
MSc Aviation Engineering and Management
World leading aircraft manufacturers predict the number of in-service commercial aircraft doubling to over 43,500 in the next 20 years. Our MSc Aviation Engineering and Management course will provide you with the skills, knowledge and expertise to succeed in the aviation industry.
You’ll develop key problem-solving skills within the field of aviation including airlines, corporate aviation, general aviation, component manufacturing organisations, and related industries, and civil aviation governmental agencies. You’ll gain an understanding of the various complexities facing aviation businesses through a breadth of industry related modules. Your studies will also cover a wide variety of tools, techniques, and research methods, and how they may be applied to research and solve real-life problems within the aviation industry.
The MSc Aviation Engineering and Management course consists of eight modules with a key theme throughout your studies including the ethical dimensions of decision-making and interpersonal relations. This means you can be confident that you will develop personally and professionally as part of the course, ultimately making yourself more employable. You’ll study the following modules:
Aircraft Management and Operations
This module will help you develop a critical awareness of the aircraft life cycle and the associated legislation that ensures that new designs achieve high levels of reliability and inherent sustainability. You will study current and future aircraft design and manufacturing trends and the certification process.
You will be introduced to the models, concepts and methods used for aircraft systems maintenance including their development, integration and certification.
Condition Monitoring and Non-Destructive Testing
This module analyses condition monitoring and non-destructive testing, giving you an appreciation for the key concepts and tools in this subject. You will evaluate the use of these tools in different situations within industry and make recommendations on necessary adjustments.
Human Engineering
You will be encouraged to critically analyse and evaluate safety management systems, organisation safety and human performance in the aviation industry.
Lean Maintenance Operations and Certification
This module will help you develop and understand concepts in Six Sigma, lean maintenance, operational research, reliability centred maintenance and maintenance planning. You will evaluate and critically analyse processes within highly regulated industries.
Safety, Health and Environmental Engineering Management
Covering the principles and implementation of the safety, health and environmental management within the workplace, you will look at key concepts in human cognition and other human factors in risk management and accident/incident investigation. You will also gain an understanding of the role of stakeholder involvement in sustainable development.
Strategic Leadership and Management for Engineers
This module will explore a range of purposes and issues surrounding successful strategic management and leadership as well as appraising a range of leadership behaviours and processes that may inspire innovation, change and continuous transformation within different organisational areas including logistics and supply chain management.
Research Methods for Engineers
The aim of this module is to provide you with the ability to determine the most appropriate methods to collect, analyse and interpret information relevant to an area of engineering research. To provide you with the ability to critically reflect on your own and others work.
Individual Project
You will undertake a substantial piece of investigative research work on an appropriate engineering topic and further develop your skills in research, critical analysis and development of solutions using appropriate techniques.
Teaching
You will be taught through a variety of lectures, tutorials and practical laboratory work. On average you can expect to be in classroom-based activities for around 12 hours per week, you will also need to devote around 30 hours per week to self-study, such as conducting research and preparing for your assessments and lectures.
Assessment
You will be continually assessed coursework or a mixture of coursework and exams. The dissertation allows you to research a specific aviation engineering topic, to illustrate your depth of knowledge, critical awareness and problem-solving skills. The dissertation has three elements of assessment: a thesis, a poster presentation, and a viva voce examination.
Facilities
The University has recently invested another £3.3m into its existing aerospace facilities. A two-storey Aerospace Centre extension adds 1,000m2 of practical workshop and laboratory space for engineering students. This includes two aircraft hangars with civil and military aircraft, and a MP521 engineering flight simulator.
The Aerospace Centre is home to a Jetstream 31 Twin Turboprop aircraft, assembled with Honeywell TPE331 Engines and Rockwell-Collins Proline II Avionics, alongside a Jet Provost T-Mk 3 military training jet.
The Centre also includes a gas turbine maintenance workshop, simulated aircraft shell riveting area, hand tools workshops and welding bay, plus clean and dirty composite workshops for specimens and repairs. Dedicated laboratory space for electronic practical tasks, avionics systems, hydraulics and pneumatics also feature providing students with hands-on practical experience.
Our sub-sonic wind tunnels are used for basic aerodynamic instruction, testing and demonstrations on various aerofoil shapes and configurations. Whilst our single-seater, full motion, three axes Merlin MP521 engineering flight simulator can be programmed and simulate any existing aircraft type.
Our EASA-approved facilities have also been fully approved by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).
