Mar 28, 2024  
2016-2017 University Catalog 
    
2016-2017 University Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Aeronautics and Astronautics Engineering, BSAAE


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About the Program

The field of aeronautical and astronautical engineering includes the challenging problems encountered in the design and operation of many types of aircraft, missiles, and space vehicles and puts a constant demand on research and development groups for an even better understanding of basic physical phenomena.

Aeronautical education has existed on at least a small scale at Purdue University since about 1920. Aeronautical Engineering degrees were first offered at Purdue by the School of Mechanical & Aeronautical Engineering during WWII, and the first B.S. Degrees were awarded in 1943. The School of Aeronautics was established as a separate entity on July 1, 1945. (For a complete history visit the School’s history page.)

During the first sixty years of its existence, the School of Aeronautics and Astronautics has awarded 5,824 BS degrees, 1,439 MS degrees and 474 PhD degrees. These graduates have made significant contributions to the aerospace field, and have held positions of high responsibility in government and private industry. Twenty-three graduates of Purdue have become astronauts, and of these, fourteen have been graduates of the School of Aeronautics and Astronautics.

The Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering curriculum concentrates on the fundamental subject areas necessary to the research, development, design, and operation of the aerospace industry. The curriculum is designed to emphasize the disciplines of aerodynamics, propulsion, structures, dynamics, and control, and further provides design courses to integrate these disciplines into the design of flight vehicles that will perform the required mission. A strong background in mathematics and physics is required to pursue these disciplines, and extensive use of computers and programming skills is a necessity.

The future holds many interesting challenges. The record shows that our graduates have demonstrated their ability to provide technical leadership in a variety of successfully completed projects. A degree from Purdue University in the School of Aeronautics and Astronautics promises to prepare our future graduates for the 21st century in the aerospace field.

 

Degree Requirements and Supplemental Information

The full Program Requirements for 2016-17 Aeronautic and Astronautic Engineering  include all Supplemental Information and selective lists of those categories which a student must fulfill in order to earn their degree. These are intended to be printer-friendly, but include less descriptive course detail.

Please see below for program requirements and the necessary degree fulfillments.
code - BS-AAE
Code-XXX
130 Credits for Graduation
Students must have a graduation index of 2.0

AAE Technical Electives (6 credits)


AAE Major/Minor Electives (15 credits)


Other Departmental /Program Course Requirements (50 credits)


Note


COM 11400  is a highly recommended general elective and is counted separately from the 18 credits of Gen Ed requirement. Therefore the Gen Ed requirement is 18 + 3 credits = 21 when including COM 11400 .  AAE also requires students to complete a business elective and a communications/writing elective at the 300-level or higher.

General Electives (18 credits)


  • G.E.-I - Credit Hours: 3.00
  • G.E.-II - Credit Hours: 3.00
  • G.E.-III - Credit Hours: 3.00
  • G.E.-IV - Credit Hours: 3.00
  • G.E.-V - Credit Hours: 3.00
  • G.E.-VI - Credit Hours: 3.00

University Core Requirements


  • Human Cultures/Humanities
  • Human Cultures Behavioral/Social Science
  • Information Literacy - ENGR 13100
  • Science Selective - PHYS 17200
  • Science Selective - CHM 11500
  • Science, Technology & Society Selective
  • Written Communication - ENGL 10600/10800
  • Oarl Communication - COM 11400
  • Quantitative Reasoning - MA 26500

Program Requirements


15 Credits


16 Credits


16 Credits


16 Credits


16 Credits


16 Credits


Fall 4th Year


17 Credits


Spring 4th Year


18 Credits


Note


*Satisfies a University Core Requirement
**Satisfies a Non-departmental Major Course Requirement

++Students must earn a “C-” or better

130 semester credits required for Bachelor of Science degree.

2.0 Graduation GPA required for Bachelor of Science degree.

Degree Requirement


The student is ultimately responsible for knowing and completing all degree requirements.

The myPurduePlan powered by DegreeWorks is the knowledge source for specific requirements and completion.

Critical Course


The ♦ course is considered critical. A Critical Course is one that a student must be able to pass to persist and succeed in a particular major.

Foreign Language Courses


Foreign Language proficiency requirements vary by program.  For acceptable languages and proficiency levels, see your advisor:

American Sign Language, Arabic, Chinese, French, German, (ancient) Greek, Hebrew, Italian, Japanese, Latin, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish

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