Aerospace and Mechanical Engineers design complex mechanical, thermal, fluid, acoustic, optical, and electronic systems, with characteristic sizes ranging from microns to tens of kilometers. Such systems are used everywhere, from the depths of the ocean and far underground, to near-earth, planetary, interplanetary, and galactic space.
AME students conduct basic and applied research within and across the usual disciplinary boundaries. AME students develop core and valuable problem-solving skills in the areas of aerodynamics, mechanics, thermodynamics, fluid mechanics, heat transfer, materials and design. Our graduates are at the leading edge of academia and industry, tackling innovative, important and exciting challenges.
Hear From our Faculty
Check out our recent faculty roundtable discussion that was held with three of our Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering (AME) Faculty members – Dr. Mathew Gilpin, Dr. Geoff Spedding, Dr. Paul Ronney and Cavalier. This roundtable will discuss what the major is, the courses each faculty teach, research they conduct and the discipline of join us to discuss the courses they teach, the research they conduct, and the discipline of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering at USC Viterbi
AME On The Podcast
AME Student Blog
Learn more about Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering (AME) at USC through our student blog. These posts were written by USC Viterbi AME students during their time at USC to help you better understand the discipline and their life.
Curriculum and Emphases
A degree in Aerospace or Mechanical Engineering (AME) prepares students to work in a variety of fields involving things that move. There are two degree options in the department – check them out here!
Aerospace Engineering
Students who choose to study aerospace engineering will gain a deeper understanding of how things move through the air and fly. They take all the courses that form a foundation in mechanical principles with a focus on making things fly.
Mechanical Engineering
Students who choose to study mechanical engineering will gain a deeper understanding of how things move and the design of those object. They take all the courses that form a foundation in mechanical principles.
Research
We have a balance of programs – theoretical, computational, and experimental – which exemplify the Viterbi School’s approach to intensive and collaborative research.
AME students have the opportunity to work with the world-renowned faculty on research projects including turbulence control, emerging fuel cell technologies, computational fluid mechanics, combustion, heat transfer, automatic control systems, biomechanics, robotics, and nonlinear dynamics. Recent undergraduate research and student projects include the design of fixed and flapping wing systems for small unmanned aircraft, the search for low drag solutions for the global cargo shipping industry, sports injury and helmet design for shock reduction, and optimal control of wheelchairs for humans and hovering flight for animals.
We advance and define research frontiers that shape the future of our life in the air, on the ground, and in space. We push forward the understanding of environments both natural (oceans, atmosphere) and engineered (internal combustion, pulsed ignition). Other efforts advance our understanding of control and dynamics of autonomous systems and robotics, advanced manufacturing technology, aircraft design and flight mechanics of very small and very fast flying machines, and biodynamical systems in medical devices, natural propulsion, and evolutionary system dynamics.
Recent Projects
Check out some recent developments from our Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering Department.
Faculty
Faculty will be teaching all of your classes and leading research projects as well. Your opportunities to build relationships with your faculty will begin immediately in your first year, both in the classroom and the lab.
Check out a few highlighted professors with whom you may work in the future:
Dr. Paul Ronney
Combustion, Fuels, and Engine Labs
He researches combustion problems but also more generally what he calls “chemically reacting flows” such as autocatalytic chemical reactions, frontal polymerization and even studies of bacterial growth and electrical power production.
Dr. Eva Kanso
Biodynamics Lab
Her team developed an algorithm to mimic an aquatic sensory intelligence with regards to the patterns created in water. It is one of the first instances in which machine learning was applied to characterizing patterns in fluid flows.
Dr. S.K. Gupta
Center for Advanced Manufacturing
His research focuses on 1) making advances in robotics to enable deployment of robots on non-repetitive tasks in manufacturing and 2) exploiting advances in manufacturing processes to design and manufacture novel robots.
Dr. Ivan Bermejo - Moreno
Computational Aerospace Lab
He investigates turbulent fluid flows interacting with multiple physical phenomena such as shock waves, combustion and solid structures, by means of numerical simulation and diagnostic tools.
Careers
Your engineering undergraduate degree will prepare you for many career and academic opportunities.
Your future with a degree in Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering can see you pursue a number of future career paths at companies serving a variety of industries.
Whether you have always known “what you want to do when you grow up” or are hoping to find out, we are here to help you plan for your future beyond USC. We provide dedicated career services starting in your first year to help you find internships, co-ops, and full-time positions post graduation.
Student Life
We want students who like to work hard – both in and out of the classroom. Our students know that going to college is more than attending class and completing assignments. College is about making connections and joining a community of dedicated students, faculty, staff, and alumni. Our students want to work and play with people as interesting as they are, and we have a number of ways for you to do the same.
Your life can be designed how you like it. Join a design team like SC Racing. Continue your passion for volunteering with the Society of Women Engineers. Keep making art with Corpus Callosum. On this page, we have a few student organizations we think you might be interested in, but there are so many more you can get involved in!
AeroDesign Team
AIAA Design/Build/Fly
Students design, build, and fly remote-controlled (RC) airplanes. ADT is USC's entrant in the annual AIAA Design Build Fly competition every year against other university across the U.S.
SC Racing
Formula SAE
SC Racing is USC's chapter of FSAE that designs, constructs, tests, and races high performance autocross racecars. Every year they compete against universities worldwide to test their car's abilities.
USC ASPEN
Advanced Spacecraft Propulsion and Energy Laboratory
Student-led research group focused on modeling nuclear-based spacecraft propulsion systems.
Imagine yourself on campus.
Learn more about life at USC as an engineering student at Viterbi Voices:
Alumni
As students, these alumni worked hard in class and didn’t stop there. From start-ups to research, they took advantage of all corners of campus in order to bring their dreams to life and succeed post-graduation. See what some of our alumni are doing now and how they reflect on their time at USC Viterbi.
More Engineering Disciplines
This area of the Viterbi School is just one of the many areas of Engineering & Computer Science. Beyond this area of study, we have ten academic disciplines spread across eight departments to make up more than thirty majors and areas of emphasis. Take some time to explore all of your interests before you apply by clicking on any area below.
