In your first year, you’ll learn the fundamental skills and knowledge required by a modern engineer, including principles of flight and aircraft operations. You’ll be introduced to computer packages commonly used in the aerospace industry.  

In your second year, the first-year core themes are developed for use in aerospace engineering. You’ll learn about the design process through group design and detail design work and expand your knowledge of aerodynamics, with wind tunnel experiments. If you want to take to the sky, you can fly at a local flying school.

Work placement/study abroad option: Between your second and final year, you’ll have the option to study abroad or do a work placement for up to a year. Not only will this give you an amazing experience to talk about but will also give your CV a boost. If you’d rather go straight to your final year, that’s absolutely fine too. 

In your final year, you’ll work on two projects:  

•The Aerospace Design group project - is where you’ll showcase your engineering skills. You will be allocated to a team to design an aircraft and test fly it using our flight simulator. Every year the design task is different – in previous years, our students designed wide body commercial airliners, heavy cargo aircraft, fire-fighting aircraft, and even strategic bombers.  

•The Individual Major Project - is where you’ll immerse yourself in an area of aerospace engineering, you’re passionate about, using either the University or industrial facilities. This is a rewarding part of your degree that can lead to future employment.  

Work placement

Graduate with invaluable work experience alongside your degree and stand out from the crowd.  

This course offers you the opportunity to enhance your study and CV with a work placement sandwich year. It’s a chance to explore career possibilities, make valuable contacts and gain sought after professional skills.  

Our dedicated Careers and Employment team are here to help guide you through the process.

If you take up a work placement between your second and third year of study, at the University of Hertfordshire you’ll pay no tuition fee for this year. We’ll ask you to make your decision in your second year, so there is plenty of time to think about it. 

What's next for my career?

Graduate employment opportunities are excellent whether you’re interested in the civilian or defence sides of the aerospace industry. Some students even return from industrial placements with sponsorships and job offers. Past graduates have been employed on major projects such as the Airbus A380 or the Typhoon, or in the development of missile systems, satellites and space vehicles.

The first ever passenger jet aircraft, the Comet, was designed and tested in Hatfield. Since then, the aerospace industry has seen unimagined technical progress.

Today, the University of Hertfordshire has projects in both Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) and rocketry, with student projects, research and other activities across a wide range of areas.

Design of a modern aerospace system requires a team of engineers, each with their own specialisation. Development of the systems often transcends national boundaries to international flight, worldwide satellite communications and deep space exploration and is a truly international industry.

You will also benefit from use of our flight simulator to enhance your understanding of aircraft performance, stability and control.

Graduate employment opportunities are excellent whether you’re interested in the civilian or defence sides of the aerospace industry. Some students even return from industrial placements with sponsorships and job offers. Past graduates have been employed on major projects such as the Airbus A380 or the Typhoon, or in the development of missile systems, satellites and space vehicles.