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The University of Auckland's Faculty of Engineering and Design is New Zealand's leading faculty in engineering, architecture, and the built environment – and home to a constantly evolving community of innovators. We're committed to creating an environment where people thrive and contribute to improving the quality of life in national and global communities, as well as enhancing the wealth creation of the nation, through excellence in teaching, research and service.

16/10/2026

A three-year study from the University of Auckland study has shed new light on why fewer women choose engineering, revealing how barriers and influences encountered throughout high school can erode early interest in the field.

Led by Women in Engineering project manager Ashleigh Fox, the study followed 50 female students from Year 11 through to university enrolment, tracking what encouraged some to pursue engineering and what led others away.

Ashleigh says a range of factors contributed to the drop-off, including university entry requirements and decisions made at school. "They think if they’re anything less than excellent, it’s not for them. But they often don’t realise there are alternative pathways."

A second study, led by Ashleigh with co-investigators Dr James Tizard and Kate Greenslade, is surveying and interviewing first-year women studying Engineering at the University of Auckland, to learn what got them over the line.

Early findings suggest women who chose engineering were more likely to have strong role models in their lives, including STEM teachers and family members who were engineers.

Read more:
https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/news/2026/10/14/why-arent-more-girls-choosing-engineering.html

Listen to Ashleigh’s interview with RNZ’s Nights:
https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/nights/audio/2019055995/why-aren-t-more-girls-choosing-to-study-engineering

Two University of Auckland studies are investigating the factors that female students' decisions to pursue engineering, from high school through to university.

15/10/2026

A new international research partnership will bring New Zealand and Swiss expertise together to turn space sustainability research into practical policy.

Dr Priyanka Dhopade, Senior Lecturer in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Auckland and Director of its Sustainable Space Initiative, is joining forces with Emmanuelle David, Executive Director of the Space Centre at Switzerland’s École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne.

They’ll explore how Swiss and European approaches to space sustainability could be adapted for New Zealand’s dynamic space sector, while bringing research on launch emissions, spacecraft re-entry and aerospace supply chains into policy discussions.

"The partnership gives New Zealand direct access to world-leading expertise in space sustainability and creates an opportunity to exchange ideas, develop new research, and explore how international best practice can inform sustainable space governance in Aotearoa," says Priyanka.

Read more:

New Zealand and Swiss researchers are exploring how international best practice can help shape a more sustainable approach to space governance in Aotearoa.

14/10/2026

PhD student from the Department of Electrical, Computer, and Software Engineering, Faith Culas, recently featured on 95bFM’s Ready, Steady, Learn to talk about her research – the importance of recognising cognitive diversity when developing software engineering tools.

The topic won her the University of Auckland’s 2026 Three Minute Thesis Challenge.

Listen to Faith’s interview to learn more:

Rosetta chats to Faith Culas, a PhD candidate in the Department of Electrical, Computer and Software Engineering, about her study into how recognising cognitive diversity could lead to better software and more inclusive technology! Whakarongo tonu mai! Thanks to The University of Auckland!

13/10/2026

When Dr Thomas Loho, from the Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering, suspected more than half of his students’ lab reports were AI-written in 2025, he responded by redesigning one of his two traditionally written reports as an interactive oral assessment.

Students verbally defended their lab results and critically evaluated an argument generated by an AI tool. "As an educator, I'm less interested in whether AI can produce an answer and more interested in whether students understand the reasoning behind it," Thomas says.

"This assessment helped students think more critically about AI use and built their real-world communication skills."

The teaching innovation contributed to Thomas earning a 2026 Faculty Teaching Excellence Award.

Listen to Thomas’ interview on RNZ’s Afternoons to learn more:

As AI has grown more and more sophisticated, schools and universities have had to rethink what a student assessment should actually prove. This is what's led University of Auckland engineering lecturer Dr Thomas Loho to try something new. He joins Jesse to discuss.

02/10/2026

Different minds solve problems in different ways. Faith Culas’ research shows how recognising cognitive diversity could lead to better software and more inclusive technology.

The research involved conducting two controlled laboratory studies with more than 80 software engineering students. Participants completed realistic code comprehension tasks. At the same time, multiple sources of data were collected in one-on-one lab sessions. It explored differences in cognitive styles, including how people process information, learn, perceive their own ability and assess risk.

"By designing software engineering tools that better support cognitive diversity, we can help to create technology that is inclusive, not only for the engineers who build it, but also for the people who ultimately use it," says Faith.

Read more by clicking the link below.

Different minds solve problems in different ways. Faith Culas’s research shows how recognising cognitive diversity could lead to better software and more inclusive technology.

01/10/2026

This year, Annisa Hasanah has had her eyes set on two very different finish lines – running her first marathon while completing her PhD in Civil Engineering.

Annisa first arrived in New Zealand in 2019 as an international student, from her home city of Yogyakarta. The research interests of Associate Professor Theuns Hennings, in infrastructure resilience, asset management and climate adaptation had caught her attention and drew her here.

