Engineering and the Environment

Acoustical Engineering Degrees

  • We offer two unique degrees: Acoustical Engineering, and Acoustics and Music, with the latter combining the former with the study of Music.
  • We have one of the largest anechoic chambers in the UK, our Acoustics degree students use the chamber to test their designs and carry out other project work.
  • Helping to reduce aircraft noise: The Rolls-Royce University Technology Centre in Gas Turbine Noise is based in the ISVR
  • Our research into hand-arm vibration syndrome has influenced company practice and international policy around the world, provided health services with more effective diagnostic tools and helped control the risks for millions of workers
  • Our unique 6-axis motion simulator is capable of reproducing transport environments, with control of vibration, noise, temperature, and humidity. Acoustic Research is conducted in various areas of interaction between humans and machines response, including comfort and motion sickness
  • Our Acoustics researchers have developed a revolutionary ultrasonic attachment for taps, which massively enhances the ability of water to clean
  • Aeolus is an artistic investigation into acoustics, wind, architecture and light. It is an acoustic and optical pavilion designed to make audible the silent shifting patterns of the wind and to visually amplify the ever changing sky
  • In acoustics, the physical or objective sound level is the most usual aspect of sound to be measured. But in terms of human perception, because sound is a subjective sensation, its quality can be as important as its quantity. Our researchers are investigating subjective acoustics.
  • Professor Philip Doak, a founding member of the ISVR, worked with architects to determine the acoustical requirements of the University's Turner Sims concert Hall which were incorporated in the hall's design. A plaque was recently installed in his memory.

Our acoustical engineering degree courses are taught in the Institute of Sound and Vibration Research (ISVR), one of the world's leading centres for research, teaching and consultancy in acoustics.

Acoustics is the study of sound and vibrations.  Many advances today, from medical diagnosis to understanding climate change, are attributed to this discipline, as well as the more obvious breakthroughs relating to audio and noise control.

Acoustical engineering demands a remarkable breadth and depth of study, drawing on disciplines such as mechanics, materials, manufacturing, electronics and signal processing. Consequently, acoustical engineering is an excellent degree choice for those who want to open up a broad range of scientific and engineering career options on graduation.

We offer a 3 year BEng and a 4 year MEng in Acoustical Engineering as well as a BSc in Acoustics and Music - a unique sound engineering degree programme taught in leading centres for both music and acoustics. 

Our MEng Acoustical Engineering degree is accredited by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE)and the Institute of Acoustics (IOA), and meets the educational requirements for Chartered Engineer (CEng) status. 

Practical experience is essential in today's employment market, our degree programmes provide plenty of opportunities for you to enhance your practical skills and put your theoretical knowledge to the test in our world-class facilities.

In the second year of our acoustics degree programmes you will have the opportunity to design your own loudspeaker and then put it to the test in our anechoic chamber - a room in which the walls, floor and ceiling are lined with sound absorbing material which is an ideal environment for testing loudspeaker frequency responses.

For those considering the MEng degree programme in the 4th year you will complete a Group Design Project, this gives you and your team the opportunity to address a challenge that will put your knowledge to the test.

The project opportunities change from year to year in line with the research activities of the ISVR. Our acoustics degree students have worked on projects including the development of Earbot - a robot that can follow the sound of a speaking person and projects looking at virtual stereo to reproduce 3D sound in the home.

Acoustics degrees:

View our Acoustical Engineering brochure

View our Acoustical Engineering brochure

What's related

Student project: Designing a loudspeaker

Acoustical Engineering Degree students design and test their own loudspeakers as part of their second year.

Find out more

“Studying acoustics gives a unique and fascinating angle on the broader subject of engineering, one which employers will love.”

4th year, Acoustical Engineering Degree student

Web links

Information for Acoustical Engineering degree students

Information for Acoustical Engineering degree students

Related videos

  • Dr Matthew Wright talks about the undergraduate Acoustics undergraduate degree programmes available at the University of Southampton.