AEROSPACE ENGINEERS DESIGN AIRCRAFT and spacecraft, and supervise the manufacturing and testing processes. They use advanced physics and mathematics, and work with state-of-the-art equipment and computer programs to stay on the cutting edge of design technology. Many aerospace engineers work in the aircraft industry, while others work for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), or the Department of Defense. To become an aerospace engineer requires at least a bachelor's degree, and most engineers earn a master's degree. Study can be focused in aerospace engineering, but another branch of engineering, such as mechanical or electrical, is also acceptable. Entry-level engineers do not need to be licensed, but after four years of work experience it is advisable to take the professional licensure exam. There is also a place in this field for those who prefer to work with their hands. While aerospace engineers do most of their work on the computer, aerospace engineering technicians do the hands-on work. They follow the specifications of the engineers and meet with them regularly to discuss operational details, and to review product test results. They may use computer simulations to test new designs, but they are also involved in manufacturing and installing actual parts and systems. The educational requirements for technicians are less rigorous than those for engineers, and there are a couple of choices. Some employers require a diploma or certificate in engineering or aerospace technology from a vocational program. Other employers want to see an associate degree. Either way, it only takes a couple of years to get the necessary training. Still other employers offer on-the-job training programs that allow candidates to begin work without a degree. That is extremely easy entry for a career where it is possible to earn as much as $80,000 a year. Certification by the Federal Aviation Administration is not necessary but it can help your job prospects. The American spacecraft Apollo 11 made history when it sent the first man to the moon. Astronaut Neil Armstrong described his walk on the moon as "one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind." The crew of astronauts was well aware of how many people - including the aerospace engineers and technicians - had played a part in the successful lunar landing, and they decided not to include their own names on Apollo 11's mission insignia so that it would be representative of everyone who had worked on the mission. The significance of a lunar landing and of any spacecraft activity is not only scientific but also political. Launching a rocket successfully is a sign of scientific, military, and financial power that often commands the attention of the whole globe. In recent years, launching rockets has been considered a sign of a nation's nuclear weapons capacity, and can cause other nations to react with concern. Aerospace engineers and technicians should thus be considered important not only for their scientific achievements, but for the international political significance of their actions. Although the US government has reduced its involvement in aerospace endeavors, the rest of the world and, more importantly, private industry have not. More and more companies in the private sector are investing in technologies that will permit people to experience real space travel - beyond our own orbit. We are on the threshold of a new era of advanced space exploration. Being a part of such exciting and important projects is a dream come true for anyone with a creative and scientific mind.

Choosing a career of your passion is likewise the crest of a wave. Opting Aerospace Engineering is one of those. Undoubtedly persuing Aerospace Engineering is quite challenging out of all other. You might feel bit tricky while studying in academic years but your zeal to learn and grow can turn up the trumps. If you push the stick forward, the houses get bigger. If you pull the stick back, they get smaller. That is, unless you keep pulling the stick all the way back, then they get bigger again. “Within all of us is a varying amount of space lint and star dust, the residue from our creation. Most are too busy to notice it, and it is stronger in some than others. It is strongest in those of us who fly and is responsible for an unconscious, subtle desire to slip into some wings and try for the elusive boundaries of our origin.”"

Audisee® eBooks with Audio combine professional narration and sentence highlighting for an engaging read aloud experience! An American Indian Library Association Youth Literature Award Honor Picture Book Mary Golda Ross designed classified airplanes and spacecraft as Lockheed Aircraft Corporation's first female engineer. Find out how her passion for math and the Cherokee values she was raised with shaped her life and work. Cherokee author Traci Sorell and Métis illustrator Natasha Donovan trace Ross's journey from being the only girl in a high school math class to becoming a teacher to pursuing an engineering degree, joining the top-secret Skunk Works division of Lockheed, and being a mentor for Native Americans and young women interested in engineering. In addition, the narrative highlights Cherokee values including education, working cooperatively, remaining humble, and helping ensure equal opportunity and education for all. "A stellar addition to the genre that will launch careers and inspire for generations, it deserves space alongside stories of other world leaders and innovators."—starred, Kirkus Reviews

There are many opportunities for career development in the aerospace industry. The book is a first-hand account of an aerospace/mechanical engineer's career progression, from NASA compressibility research to freight train brakes, jet engine development, ICBMs, planetary exploration vehicles, gas turbines for power generation, and solar energy use. A career guide rating is created by taking into account the opportunity, compensation, learning, security, and family benefits for each career move.

A contemporary and detailed look at the reality behind the PhD degrees and postdoctoral fellowships in academia. The book explores some of the most pressing issues and unique challenges currently facing the doctoral and postdoctoral programs both on a local institutional level and on a global one where multiple complex factors influencing and governing the academic environment take place. The interrelated nature of these challenges together with discussions over certain historical trends and demographics offer a unique perspective on some often overlooked topics such as academic advisors and mentoring, increasing job insecurity, career prospects, mental issues, discrimination and women in science, ever growing need for funding, increasing pressure for high-profile research, internationalization of science, trends in university management, higher education dynamics, and government policies, backed with references to published research, national and international surveys, and census data. Today, most of the PhD programs have been accommodated to the benefit of the university with disregard to any sustainable demand-and-supply job market strategies, contrary to the original ideas behind their inception. The result is an over-flooded job market and huge underemployment rates among doctorate holders. Infused with a narrative of a rich mix of personal experiences, observations, and impressions, all dressed in humor (mostly dark), sarcasm, irony, disbelief, and often outright criticism, this text does not shy away from asking uncomfortable questions and even attempts to provide answers to some of them. At the same time it also offers practical advice for those considering and those who already have dared to tread the PhD path.