Companies show engineering students the way to working life

Being able to meet working life already during the education is an important part of Mid Sweden University's Master of Science in Engineering programmes. During the lecture, Fabian Öhlund, CEO of Sund Birsta, and Britta Andres, engineer, researcher and project manager at 2D fab, talked about their companies and about the knowledge and qualities they are looking for in future engineers.

"It is important that students get to meet working life at an early stage and see how their education can be used in practice," says Henrik Andersson, programme director for the Master of Science Programme in Engineering Physics.

Sund Birsta develops and manufactures machines and handling systems for the steel industry. The company has an international market and needs civil engineers with different types of technical expertise.

Fabian Öhlund talked about different roles within the company and about the opportunity to work internationally, for example with customers in different parts of the world or with the installation and commissioning of the company's machines.

He also highlighted that language skills and understanding of different cultures are valuable skills in an international company.

Show interest and commitment

Students who are interested in gaining work experience were encouraged to contact companies themselves to find summer jobs and degree projects.

"Don't always wait for an ad to appear. Get in touch and show that you're interested. It shows commitment.

Britta Andres talked about her own path from student to engineer, researcher and project manager at 2D fab. The company is a research-driven startup company in Sundsvall that develops and manufactures graphene and graphene-based products.

In her work, she meets companies to understand their needs and problems. For example, it can be about developing better products with the help of graphene or reducing energy use in manufacturing.

For a civil engineer, the work is therefore not just about technical knowledge. It also requires the ability to understand problems, develop solutions and collaborate with others.

"It's important to be open, flexible and curious," says Britta Andres.

She also highlighted communication as an important part of the engineer role. Being able to convey ideas and collaborate with customers and colleagues is important for developing new products and technical solutions.

The lecture gave the students concrete examples of what a Master of Science in Engineering can work with after graduation – from international industry and customer projects to research, innovation and the development of new technology.

Collaboration with companies important 

Through contact with companies, Mid Sweden University's engineering students get the opportunity to understand early in their education how their technical knowledge can be used in working life and what skills employers are looking for.

Collaborations with companies, degree projects, summer jobs and meetings with professional engineers are examples of how Mid Sweden University links the Master of Science in Engineering programmes closer to working life.