Alabama university adds aerospace systems management programs

Students plotting a commercial pilot or aircraft mechanic career path can pursue concentrations in aviation and those seeking a loftier mission in space exploration can prepare for careers in the private space sector, the school recently announced.

Space system studies include aerospace project management; space mission planning, control, and communications; aircraft and aerospace manufacturing; and avionics, aircraft, and spacecraft systems.

Some of the space exploration strategies include a look at how space exploration has changed in recent years from the government-funded Apollo and space shuttle programs to privately funded space launch systems pioneered by SpaceX, Virgin Galactic, and Blue Origin.

The asynchronous distance learning initiative in the university’s college of business involves associations with Alabama’s Wallace State Community College and Calhoun Community College.

The school is already collaborating with several other universities to launch a small spacecraft (known as a smallsat) into a low-Earth orbit in 2023 to collect and store low-frequency and very-low-frequency signals normally blocked by the Earth’s atmosphere.

Students interested in the program can learn more by contacting Dr. J. Wayne McCain by email or by calling 256-216-5369.