BS in Aerospace Engineering
- Degree Program Description
- Major Program Requirements
- Semester Plan
- Degree Audit
- Major and Career Exploration
Degree Program Description
The aerospace engineering curriculum provides students a foundation in mathematics, the basic sciences, and engineering. Students take core courses in the four fundamental areas of aerospace engineering: 1) aerodynamics, 2) aerospace structures, 3) aerospace vehicle flight dynamics and control, and 4) aerospace propulsion. These foundational courses are augmented by hands-on laboratories involving instrumentation and measurements, aerospace structures, aerodynamics, and thermal systems. The Bachelor of Science in Aerospace Engineering (BSAE) prepares students for employment in the aircraft or spacecraft industries, government laboratories, or for further study toward other degrees such as the JD, MD, MS, and PhD.
Major Program Requirements
The BSAE curriculum allows students to transfer to the BSME program and among engineering departments during the first two years. Students concentrate on BSAE requirements at the beginning of the junior year. During the junior and senior years BSAE students will complete required coursework in the foundational areas of aerospace engineering: 1) aerodynamics, 2) flight dynamics and control, 3) aerospace structures, and 4) propulsion. The senior year includes two MAE electives that allow students to focus on specific topics.
Experience in design is distributed throughout the required courses in the curriculum and culminates in a two-course sequence taken in the senior year: Capstone Design 1 and 2. The capstone design experience integrates earlier technical work with economic, safety, ethical, and environmental considerations. Seniors in the BSAE program will have two options for Senior Capstone Design 2: aircraft design or spacecraft design. Here the two capstone sections will mimic the aerospace industry where students will be part of a large team (or "company") with smaller technical branches that focus on aerodynamics, flight mechanics, structures, and propulsion. Thus, the capstone projects will involve "end-to-end" preliminary designs for aircraft and spacecraft each with a wide range of constraints and mission requirements. The presentations of project results are made to a review panel consisting of members of the faculty and the MAE Industrial Advisory Committee (IAC).
In addition to the University general education and graduation requirements, the BSAE degree requires the following courses.
| CHEM 1400 & CHEM 1401 | College Chemistry I and College Chemistry I Laboratory | 4 |
| MATH 1500 | Analytic Geometry and Calculus I | 5 |
| PHYSCS 2750 | University Physics I | 5 |
| MATH 1700 | Calculus II | 5 |
| ENGINR 1050 | Foundations of Engineering | 2 |
| MAE 1100 | Introduction to Computer Aided Design | 3 |
| PHYSCS 2760 | University Physics II | 5 |
| MATH 2300 | Calculus III | 3 |
| ENGINR 1200 | Statics and Elementary Strength of Materials | 3 |
| ENGINR 2200 | Mechanics of Materials | 3 |
| STAT 4710 | Introduction to Mathematical Statistics | 3 |
| MATH 4100 | Differential Equations | 3 |
| MAE 2100 | Programming and Software Tools | 3 |
| MAE 2200 | Engineering Materials | 3 |
| ENGINR 2300 | Engineering Thermodynamics | 3 |
| or MAE 2300 | Thermodynamics | |
| MAE 2510 | Manufacturing Practice | 1 |
| ENGINR 2260 | Dynamics | 3 |
| or MAE 2600 | Dynamics | |
| MAE 3100 | Computational Methods for Engineering Design | 3 |
| MAE 3440 | Aerodynamics I: Incompressible Flow | 3 |
| MAE 3450 | Aerodynamics II: Compressible Flow | 3 |
| MAE 3600 | Dynamic Systems and Control | 3 |
| MAE 3800 | Instrumentation and Measurements Laboratory | 3 |
| MAE 3820 | Structures Laboratory | 2 |
| MAE 3210 | Flight Structures Analysis | 3 |
| or MAE 4210 | Aerospace Structures | |
| MAE 4390 | Aerospace Propulsion | 3 |
| MAE 3620 | Aerospace Vehicle Flight Performance | 3 |
| or MAE 4620 | Aircraft Flight Performance | |
| MAE 3630 | Space Flight Dynamics | 3 |
| or MAE 4630 | Space Flight Mechanics | |
| MAE 4690 | Aircraft Flight Dynamics | 3 |
| MAE 4840 | Aerospace Engineering Laboratory | 3 |
| MAE 4970 | Senior Capstone Design 1 | 3 |
| MAE 4981W | Aerospace Systems Design | 3 |
| Technical Elective (Math, Science, or Engineering course 3000-level or higher) | 3 | |
| MAE Elective 4000-level | 3 | |
Semester Plan
Below is a sample plan of study, semester by semester. A student's actual plan may vary based on course choices where options are available.
