MEng Aerospace Engineering with Study Abroad

2025 entry

Course summary

This four-year course in Aerospace Engineering combines our taught course with an opportunity to spend your third year at an English-speaking partner university abroad. This course adds an overseas dimension that reflects the multinational nature of the modern aerospace industry.

There is no direct entry into this course. If you achieve the required grades in your first two years and are selected, you will spend your third year at a partner institution abroad, for example in Sweden, the Netherlands, USA, Singapore or Australia. To find out more about studying abroad, visit Centre for Study Abroad.

You will study a wide range of subjects, organised across four main themes: aerodynamics, structures and materials, dynamics and control, and systems and design. You will apply your knowledge and professional engineering skills to diverse applications such as fixed and rotary wing aircraft, spacecraft and space missions, and renewable energy.

The first two years of the course are devoted to core concepts, which are taught via lectures, supported by practical experience through coursework, and computer and physical lab activities. In addition to core theoretical knowledge, you will develop wider skills, such as teamwork and presentation skills, as part of our design-build-test project.

Your third year will be spent at our partner university; the course content will be equivalent to the same year at Bristol. You will rejoin the course in Bristol for your final year.

The degree is capped off by a group design project in the final year. This is an industrial-focused project where you will work in groups to undertake the design of a whole aerospace vehicle and replicate processes found in industry. You could be asked to design a hydrogen-powered civil aircraft, a future uncrewed aerial vehicle, or even an interplanetary science mission.

In the final year, you also select optional units, which allow you to specialise in the areas that most suit your interests and career plans. You can also choose to undertake a research project, tackling an open-ended challenge and working closely with academics who are world-leading specialists in their research areas, and make use of our extensive facilities.

Bristol lies at the heart of aerospace engineering in the country, and our Industrial Liaison Office organises company engagement through all years of the course, making the most of nearby aerospace companies.

The diversity of topics in aerospace engineering makes this a challenging degree, but the reward is a uniquely broad education which equips you for an exciting career in solving the problems of the future.

Accreditations

Our Aerospace Engineering with Study Abroad MEng is approved by major professional bodies in the UK (RAeS) so as a a graduate you can gain exemptions from a number of their examinations or credits for prior learning.

Course structure

First-year students studying Aerospace Engineering, Civil Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Mechanical and Electrical Engineering, and Engineering Design all start their degrees with a shared foundation of technical knowledge and a command of the skills that underpin modern engineering. You will share common units with your peers in other disciplines and work on an interdisciplinary project. In addition, a dedicated unit will introduce you to the fundamentals of aerospace engineering.

The second year will see you specialise in aerospace engineering. This involves demanding units on topics such as aerodynamics, structures and materials, dynamics and control, and space systems engineering. You will undertake a group design-build-test project that will see you get hands-on with tools and state-of-the-art test equipment.

The third year of the degree concentrates on advanced topics in aerospace engineering, such as computational fluid dynamics, finite element analysis, and feedback control. This year will be spent at the partner university abroad.

The fourth year consists of a capstone group design project, complemented by optional units on a range of specialist topics such as computational and experimental aerodynamics, aerial robotics, advanced composite materials, aircraft and rotor dynamics, space systems or renewable energy. You can also choose to apply your foundational knowledge to cutting-edge research in your individual research project, working closely together with academics who are world-leading experts in their fields.

Full details about the course structure and units for this course can be viewed in the programme catalogue.

Go to programme catalogue

Entry requirements

We accept a wide variety of qualifications and welcome applications from students of all backgrounds. Below is a guide to the typical offers for this course.

The University of Bristol welcomes applications from international students, and we accept a wide range of qualifications for undergraduate and postgraduate study.

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This course is available by transfer only. View the MEng Aerospace Engineering entry requirements information.
More about UK qualifications.