Aeronautical and Aerospace Engineering

Aeronautical and aerospace engineering is concerned with the development of aircraft and spacecraft – using science and engineering, computational and analytical skills to design vehicles and structures that interact with the earth’s atmosphere and beyond.

From choosing materials which maximise structural strength to optimising aerodynamics and fuel economy, today’s industry-leading aeronautical and aerospace engineers are developing new technologies for use in aviation, defence systems, and spacecraft.

Studying an aeronautical and aerospace engineering degree at Leeds will develop your abilities in mathematics, physics, materials and computer science, backed-up with a strong design philosophy – all of which will equip you to design, analyse, manufacture and operate aircraft and aerospace vehicles. You’ll be prepared to help meet the challenges facing the aerospace sector.

Our active Industrial Advisory Board helps inform the development of this course to ensure that it is up to date with industry developments and requirements. That’s one of the reasons why our graduates are so in demand from industry, and why our courses are accredited by the leading professional bodies.

Why Study at Leeds

This course is accredited by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers and the Royal Aeronautical Society.

Get hands on with practical work in each year of study by putting into practice what you have learned by designing, manufacturing and assembling devices and testing their performance.

This is a practical course, so you’ll benefit from specialist facilities including extensive lab space and equipment such as wind tunnels, our high-spec computer cluster for Computer-Aided Design (CAD) work and computational modelling, in aerodynamic analysis for example, and workshop facilities for various rapid prototyping systems.

You’ll develop your programming skills in industry standard languages like Matlab and for microprocessor systems, giving you everything you need to get started on your career in engineering.

Test your learned knowledge in various practical activities and events throughout the course including designing, building and testing a model aircraft and gaining hands-on flying experience at The National Flying Laboratory Centre.

Benefit from our globally recognised research that feeds directly into your course and shapes what you learn at Leeds with the latest thinking.

Develop your experience and boost your career prospects with our industrial placement opportunities or study abroad programmes.

At the end of your second year, there’s the possibility of transferring to the four-year integrated Masters (MEng, BEng).

Make the most of your time at Leeds by joining our student society MechEngSoc. It’s a great opportunity for you to meet people from different cultures and backgrounds who share your passion for mechanical engineering.