Jul 04, 2025  
Rensselaer Catalog 2025-2026 
    
Rensselaer Catalog 2025-2026

Aerospace Engineering, B.S.


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The following template illustrates one example sequence of courses to a Bachelor of Science degree in Aerospace Engineering (ASPC). The MANE Undergraduate Handbook provides further details on the degree requirements and milestones for making progress toward the degree  

First Year


Fall Semester (17 credits)


Spring Semester (17 credits)


Second Year


Fall Semester (18 credits)


Spring Semester (15 credits)


Third Year


Please note: The third year of the program varies depending upon which semester the student chooses to take away following The Arch Summer Semester classes. Please note the following differences in curriculum:

  • If students are going to be away during the Fall semester of their junior year, they should take the listed courses for each term and any courses under the Fall Away Track for year three of their program.
     
  • If students are going to be away during the Spring semester of their junior year, they should take the listed courses for each term and any courses under the Spring Away Track for year three of their program.

ARCH Semester (16 credits)


*For more information on the ARCH process, please click here: The Arch 

Fall Arch-Away Semester


Spring Semester Only (17 credits)


Fourth Year


Fall Semester (15 credits)


Spring Semester (15 credits)


  • MANE-4XXX Technical Elective Credit Hours: 3 8
  • MANE-4XXX Required Aerospace Laboratory III Credit Hours: 2 5
  • HASS Core Elective Credit Hours: 4 
  • Free Elective Credit Hours: 3
  • Free Elective Credit Hours: 3

Footnotes


1 Choice of ENGR 1200 , ENGR 1400 , or CIVL 1200 ; ENGR 1200  is preferred for aerospace engineering majors.

2 Students changing majors to ASPC and transfer students may use ENGR 1100  to satisfy MANE 1010  and/or ENGR 2530  to satisfy MANE 2010 , respectively. Consult the MANE Undergraduate Handbook on how to acquire remedial course content

3 Choose from ENGR 2050  and MANE 2220 ; both have ENGR 1010  embedded in them.

4 While not a strict prerequisite, aerospace engineering students are very strongly recommended to take the required MANE 4100  before their capstone MANE 4250 . Students taking Space Vehicle Design before Spaceflight Mechanics will have limited choices in their roles in the design process and may be less prepared to understand the mission they are designing for.

5 The three required Aerospace Engineering Laboratories are associated with major-defining courses as follows:

MANE 4510  taken during or after MANE 4500  
 
MANE 4910  taken after MANE 4070  

MANE 4920  taken after MANE 4060  

The order in which students take the three required laboratory courses is not important, but students are encouraged to try to take earlier those laboratories that they more closely associate with their engineering identity as aerospace engineering majors.

6 STSO 4100  should be completed before the capstone MANE 4250  course. Students may instead choose any 4-credit course indicated as a “PDII Option” in the ‘Attributes’ column in SIS, in which case two credits will satisfy the STSO 4100  requirement and the remaining two credits may satisfy free elective credits.

7 Choice of MANE 4140 , MANE 4240 , or MANE 4280 . More than one may be taken, and each additional course may apply as a Technical Elective or a Free Elective.

8 Choice of any MANE-4XXX or higher-level courses not required for the major, including independent studies and undergraduate research projects (URP), that total three credits or more (and additional credits may apply elsewhere).

A These courses should be completed by the end of the first year / second semester.

B These courses should be completed by the end of the third semester.

C These courses should be completed by the end of the second year / fourth semester
(prior to the Arch Summer)

Natural Science and Mathematics Distribution Requirement


In addition to satisfying Rensselaer’s Math/Science Core, undergraduate students in MANE are required to complete a minimum of 30 credits in the natural sciences and mathematics. These credits must be taken for a grade that contributes to the student’s GPA (not P/NC, not S/U) or be approved applicable transfer credits (including AP and IB credits). These credits establish a foundation such that further study in the applied engineering sciences stimulates “the application of science to the common purposes of life.”

MANE students who successfully complete at Rensselaer the named courses and electives appearing in the degree template above will meet or exceed both Rensselaer’s Math/Science Core requirements and the Natural Science and Mathematics Distribution requirement.

Students who transfer in courses for fewer credits than the Rensselaer equivalent may be required to make up Math/Science Core and/or Natural Science and Mathematics Distribution credits. Consult with your advisor and the Degree Clearance Officer for your major to be sure you will satisfy these graduation requirements.

Pass / No Credit (P/NC) and Satisfactory / Unsatisfactory (S/U) Courses


No courses declared P/NC apply to the major other than possibly certain HASS electives and Free Elective courses. (See the HASS Core requirements and limits on P/NC elsewhere in this catalog.) In particular, the Engineering Design Elective, Capstone Design Elective, Computation Elective, and Technical Electives may not be P/NC.

Students taking additional courses to satisfy the Math/Science Core or the Natural Science and Mathematics Distribution requirement must take them for a letter grade. They may not be P/NC or S/U.

The School of Engineering requires that 1 credit courses graded S/U that are not from the School of Engineering may not apply to Free Elective credits

Catalog Year


Students matriculating at Rensselaer generally follow the currently applicable Academic Year catalog curricula. Students are also permitted to choose to follow a subsequent academic year’s catalog to take advantage of the continuous evolution of Rensselaer’s curricula.

 

In MANE, an undergraduate student matriculating as a transfer student may be permitted to follow the School of Engineering catalog curricula from the prior two academic years. This choice will be made by the transfer student’s Degree Clearance Officer for their MANE degree or an Associate Dean of Engineering. 

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