She completed her masters and accepted an offer for a scholarship to continue into a PhD, researching how ageing infrastructure such as roads and power networks can be made more resilient to climate change and natural hazards. Seven years on, with Theuns still by her side as a research mentor, Annisa begins her career at the University.

It's been a continuous journey for Annisa, from degree to degree and now into professional life. Running became one way of learning to live with the motion. In September, just two weeks before her graduation, she ran her first full marathon in Sydney.

"Both running and doing a PhD taught me that the big milestones are usually built through much smaller, ordinary decisions repeated over time – including carrying on when you just want to give up. That mindset has been really useful in life."

Read more by clicking the link below.

Annisa Hasanah has had her eyes set on two very different finish lines this year, running her first marathon while completing her PhD in civil engineering.

30/09/2026

When Engineering graduates Sasha Mates and Vincent Wong launched pie-vending machine PieBot in 2023, they were focused on a very specific value proposition. They wanted to make hot pies available in places where there was demand for food, but not necessarily the foot traffic or trading hours to support a staffed counter.

PieBot has since expanded across Auckland, including a pie vending machine in the Faculty of Engineering and Design, and into other parts of New Zealand. The company, WM Robotics, has adapted PieBot’s technology to handle chilled and frozen products and is forming partnerships with larger food businesses. Its most recent move is a pilot with My Food Bag, selling the company’s ready-made meals from machines in workplaces, hotels and apartment buildings.

“Vending in New Zealand has always meant chips and chocolate bars. In today’s age, there are people who expect high-quality healthy meals, available whenever they want them,” says Sasha.

Read more:

WM Robotics began with PieBot. Three years on, the company is taking its self-service retail technology into new territory, including a ready-made meals pilot with My Food Bag.

28/09/2026

When the Taliban took over Afghanistan in 2021, Maqsood Rezayee made a harrowing escape from Kabul, eventually finding a new home in New Zealand. Now, he's graduating with his PhD in Urban Planning.

New Zealand had been on Maqsood's mind since June 2021, when he'd started his PhD journey at the University of Auckland remotely, under the supervision of Professor Deidre Brown and Dr Elham Bahmanteymouri.

In December 2021, the family landed in Aotearoa. While the escape was over, life was only just starting again, and Maqsood began his research from scratch. His new topic: the city's housing affordability issues, inspired by his family's own search for accommodation after a temporary stay organised by the government.

“To come here to build a life, find a community, study at the leading university, and to manage all these things and be under pressure because of something happening back in Afghanistan, it’s not easy to manage.”

"But having the resilience, I achieved this and I’m proud of it. It's a big year for us."

Read more about Maqsood's journey by clicking the link below.

When the Taliban took over Afghanistan in 2021, Maqsood Rezayee made a harrowing escape from Kabul, eventually finding a new home in New Zealand. Now, he's graduating with his PhD in urban planning.

25/09/2026

Robotics and language researchers at the Faculty of Engineering and Design are building a robotic interpreter for Turi Māori – Māori who are deaf. Led by Dr Ho Seok Ahn and Dr Tauwehe Tamati, the project uses a sign language underpinned by Māori worldview, which can be interpreted into text and spoken language.

Māori culture is rich in waiata, haka, tauparapara (chants) and pūrākau: ancestral narratives that hold stories, values and concepts passed down through generations. Without the opportunity to engage, some deaf whānau become disconnected from the mātauranga of Te Ao Māori.

The ultimate goal of the research is to bridge communication barriers for Turi Māori and create systems that preserve indigenous concepts in non-verbal interaction. "It’s about supporting them to feel a sense of belonging. It’s about reconnection, bringing them home so every baby born deaf in our community, in our Iwi, in our Hapū, feels embraced," Tauwehe says.

Read more:
https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/news/2026/09/21/robotic-sign-language-interpreter-deaf-maori-development.html

Listen to Tauwehe's interview with RNZ's Morning Report:
https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/morningreport/audio/2019052723/world-s-first-indigenous-language-robot-interpreter

The technology helps bridge communication barriers while supporting Turi Māori to reconnect with Te Ao Māori.

24/09/2026

As New Zealand looks to move towards more resource-conscious construction, researchers at the Faculty of Engineering and Design are exploring new uses for otherwise underused or discarded timber resources.

Professor Anthony Hōete from the School of Architecture and Planning is investigating the potential of structural laminated native tōtara, and Dr Gary Raftery, a research director in the Circular Innovations Research Centre, is examining the manufacture of engineered wood using secondary timber from demolished buildings.

These underutilised resources could be transformed into higher-value laminated engineered wood products, supporting the nation’s net-zero goals and move towards low-carbon design.

Read more by clicking the link below.

As New Zealand moves toward more resource-conscious construction, researchers at the University are exploring new uses for otherwise underused or discarded timber resources.

Address

20 Symonds Street
Auckland
1010

Telephone

+6493737599

Website

http://auckland.ac.nz/engineering

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