M.S. in Aerospace & Mechanical Engineering - Dynamics and Control

Admission requirements follow the general admission rules for aerospace and mechanical engineering graduate programs. For admission requirement, refer to Viterbi Graduate Degrees and Requirements at USC Viterbi School of Engineering.

The Master of Science in Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering (Dynamics and Control) prepares students to practice engineering at an advanced level in a specialization within aerospace and mechanical engineering and to recognize the benefit of solving problems using expertise from other engineering disciplines. Students improve their skills in setting up and solving problems by using contemporary tools and leveraging interaction with peers. In addition, this degree provides students with the knowledge and tools necessary for the analysis of complex aerospace and mechanical systems and design of control systems for such systems.

The program educates and trains multidisciplinary professionals in the modeling, analysis, simulation and control of complex time-evolutionary systems. The program provides the graduate student with a broad, well-rounded, advanced education that can be applied to many specific, technologically advanced fields in which dynamics and control play a pivotal role. It is a program of study that encompasses advanced analytical dynamics, nonlinear dynamical systems, linear and nonlinear dynamics and vibrations, and linear and nonlinear control. The program equips students to apply their knowledge to a variety of complex systems encountered in nature and society, especially those in civil, mechanical and aerospace engineering and applied mechanics.

The M.S. in Aerospace & Mechanical Engineering (Dynamics & Controls) program requires completion of a minimum of 27 units with at least 18 units at the 500 level, and a 3.0 GPA overall. A minimum of 15 units must be AME 500-level courses including AME 525 or 526. See details below.

• 4 units of AME 525 Engineering Analysis or AME 526 Engineering Analytical Methods
• 20 units of Core Requirement courses (see list below)
• Remaining units to add to 27 can be from approved 400- or 500-level elective courses
  • Elective courses may be from AME, Math, Physics, or other Engineering Departments (ASTE, BME, CE, CHE, CSCI, DSCI, EE, ENE, ENGR, ISE, ITP, MASC, PTE, SAE)
  • No more than 3 units of AME 590 Directed Researchcan be taken as elective credit
  • No more than 9 units can be taken at the 400 level

Applied Math Requirement (1 course = 4 units):
AME 525 Engineering Analysis (4 units) or AME 526 Engineering Analytical Methods (4 units)

Core Requirements (5 courses = 20 units):
AME 521 Engineering Vibrations II (4 units) (Pre-req: AME 420 or equivalent)
AME 522 Nonlinear Dynamical Systems, Vibrations, and Chaos (4 units)
AME 524 Advanced Engineering Dynamics (4 units)
AME 541 Linear Control Systems II (4 units) (Pre-req: AME 451 or equivalent)
AME 552 Nonlinear Control Systems (4 units) (Pre-req: AME 541 or EE 585)