Graduate Program

 

The Aerospace Engineering Department offers a Graduate Program leading to a Master of Science (M.S.) in Aerospace Engineering. The program focuses on academic excellence as well as the professional development of graduate students. The graduate students are expected to demonstrate competence and creativity in a variety of professional requirements. The AE M.S. program emphasizes the application of theoretical principles to practical problems in the field of Aerospace Engineering and helps in providing KSA with the high-caliber professional engineers that are needed for the development of the country. 

 

The AE M.S. program has been d​​esigned to continually evolve by taking account of modern trends and the latest developments in the area of Aerospace Engineering. The graduate courses are designed to p​rovide the student with the opportunity to deepen and broaden his knowledge base in the respective subjects and motivate him to sharpen his skills in problem solving, creative thinking, research, technical report writing and presentation. The graduate student is also provided with opportunities to improve his skills in conducting experiments for the validation of analytical and computational models. The Graduate admission criteria is mentioned on the KFUPM admissions​ website. 

​Main Features of M.S. Progra​m​​​  ​

​ The AE M.S. Program is distinguished by the following main features: 

  • AE is one of the most important strategic fields in the developing world from at least two aspects: First, its effect on the infrastructure of the country such as fast communication, air transportation, civil aviation, industry and economy; Second, its relevance to defense issues including Air Force and Air Defense.  

  • It is designed to maintain and improve the quality of AE undergraduate and graduate programs in line with the high standard set by KFUPM.  

  • It addresses the current and future needs of KSA, the Arabian Gulf and Peninsula region in this strategically important field of Aerospace Engineering and Aviation.  

  • It is designed to cope with the new technological developments and trends in the fields of Aerospace Engineering and Aviation.  

  • It offers a wide variety of AE electives to cover all important topics related to major areas of Aerospace Engineering.  

  • Its quality is comparable to similar leading international programs, and it has the flexibility to meet local needs with minimal courses and costs and without affecting program quality.  

  • It is unique in KSA, the Arabian Gulf and Peninsula region.  

  • It strictly adheres to the mission of the College of Engineering and KFUPM.​ 

    AE Graduate Courses  ​

    The AE graduate courses with the major groups are listed below in table.

  • M.S. Degree Requirements​  ​

    In addition to meeting the overall requirements of KFUPM, AE M.S. ​students must satisfy the following requirements.​ 

    • A student should satisfactorily complete a minimum of 30 credit hours including 8 courses, AE 599 (seminar) and AE 610 (M.S. Thesis). The distribution of the courses is mentioned below in items 2 to 6. 

    • Two core courses: AE 520 and AE 540 

    • One Mathematics core course (MATH 513/514/550) depends on the emphasis of the program; other Math courses can be considered with the approval of the AE Department. 

    • Two AE elective courses from AE courses. 

    • Two technical elective courses from AE courses or from any other department (such as Engineering depts., Mathematics Dept., Systems Engineering Dept.). These technical electives must be taken from technical fields such as Engineering and Science. 

    • One free elective course from the AE Department or any other department. 

    • The AE elective courses and the technical/free elective courses require the approval of the AE Department. The combination of the core courses and elective courses should make a sound program in depth and breadth for the student to help in his area of emphasis and his future career. 

    • Graduate courses are strongly encouraged for the M.S. Program. However, under certain conditions, a maximum of two senior-level undergraduate courses (one as AE elective course and the other as technical elective course from the AE Department or any other department) may be taken for graduate credit towards the M.S. degree. These two courses must be approved by the AE Department. 

    • The student has to maintain a minimum GPA of 3.00 (out of 4.00) throughout the course of study. 

    • The expected duration of the M.S. Program is two years. 

     
    ​​M.S. Degre​e P​lan  ​

  • Notes:  

    (1) AE Electives I and II,  Technical Elective I and II, and the Free Elective courses are 500 level. However, maximum of two undergraduate courses can be taken for credit with approval of AE Department. Technical Elective I and II must be taken from engineering or science.  

    (2) MATH 513/514/550/571/572/574/577 with the approval of the department.  

    • ​​​​Each student is expected to submit his detailed degree plan according to the above generic degree plan for approval by the AE Department and the Deanship of Graduate Studies by the middle of the second semester from the enrollment. 

    • ​Students are required to adhere to the regulations of the degree plan. No relaxations will be given to any student and the courses taken in conflict of the above will not be counted towards the degree. 

    ​(3) One free elective course from the AE Department or any other departm​ent.​​