One of the prominent and earliest disciplines of engineering is Mechanical Engineering. It encloses a wide range of subjects like Mechanics, Metrology, Thermal Engineering, Thermodynamics, Power Plant Engineering, Designing, HVAC, Production Engineering, Maintenance Engineering and Manufacturing Engineering.

It is completely your choice to select the best field as per your interest and ability. After a B.E in Mechanical Engineering, candidates can opt for higher advanced courses or may start working immediately. Jobs available for mechanical engineering graduates in various sectors, however, pursuing an advanced course opens an approach for better employment opportunities. 

Here is a list of popular job-oriented courses after mechanical engineering: 

1. Masters in Mechanical Engineering 

The ever-green advanced course is the M.Tech or MS in Mechanical Engineering. All major institutes such as the IITs, BITS, NITs and others offer M.Tech courses in Mechanical Engineering. This is a two-year full-time course, for working engineering graduates, it is a three-year part-time regular program.  

Admission for M.Tech courses depends on the bachelor’s degree in (B.E/B.Tech), Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering (GATE) score and the interview. The subjects of specialization in these courses include Mechanical Engineering Design, Industrial and Production Engineering, Automobile Engineering, Thermal Engineering, and many more. 

2. Piping Design and Engineering Course 

This is an exceptional job-oriented course as it gives exposure to candidates on understanding the industry applications. It is one of the courses suggested by experts after students complete their graduation in Mechanical Engineering. The piping course is explicit for mechanical engineers, it has concepts of mechanical engineering in-depth, which makes it relevant for a mechanical engineer to study this course. 

Courses offered by several institutes on piping design are Post Graduate Diploma in Piping Design Engineering, M.Tech in Piping Design and Engineering, Certificate Course in Piping Design & Drafting, Certificate Course Pipe Stress Analysis, Diploma in Piping Technology. 

While the M.Tech and PG Diploma courses are 2-year full-time programs, the certificate courses are short-term, with duration varying from 3 months to 1 year. Pursuing Piping Engineering opens up new doors for opportunities in Chemical Industry, Merchant Navy, Petroleum Refinery sectors, Manufacturing firms, etc. All these divisions have great demand for Piping specialists. 

3. Master of Engineering in Tool Design 

It is a highly fruitful course for graduates in Mechanical Engineering. It can be 2-year full-time courses or short-term diploma and certificate courses. The long-term courses provided by various institutes are M.E. in CAD/CAM, M.E. in Tool Design, M. Tech (Mechatronics), Post Diploma in Tool Design, Advanced Diploma in Tool and Die Making.  

The topics of specialization are Auto CAD CNC Programming, Application of Hydraulics and Pneumatics in Tool Design, Unigraphics (CAD &CAM), CATIA (CAD), ANSYS (CAE) and many more. It is suitable to complete this course from institutes recognized by the All-India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), New Delhi.  

4. Robotics Course 

Another worthy advanced study course for Mechanical Engineering graduates is Robotics. This is the scientific study of the design and manufacturing of robots and a sub-division of mechanical engineering. This field of engineering is emerging immensely, offering lots of career opportunities for robotic engineers. 

Courses Offered are Master of Engineering in Robotics Engineering, Master of Technology in Robotics, Master of Engineering in Advanced Robotics, Master of Engineering in Automation and Robotics, Master of Technology in Artificial Intelligence and Robotics, Diploma in Robotics, etc. 

Some well-known universities offering these programs are the IITs, Jadavpur University (Kolkata), Thapar Institute of Engineering Technology, the University of Hyderabad, SRM University, (Kattamkulathur). A robotic engineer has wonderful job prospects in space research institutes, in industries that manufacture microchips, in the military, medical and automotive industries for making innovative robotics.  

5. Nanotechnology 

This is another excellent choice for higher study for Mechanical Engineering graduates. Nanotechnology is study of changing matter on a molecular scale which allows the creation of new techniques and devices with sizes of 1–100 nm in scale. 

Courses offered are Master of Technology in Nanotechnology, Master of Science in Nanotechnology and Master of Engineering in Nanotechnology. 

The admission process to a postgraduate course in Nanotechnology is such that a candidate should be a graduate with 50% marks in subjects in Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics or B.E/B.tech in Mechanical/Biomedical/Biotechnology /Electronics / Computer Science from acknowledged University. 

Specialization topics include ceramic engineering, green nanotechnology, Nano-biotechnology, materials science, Nanomechanics, Nanoarchitectonics, Nanoengineering, wet nanotechnology and many more. M.Tech programs in Nanotechnology are offered in very few universities in India, some of them are Jadavpur University (Kolkata), the NIT (Calicut), Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, the Birla Institution of Technology (Ranchi), the Amity Institute of Nanotechnology. 

Professional in Nanotechnology is in great demand in terms of industrial products, electronics, and healthcare markets, environment industries, pharmaceutical, as investment advisors in biotechnology, R&D, product development, and much more. 

It is to be understood that choosing an additional course after completing engineering is important for the advancement of your career and salary. The above-mentioned points suggest some credible courses for you to pursue after a mechanical engineering degree.