Aerospace Engineering

Humans have always been fascinated by birds and successfully mimicked their flight behavior with the invention of airplanes. Since that first flight in 1903, the field of Aerospace Engineering has advanced leaps and bounds and taken us to significant heights not only within the earth’s atmosphere but even to another planetary bodies in our solar system and beyond. The demand for Aerospace (that includes Aeronautics and Astronautics) engineers will continue to grow rapidly with the ever-growing emphasis on more efficient, faster, cheaper, and quieter airplanes. The entire world is also witnessing a surge in space exploration with the possibility of even space tourism becoming a reality within the next decade. The Aerospace Engineering major is designed to provide a solid foundation and necessary skills to have a successful career in industry/government agencies. The program also offers the appropriate preparation to pursue graduate school and a career in research and development.

Because of the variety of fields that are relevant to this profession, the undergraduate program covers a broad range of subjects, including aerodynamics, structures, propulsion, and dynamics/ control. The innovative curriculum at UC Merced provides a rich educational experience that exposes students to engineering fundamentals, laboratory skills and advanced computational tools to solve realistic engineering problems by adopting the right balance between theoretical and hands-on learning approaches that will be appropriate for all kinds of learners. The programs at UC Merced emphasize a highly interdisciplinary approach; thus the curriculum offers several technical electives in topics inside and outside the Aerospace Engineering program, and a culminating design experience.

Aerospace Engineering Program Learning Outcomes

Our AE graduates are expected to achieve a set of student outcomes by demonstrating:

1. An ability to identify, formulate, and solve complex engineering problems by applying principles of engineering, science, and mathematics.
2. An ability to apply engineering design to produce solutions that meet specified needs with consideration of public health, safety, and welfare, as well as global, cultural, social, environmental, and economic factors.
3. An ability to communicate effectively with a range of audiences.
4. An ability to recognize ethical and professional responsibilities in engineering situations and make informed judgements, which must consider the impact of engineering solutions in global, economic, environmental, and societal contexts.
5. An ability to function effectively on a team whose members together provide leadership, create a collaborative and inclusive environment, establish goals, plan tasks, and meet objectives.
6. An ability to develop and conduct appropriate experimentation, analyze and interpret data, and use engineering judgment to draw conclusions.
7. An ability to acquire and apply new knowledge as needed, using appropriate learning strategies.

Programs

• Aerospace Engineering, B.S.