Aerospace Engineering
The state of South Carolina is poised for explosive in-state growth of its aerospace industry. This is led by Boeing’s expansion of its fabrication facilities for the 787 Dreamliner aircraft to Charleston, SC. Almost 6,000 jobs will be directly created by the operational phase of the project, and the long-term increase in economic investment will be approximately $10 billion. Additionally, GE Aviation is making a multimillion-dollar investment in the Matrix Industrial Park in upstate SC. Despite the economic downturn, the aerospace industry’s expansion in SC will create tremendous demand for additional engineers with competence and expertise in the aerospace sciences, engineering, and related topics.
The University of South Carolina (USC) has responded to the needs of the expanding SC aerospace industry by offering a Master’s Program in Aerospace Engineering and providing education for skilled aerospace engineers. USC has a long history of actively working with aerospace companies, including Boeing, Airbus, Lockheed-Martin and Sikorsky as well as the U.S. Air Force, Navy, and Army Aviation & Missile Command. The curriculum and research activities in the Master’s Program will provide our graduates with the skills and education needed to enter the aerospace workforce. USC is the only institution in SC offering an integrated curriculum and an advanced degree in Aerospace Engineering.
The Master’s degree will be available to both on-campus and off-campus students. The off-campus students will be instructed via the existing USC distance learning program, APOGEE. The Masters Program at USC will enable industry to recruit engineers locally, while also involving SC aerospace industry in the education of USC engineering students. The graduates of this program will have opportunities for high paying jobs in the aerospace industry, government laboratories, consulting engineering firms, and local, state and federal government agencies – throughout the US, as well as in foreign countries.