Five reasons to study aerospace engineering at Surrey
Programme Director David Birch reveals what makes our aerospace engineering degrees different and the secret behind our graduates’ successes.
- Professional Training opportunities
Many students take advantage of Surrey’s renowned Professional Training placement programme which enables them to get a year’s valuable work experience with major OEMs like Airbus, GE Aviation, Lockheed Martin and Rolls Royce, or even with more specialized suppliers and contractors within the aerospace supply chain. During your placement, you will have the opportunity to hone your technical skills while getting a taste of what it will be like working in your chosen field. Your immersion into the real-world workplace is also an excellent way to develop your critical non-technical skills like leadership, teamworking, project management and communication.We provide a lot of support to our students through the Professional Training programme, and help them secure the right placement. Many students will go on to receive graduate job offers from their placement companies.
- Flexibility with common first year
Choosing the right degree pathway can be difficult, and things sometimes become clearer once you start studying. Whether you opt for our Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Automotive Engineering, or Biomedical Engineering courses, you’ll study a common first year which means you can swap to a different pathway, if you decide it’s a better fit, up until the end of your first year.Similarly, it’s possible to move from a BEng to an MEng degree before the start of your third year, provided you achieve satisfactory results in your second year. Whatever your ambitions, there’s plenty of flexibility.
- Professional accreditation
Our aerospace engineering degrees are accredited by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) and Royal Aeronautical Society (RAeS), so you can be confident that what you’re studying reflects current industry needs. These accreditations mean that our MEng programme fully meets the academic requirements to become a Chartered Engineer, while our BEng programme partially meets the academic requirements (and can subsequently be supplemented by further study).
- Industry-standard facilities
You will use the latest design software and computer-numerical-control (CNC) machine tooling equipment within our Design Centre, and have access to leading facilities such as our EnFlo Labs, which host the only environmental wind tunnel in the UK. We also host the Rolls-Royce University Technology Centre in Thermo-Fluid Systems, where we conduct state-of-the-art research for jet engine applications.
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Compete in prestigious competitions
Learning at Surrey isn’t just about lecture theatres and labs. Our students have a good track record in IMechE competitions such as Formula Student (the world’s largest student motorsport competition) and the Unmanned Aircraft Systems competition (which challenges students to design a fully autonomous drone for a humanitarian aid mission). By joining one of these teams you’ll not only get invaluable hands-on experience but also have the chance to showcase your skills to potential employers.Discover our programmes in aerospace engineering.
