Aerospace Studies Minor

The Aerospace Studies minor allows students with a passion for aeronautics and/or space sciences to gain a deeper understanding and education in these fields. This minor is open for undergraduate degree programs and is particularly well suited to technical majors such as Mechanical Engineering and Physics. 

The minor in Aerospace Studies consists of 24 credits.

Required Courses (15 credits)

• ENGN.2180 Introduction to Aerospace¹
• ENGN.2180L Introduction to Aerospace Lab¹
• MATH.2340 Differential Equations
• MECH.5315 / MECH.5540 Modern Control Systems / Dynamic Systems and Controls
• PHYS.1410 Physics I
• PHYS.4170 / MECH.4991 Space Science Mission Design / Directed Studies in Mechanical Engineering (AIAA DBF, Drones, UAVs or Rocketry)

Electives (9 credits)

Students must successfully complete three of the following elective courses in consultation with their minor advisor:

• ATMO.4840 Space Weather
• EECE.4310 RF Design
• EECE.5710 Radar Systems
• ENGN.2060 Strengths of Materials³
• MECH.4230 Capstone Design
  • AIAA-DBF Capstone
  • CubeSat Capstone
  • Aerospace Related Capstone
• MECH.4830 Aerodynamics and Flight Mechanics
• MECH.5120 Applied Finite Element Analysis
• MECH.5140 Finite Element Analysis of Composites
• MECH.5300 Autonomous Robotic Systems
• MECH.5340 Green Combustion & Biofuels
• MECH.5450 Adv. Industrial Heat and Mass Transfer
• MECH.5580 Aero/Wind Engineering
• MECH.5620 Solid Mechanics I
• MECH.5760 Engineering Project Management²
• MECH.5810 Advanced Fluid Mechanics
• MECH.5830 Advanced Aerodynamics
• MECH.5960 Mechanics of Composite Materials
• MECH.5970 Processing of Composite Materials
• MECH.5980 Experimental Characterization of Composite Materials
• MECH.6140 Nonlinear Finite Element Method
• PHYS.3370 Geometric Optics
• PHYS.3380 Optics and Waves
• PHYS.4400 Image Processing
• PLAS.5730 Business Law for Engineers²

¹Sophomore level course, Freshmen may request instructor permission.

²Students may only apply one of these courses to their Aerospace Studies minor and only if approved by their minor advisor.

³This course may only be applied towards the minor by students for whom it is not required as part of their major.

Note: Additional courses may be added by each college to their list of elective courses.

For more information, contact David Willis, program coordinator.