design |
| AENG 6005 | Reading Course in Mechanical Engineering with a minor in Biosystems |
| AENG 6006 | Hydrology & Water Resources |
| AENG 6007 | Irrigation & Drainage Engineering |
| AENG 6008 | Soil Mechanics & Cultivation |
| AENG 6009 | Soil & Water Conservation Engineering |
| AGBU 3000 | Farm Business Management |
| AGBU 3006 | Agricultural Project Appraisal & Implementation |
| MENG 6501 | Statistical Methods in Engineering |
Other suitable courses from the Faculties of Engineering and Science & Agriculture may also be taken, subject to Departmental approval.
| COURSE CODE | COURSE TITLE |
|---|---|
| AENG 6010 | Research Seminar |
| AENG 7000 | MPhil Thesis |
| AENG 8000 | PhD Thesis |
It is envisaged that a Master's programme of research and study can be completed by full-time postgraduate students in two to three (2-3) calendar years. This will be encouraged. The time limits for completion of postgraduate degrees (MPhil and PhD) however, are those as normally specified by the University.
The Department of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering
UWI, St. Augustine
Tel: (868) 662-2002 ext. 82170, 82171
Email: Mechanical.Engineering@sta.uwi.edu
