CPP Aerospace Engineering

The Department of Aerospace Engineering provides a comprehensive education in aerospace engineering, with studies in aerodynamics, astrodynamics, structures, propulsion, flight mechanics, systems engineering, project management, and aerospace vehicle design. The department provides two emphasis areas—Aeronautics and Astronautics—each presented using Cal Poly Pomona’s learn-by-doing, hands-on engineering approach to simulate the aerospace industry culture.

The curriculum covers theoretical, computational, and experimental content. The computational and simulation approach uses some of the key industry tools such as Fluent, NASTRAN, AMESim, SolidWorks, MATLAB, and FreeFlyer. The experimental approach utilizes 10 aerospace laboratories. These include a well-equipped multi-million dollar wind tunnel complex for sub- and supersonic testing, a very active Unmanned Air Vehicle Lab with a focus on autonomous operation and collision avoidance, an active Liquid Rocket Lab to design, build and test liquid rocket engine-powered launch vehicles, an Astronautics Lab for satellites and rockets, and the Aerospace Structures Lab that includes 3-D additive manufacturing printers. These labs are used extensively for instruction and research projects.

There are two required year-long capstone team projects for our seniors: senior project, which usually involves the hands-on design, construction, and testing of an aerospace system, and senior design, which is the design of an aircraft, spacecraft, or a launch vehicle, which includes presenting twice during the academic year before a team of judges from the aerospace industry. For the past 15 years, our senior design students have won top honors at AIAA Design, JPL, NASA, and other competitions over 25 times.

The department has been in continuous operation for over 65 years, having started in the fall of 1957. Most of our graduates work in the aerospace industry and government-related agencies, with some having become managers, directors, US patent holders, VPs, company founders, presidents, and CEOs.