| First Year | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| CHEM 1400 & CHEM 1401 | 4 | PHYSCS 2750 | 5 |
| MATH 1500 | 5 | MATH 1700 | 5 |
| ENGLSH 1000 | 3 | ENGINR 1050 | 2 |
| US History or Us Government | 3 | MAE 1100 | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Second Year | |||
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| PHYSCS 2760 | 5 | STAT 4710 | 3 |
| MATH 2300 | 3 | MATH 4100 | 3 |
| ENGINR 1200 | 3 | ENGINR 2200 | 3 |
| ENGINR 2300 | 3 | ENGINR 2260 | 3 |
| MAE 2510 | 1 | MAE 2100 | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Third Year | |||
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| MAE 3800 | 3 | MAE 3210 | 3 |
| MAE 2200 | 3 | MAE 3820 | 2 |
| MAE 3100 | 3 | MAE 3450 | 3 |
| MAE 3440 | 3 | MAE 3600 | 3 |
| MAE 3620 | 3 | MAE 3630 | 3 |
| Humanities and Fine Arts | 3 | Humanities and Fine Arts Elective | 3 |
| 18 | 17 | ||
| Fourth Year | |||
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| MAE 4840 | 3 | MAE 4981W | 3 |
| MAE 4390 | 3 | Techinical Elective (Math, Science, or Engineering course 3000-level or higher) | 3 |
| MAE 4690 | 3 | MAE Elective 4000-level | 3 |
| MAE 4970 | 3 | Behavioral & Social Science Elective | 3 |
| ISE 2710 | 3 | Humanities and Fine Arts Elective | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Total Credits: 125 | |||
Degree Audit
The degree audit is an automated report reflecting a student’s academic progress toward the completion of a degree.
MU students can request a degree audit by logging in to myDegreePlanner. Students may also access myDegreePlanner via myZou, in the Student Center, click on the Academic Progress Tile, then select Request Degree Audit. The audit automatically pulls in the student’s MU course work, transfer courses and courses in progress. This is available to current students, admitted students, and those who last attended less than three terms ago.
Past MU students can request a degree audit by contacting the Academic Advising Unit of the division in which they were last enrolled at MU. For contact information, go to https://advising.missouri.edu/contact/.
Prospective students, can access a preliminary MU degree audit via https://www.transferology.com. Information on the college credits already earned will have to be manually entered before it can be evaluated against current degree requirements.
For additional details on degree audits, go to https://registrar.missouri.edu/degrees-audits/degree-audits/.
Major and Career Exploration
The University of Missouri has many resources to assist you in exploring majors and career possibilities. For guidance, visit the Majors and Careers website or view specific resources below.
- Change your Major. If you are considering changing your undergraduate major or are choosing between several majors, schedule an appointment with an advisor in the Discovery Center by calling (573) 884-9700 or through the Discovery Center service in your MU Connect success network.
- Decided on a Major. If you have decided on a major, visit an academic advisor in the School or College that you are interested in to discuss the process of declaring that major.
- Identify your Interests and Strengths. If you would like to learn more about your career interests, abilities, values, and talents, visit the staff at the MU Career Center. No appointment is necessary to explore career options with one of our staff members.
- Explore MU Majors. If you would like information about MU majors and degree programs, visit Majors at Mizzou or the Degrees, Majors (Degree Programs), Emphasis Areas, Minors and Certificates page in the catalog.
For additional major and career exploration resources, visit Major & Career Exploration in the catalog.