Educational Program
Our VLRCOE provides a complete selection of coursework in the various disciplines of vertical lift technology at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. These courses have been offered in a consistent and stable manner for over 30 years. The rotorcraft engineering core courses require a minimum of prerequisites so that students from any technical area may complete all courses within a normal graduate program.
The Aerospace Engineering M.S. program at Georgia Tech requires a total of 33 semester hours. These 33 semester hours include 6 hours of advanced mathematics and 3 hours of research credit. A Distance Learning offering of the Master of Aerospace Engineering is also available.
The Aerospace Engineering Ph.D. program at Georgia Tech requires a total of 50 semester hours of course work beyond the B.S. degree. Of these hours, a total of 12 semester credit hours must be in Mathematics. The Ph D. program also requires students to pass a qualification exam in 3 different areas from a list of 14 potential areas (Aeroacoustics, Aerodynamics, Shear Flow, Structural Analysis, Solid Mechanics, Structural Dynamics and Aeroelasticity, Linear Control, Nonlinear Control, Analytical Mechanics, Combustion, High Temp. Gas Dynamics, Design Methods & Processes, Rotorcraft Air Vehicle Design & Performance, Space Vehicle Design & Performance, Helicopter Aeromechanics). It may be noted that 2 of the areas above are in the rotorcraft engineering area (Rotorcraft Air Vehicle Design and Helicopter Aeromechanics).
Within this system construct, the basic philosophy for graduate education within the VLRCOE is to provide two parallel areas of focus, one in the general engineering of rotary-wing air vehicles, and one in a technical sub-discipline of Aerospace Engineering of interest to the student, and relevant to the rotorcraft community.
The five areas of technical specialization available within the rotorcraft center are: Aerodynamics and Acoustics; Dynamics and Aeroelasticity; Flight Mechanics and Control; Structures and Materials; and Design and Optimization. The academic experience thus consists of both breadth and depth.
The rotorcraft engineering core course sequence provides a broad background in rotorcraft engineering while the technical sub-discipline course work provides depth in a selected specialty area. Upon graduation, students enter the rotorcraft workforce with an ability to immediately contribute to their technical sub-discipline while aware of the many different challenges in the development and engineering of rotary-wing air vehicles.
The rotorcraft engineering core curriculum includes:
- A two-course sequence in rotorcraft design (AE 6331 – Rotorcraft Design I and AE 6332 – Rotorcraft Design II)
- Helicopter stability and control (AE 6503 – Helicopter Stability and Control)
- Rotorcraft dynamics and aeroelasticity (AE 6220 – Rotorcraft Dynamics and Aeroelasticity)
- Rotor aerodynamics (AE 6070 – Rotor Aerodynamics)
- Rotorcraft structures and materials (AE8803 – Rotorcraft Structures and Materials)