The essential method of teaching at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering is organised classes (lectures, practical classes, seminars, projects, and laboratory exercises) aiming to execute a specific teaching task in a definite time. The introduction of the ECTS credit system, carried out a few years ago to accompany grades and define the effort the student puts into mastering their set material, resulted in placing considerable emphasis on their own work in the library, at a computer when looking information on the Internet, or preparing reports of laboratory exercises, etc., apart from so-called contact (organised) hours. Every meeting of the master with their students is unique in that it has a pace and style suited to needs arising from the teaching situation. Teaching, besides the aspect of conveying knowledge in a given field, entails an obligation to mentor students by discussing material which isn’t included in the course curriculum, for instance, subjects inspired by anniversaries of historical events, or ones related to ethics, behaviours, etc.

Allowing for students’ knowledge of the subject matter and age, the group’s size, as well as the place and time of the class, the teacher chooses the right teaching system, one in which nowadays media systems play an important role. A media system should be understood here as a set of audiovisual technical means such as the radio, television, films, transparencies, computers and software, etc. All these means are successfully applied in the teaching process conducted at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering. 

In recent time, preparations have begun for remote teaching solutions enabling large numbers of people, also from outside the university, to take part in classes under initiatives including European student exchange programmes. An “electronic teacher”, one being a proficient user of modern multimedia systems, is commonplace at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering. The substantive matter conveyed in classes is easily distributed to students, while contact by e-mail ensures easy communication also outside the official classes and consultation hours. 

One of the Faculty’s original initiatives was the initiation of the Machine Mechanics and Construction degree programme in English. The programme starts after the student’s second year and is conducted for a select group of 15-30 according to the same curriculum as the general programme.

Well-prepared students who guarantee self-reliance, persistence and the necessary ambition can apply to study under an Individualised Education Plan. Doubtlessly more difficult than the traditional one, the formula offers to the student an opportunity to actively shape their own degree programme curriculum allowing for their individual predispositions. By its nature, it is an uncommon teaching method - one catering to strongly motivated people capable of tackling ambitious and original tasks. Students pursuing their degree programmes under Individualised Education Plans prepare and defend two theses in different fields.

Supported with European Union funds, the Faculty participates in a number of exchange programmes for students and academic teachers offering opportunities of studying in a new environment, getting to know another culture and customs, and improving language skills. Currently, the most popular programmes of this kind are Erasmus - Socrates and Leonardo.  The participants are expected to have a proficient command of the language spoken in the country where the placement is organised. The eligibility criteria also allow for grades received over the course of the student’s degree programme, their general knowledge, and motivation.  The placements may last for one or two semesters. Among our partners are tertiary institutions from countries such as the UK (Bristol, Nottingham, Coventry, and Newcastle upon Tyne), Germany (Berlin, Dresden, Magdeburg, Wolfsburg, Darmstadt, Freiberg, Karlsruhe, Stuttgart, and Emden), France (Douai, Nacy, and Lille), and Czechia (Brno, Liberec, and Prague). About 30 students use this formula of studies every year.

An interesting solution is offered by so-called intensive IP Socrates programmes, in which knowledge in a specific field is delivered to the participants in a condensed way. Currently, the Faculty is participating in two such projects dedicated to new fuels and drive systems in vehicles, with foreign partner universities from   Antwerp, Brussels, Graz, Coln, Tallin, Porto, Thessaloniki, and Turku. The first programme of this kind was held in 2005 in Antwerp. The organisation of the second one was entrusted in 2006 by the project’s Programme Committee, and then the European Department of Education and Culture, to the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering in recognition of its teaching and research achievements. The programme’s third edition will be held in Austria, again with considerable support from the Faculty’s employees and students.

A new project, named “CarEcology”, is being carried out now under the so-called CD Projekt, aiming to develop a shared European framework for education in the automotive field, allowing for modern fuel technologies and environmental protection. The Faculty’s employees are the programme’s leaders.

For many years, education oriented towards modern combustion engines has been delivered during weeklong seminars held in Wolfsburg - the HQ of Volkswagen and the seat of the Institute of Vehicle Construction operating at Braunschweig/Wolfenbuettel university. Another example of a regularly held educational project is a few months’ long annual placement at the German tertiary institutes Emden- Wilhelmshaven- Oldenburg combined with internships at German production facilities.

Over the course of the student’s degree programme, they can benefit from diverse extra education forms - from consultation meetings organised on additional dates outside the regular classes by the teaching staff to students’ support provided by the Faculty’s Students’ Council. Extra education can also be understood as an additional form of post-graduate education. In this field, too, the Faculty offers a wide range of courses, training programmes, and regular post-graduate programmes fields including quality assurance, welding, vehicle diagnostics, machine operation, etc.

Through scientific research, the teaching staff can convey not only theoretical knowledge but also their own hands-on experiences. Results of most of the Faculty’s research are applied in industry and economy, meeting the requirements of so-called development and special purpose projects. A lot of it achieves international success, including awards at national and international fairs and competitions for projects such as the spider - a parallel kinematics machine, Cyber United, Wrocławik, or the excavator cabin KWK 1200M, or scoops for an excavator for hard material layers - awarded by the Prime Minister of Poland, a series of types of hydraulic pumps and engines PZ3 and PZ4 awarded at the fair in Gdańsk and recognised with the “Poland Now” mark of quality, as well as gold medals at the EUREKA  Inventiveness fair in Brussels for “zol-gel erbium optical fibres”. It should be pointed out that these include projects developed strictly by students, such as the innovative lawnmower which outstripped all other contenders in 2005, at the international competition organised by Briggs and Stratton.