What Does An Aerospace Engineer Do?
Aerospace Engineers work for manufacturing companies or government entities building, testing and fixing parts of space and aircrafts like computer systems, control panels and guiding systems. They ensure air and spacecraft vehicles are safe for passenger or cargo transportation. Aerospace Engineers often work closely with departments like testing, production and research to ensure their designs and improvements meet the necessary safety and efficiency standards. They’re typically in charge of creating budgets, safety standards and timelines to ensure every project meets certain guidelines and deadlines.
Aerospace Engineer Skills and Qualifications
Aerospace Engineers are skilled in many fields, including analysis, problem-solving and design. A successful Aerospace Engineer candidate will display a specific skill set that ensures a project will be completed thoroughly and safely. Such qualifications are as follows:
- Business skills and commercial law knowledge for reaching federal government standards and regulations
- Math skills since trigonometry and calculus are often used in analytical designs
- Writing skills in order to explain their designs clearly in writing
- Critical-thinking skills to conclude why a design may not be working and how to fix it
Aerospace Engineer Salary Expectations
For Eeronautical Engineers—Aerospace Engineer that specialize in work with aircrafts—the average salary is $78,477. This information is based on 1,013 salaries submitted to Indeed in the past 36 months from employees, users and past and present job advertisements. The average amount of time candidates tend to stay within a company is 1-3 years.
Aerospace Engineer Education and Training Requirements
Candidates for Aerospace Engineering should have a bachelor’s degree in aerospace engineering and should have field studies in general engineering, mechanics, propulsion, aerodynamics, structures, stability and control. Though not required, it is recommended for an Aerospace Engineer candidate to be trained in software that they may have to frequently use, such as C++. Any candidate that wishes to advance to overseeing a project must pick up a Professional Engineering (PE) license. Issued from state to state, this license allows high levels of leadership and independence.
Aerospace Engineer Experience Requirements
Entry-level candidates should be an EIT (engineer-in-training) before starting a new job. Upon receiving their bachelor’s degree, entry level Aerospace Engineer candidates can take an exam called the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) exam in order to officially become an EIT. Once they complete the work experience requirements set by your company, they can then take the second exam called the Principles and Practice of Engineering. After passing the FE and PE exams, completing at least fours of work experience, and receive a degree from an ABET-accredited program, a candidate can receive their state licensure.
Job Description Samples for Similar Positions
If an aerospace engineer is not quite what you are looking for, here are some similar job descriptions that may be a better suit for your company.