Lecturers
We regularly revalidate courses for quality assurance and enhancement
At USW, we regularly review our courses in response to changing patterns of employment and skills demand to ensure we offer learning designed to reflect today’s student needs and tomorrow’s employer demands.
If during a review process course content is significantly changed, we’ll write to inform you and talk you through the changes for the coming year. But whatever the outcome, we aim to equip our students with the skillset and the mindset to succeed whatever tomorrow may bring. Your future, future-proofed.
A minimum 2:2 Honours degree in a related engineering discipline e.g. Aircraft Maintenance Engineering, Aircraft Engineering, Aeronautical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering with relevant Aircraft experience, Electrical & Electronic Engineering with relevant Aircraft experience
or if you are an EASA licensed engineer with five years relevant industrial experience and relevant academic qualification.
The course welcomes international applicants and requires an English level of IELTS 6.0 with a minimum of 5.5 in each component or equivalent. Find out more about what entry requirements we ask for from your country or region by visiting our international web pages.
Full-time fees are per year. Part-time fees are per 20 credits. Once enrolled, the fee will remain at the same rate throughout the duration of your study on this course.
August 2023 - July 2024 Fees
Full-time UK: £9500
Full-time International: £15100
Part-time UK: £1055 per 20 credits
Student Perks
At the University of South Wales, you’re investing in so much more than a degree. We strive to provide our students with the best possible experience, no matter what you chose to study. Whether it’s access to top of the range mac books and PCs, state-of-the-art facilities packed with industry-leading equipment and software, masterclasses and events led by industry experts, or a wide range of clubs and societies to meet likeminded people, better tomorrows start with extra perks.
Each course also has their own unique student benefits to prepare you for the real word, and details of these can be found on our course pages. From global field trips, integrated work experience and free course-related resources, to funded initiatives, projects working with real employers, and opportunities for extra qualifications and accreditations - at USW your future, is future-proofed.
Click here to learn more about student perks at USW.
Additional Costs
As a student of USW, you’ll have access to lots of free resources to support your study and learning, such as textbooks, publications, online journals, laptops, and plenty of remote-access resources. Whilst in most cases these resources are more than sufficient in supporting you with completing your course, additional costs, both obligatory and optional, may be required or requested for the likes of travel, memberships, experience days, stationery, printing, or equipment.
Funding
Funding to help pay for (or cover) course tuition fees and living costs
Whilst you’re studying, you’ll have two main financial obligations – tuition fees and living costs. There’s lots of financial help available from the University of South Wales and external funding sources, that may provide loans (which have to be paid back) and grants, scholarships and bursaries (that don't).
To learn about course fees, funding options, and to see if you are eligible for financial support, visit our Fees and Funding pages.
USW Postgraduate 20% Alumni Discount 2023/24
The University of South Wales is offering a 20% reduction in tuition fees for all University of South Wales* graduates starting a taught/online*** MA,MSc, LLM,MBA or DBA course from September 2023 (this includes students starting a course in January/February 2024). T's and Cs apply. Click here for more details and eligibility criteria: USW Postgraduate Alumni Discount 2023/24
Aerospace engineering is an area where demand exceeds supply. As a highly skilled professional in aircraft maintenance engineering, you will be well placed to gain employment in this challenging industry. The aircraft industry is truly international, so there is demand not only in the UK, but throughout the world.
Careers available after graduation include aircraft maintenance planning, engineering, materials, quality assurance or compliance, technical services, logistics, NDT, method and process technical engineering, aircraft or engine leasing, aviation sales, aviation safety, reliability and maintainability, operations and planning, airworthiness, technical support, aircraft surveying, lean maintenance, certification, production planning and control.
Graduates may also progress to an engineering research degree.
Our Careers and Employability Service
As a USW student, you will have access to advice from the Careers and Employability Service throughout your studies and after you graduate.
This includes: one-to-one appointments from faculty based Career Advisers, in person, over the phone or even on Skype and through email via the "Ask a Question" service. We also have extensive online resources for help with considering your career options and presenting yourself well to employers. Resources include psychometric tests, career assessments, a CV builder, interview simulator and application help. Our employer database has over 2,000 registered employers targeting USW students, you can receive weekly email alerts for jobs.
Our Careers service has dedicated teams: A central work experience team to help you find relevant placements; an employability development team which includes an employability programme called Grad Edge; and an Enterprise team focused on new business ideas and entrepreneurship.