Confidential

Self-Study Report

Bachelor of Science in Aerospace Engineering (BSAE)

Bachelor of Science in Aerospace Engineering (Cooperative Plan)

Bachelor of Science in Aerospace Engineering (International Plan)

Bachelor of Science in Aerospace Engineering (Research Option)

Georgia Institute of Technology

Robert G. Loewy

William R.T. Oakes Professor & Chair

School of Aerospace Engineering

Georgia Institute of Technology

Atlanta, GA 30332-0150

Office: (404) 894-3002

Office Fax: (404) 894-2760

robert.loewy@ae.gatech.edu
Lakshmi N. Sankar

Regents Professor and Associate Chair for Undergraduate Studies

School of Aerospace Engineering

Georgia Institute of Technology

Atlanta, GA 30332-0150

Office: (404) 894-3014

Office Fax: (404) 894-2760

lsankar@ae.gatech.edu

The School of Aerospace Engineering is one of the oldest programs in the country. It was originally established as "The Daniel Guggenheim School of Aeronautics" on March 3, 1930 when the Georgia School of Technology (now, Georgia Institute of Technology) received a $300,000 grant from The Daniel Guggenheim Fund for the Promotion of Aeronautics, Inc. The other six recipients of a similar grant were California Institute of Technology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of Michigan, New York University, Leland Stanford Junior University (now simply, Stanford University), and University of Washington.

The Guggenheim Building was dedicated on June 8, 1931. The first classes were begun in September 1931 with eighteen students, two faculty members, and a budget of $10,000. To better reflect the School's growing and expanding interests and responsibilities beyond the field of aeronautics, its name was officially changed to the School of Aerospace Engineering effective July 1, 1962.

The first Bachelor's degree was awarded in 1932 to thirteen graduates. In 1967, there were 64 Bachelor's degrees awarded, and by 1986 a peak of 106 Bachelor's degrees were awarded. The Master's degree was first awarded in 1934 to two candidates. The Ph.D. program was begun in 1961 with one student, with two Ph.D. degrees awarded in 1966.

The following major changes have been made to the program since 2002. Two new degree options - BSAE (International Plan) and BSAE (Research Option) - have been added, in 2005 and 2007, respectively. Undergraduate research courses (AE 2699, 4699), research fellowship courses (AE 2698, AE 4698), and Design Competition courses (AE 2355, 4355) were created to recognize and document the students’ research accomplishments on their transcripts. We have already implemented an honors program, and offer a minor in AE.

The BSAE (International Plan) option has the following requirements, which may be completed over the same total number of credit hours, as the BSAE program.

• 
  Students are required to complete two years (e.g. Spanish/French/German 1001, 1002, 2001, and 2002) of foreign language studies in a language of their choice.
  
• 
  Students are required to take one course focused on international relations, one course that provides a historical and theoretical understanding of the global economy, and one course that provides familiarity with an area of the world or a country that allows them to make systematic comparisons with their own society and culture. These three courses (9 credit hours) may be applied towards the social science requirements of the program. A list of courses approved in these three areas is available on the website of the Registrar's Office.
  
• 
  Students must complete 26 weeks (just over 6 months) of active engagement abroad.  The terms may include any approved combination of study, work or research conducted abroad. Although they need not be consecutive, the immersion experience(s) should demonstrate cultural, linguistic and/or intellectual coherence and must be completed within no more than two terms.
  

Research Option may be completed over the same number of credit hours (132) as the other options in the program. This option offers students the opportunity for a substantial, in-depth research experience.  It offers students a taste for what long-term research can be like and provides extensive experience not found within a typical course setting.  One-on-one student and faculty mentoring is also a highlight of the experience.  Students are strongly encouraged at the end of their experience to work with their faculty mentor to develop a journal publication or conference presentation on the research in addition to the actual thesis.

1. 
   Complete at least 9 units of undergraduate research. These courses should span at least two, preferably three terms. Research may be for either pay (audit) or credit. At least 6 of the 9 required hours should be on the same topic.
   
2. 
   Complete a research proposal outlining their research topic and project for the thesis
   
3. 
   Write an undergraduate thesis/report of research on their findings
   
4. 
   Take the class LCC 4700 “Writing an Undergraduate Thesis” (taken during the thesis-writing semester).
   

This program just began in spring 2007. Three students have already graduated under this option.

Students are admitted to the AE honors program during their sophomore year, provided they have an overall GPA of 3.5 or higher on classes taken at Georgia Tech. They are required to maintain a GPA above 3.5 during the subsequent semesters. Students in the honors program also conduct undergraduate research (for a minimum of three semesters) either for credit (AE 2699 and AE 4699 courses) or for pay (AE 2698 and AE 4698). Finally, honors students are required to present their research in AIAA student conferences, brown bag seminars, or other symposia on campus. Students graduating under the honors program are eligible to enroll in our graduate program with minimal paper work, and may apply up to 6 hours of advanced electives (at the 4000 or 6000 level) earned at the BSAE level towards their graduate program. At this writing, over 70 AE students are enrolled in the honors program.

The School of Aerospace Engineering offers a minor in AE as a service to the rest of the campus. Students must complete 18 hours of course work from one of the following tracks: aerodynamics, structures, propulsion, avionics, aeroelasticity, and flight dynamics. Additional information may be found at the web site http://www.ae.gatech.edu/academics/undergraduate/forms/AE_Minor3.pdf . At this writing, there are approximately 20 students pursuing this option.

The School is chaired by Professor Robert G. Loewy. He is assisted by Associate Chairs, Professors Jechiel Jagoda and Lakshmi Sankar, in the areas of graduate and undergraduate studies, respectively. There are 37 faculty members with expertise in aerodynamics, structures and materials, structural dynamics and aeroelasticity, propulsion and combustion, flight mechanics and control, avionics, software engineering, cognitive engineering, and aerospace system design. Discipline committees are responsible for curricular and research activities in each of these fields. Because of the diversity and interdisciplinary expertise of our faculty members, it is quite common for a faculty member to serve on two discipline committees. Operational committees are responsible for overseeing activities such as facilities development, faculty/student honors and awards, reappointment, promotion and tenure, etc.

The chart below shows the operating committees within the School.