The Ph.D. programme in Aerospace Engineering aims at educating world-class researchers in all the main technological disciplines relevant, but not limited, to the aerospace field. It is embedded in the Department of Aerospace Science and Technology and is part of the Ph.D. School of the Politecnico di Milano. The programme has a duration of three (sometimes four) years and requires the acquisition of 180 credit points (ECTS), including possible study-abroad periods and internships in private or public institutions. Courses are mainly given at the Bovisa Campus of Politecnico di Milano.
Mission and Goals
The aim of the Ph.D. programme is the acquisition of the high level of competence required to carry out innovative research and/or state-of-the-art advanced applications in industries, research centers, universities, and service companies operating in the aerospace industry and research establishment, including all fields with possible connections with aerospace at large. The level of the programme allows graduates to successfully compete in both the European and the international aerospace environment.
The Ph.D. programme covers a wide range of topics related to the aerospace engineering field. Building on top of consolidated aerospace disciplines, such as Aerodynamics and Fluid Mechanics, Structures and Materials, Flight Mechanics and Control, Propulsion, and Space Mission Design, the programme includes currently emerging disciplines that require an enhanced multi-disciplinary approach. Typical research topics target fixed- and rotary-wing aircraft, as well as spacecraft and space mission design and require a deep understanding of the underlying physical processes, integration of multiple disciplines, effective use of sophisticated mathematical models, and blending numerical and experimental methods. To reflect this, the program gives special emphasis to the development of multi-disciplinary thinking and problem-solving skills, while striving to give the students a solid knowledge of the fundamental physical phenomena and all necessary state-of-the-art methods and tools.
Our graduates are expected to be able to conduct and manage original cutting-edge research in the aerospace technology domain, with an ability to rapidly move in neighboring high-tech engineering fields. Indeed, using both computational and experimental approaches, over the years Ph.D. students in Aerospace Engineering have developed research relevant to aircraft and space applications, but also technical areas not strictly related to the aerospace field, such as wind power and automotive engineering.
Career Opportunities
Due to the breadth and interdisciplinary nature of the aerospace arena, the professional skills attainable span a wide area and are not limited to just a few specific topics. Therefore, the Ph.D. programme aims to create high-level specialists in most domains related to aerospace activities.
In this context, a high level of competence can be gained either in a single subject or in the integration of multiple subjects such as dynamics and control, fluid mechanics, systems and equipment, flight mechanics, rotorcraft dynamics, passive structural safety, intelligent and automated systems, structures and materials, aeroservoelasticity, aerospace propulsion, and space mission and satellite design.
Contacts
For further information, please visit the Politecnico di Milano Ph.D. School website: https://www.dottorato.polimi.it/en/ ↗
(School of Doctoral Programmes - Politecnico di Milano at phdschool@polimi.it)
For further specific information on the aerospace engineering programme, visit the page of the Ph.D. Course in Aerospace Engineering: https://www.dottorato.polimi.it/en/phd-programmes/engineering/aerospace-engineering/ ↗
(Ph.D. course in Aerospace Engineering at phd-daer@polimi.it)