Education

In the 1960s many young people in the United States were inspired to pursue aerospace-related careers because of the U.S. commitment to send humans to the Moon. Universities saw an influx of enthusiastic students ready to take on the challenges of the Apollo program. Six Apollo Moon landings brought twelve astronauts to explore the lunar surface. But Moonwalkers are prehistory to students in the twenty-first century. Consequently, universities today put forth the challenge of a human mission to Mars to attract students.

Rapid advances in technology and computers have influenced more students to pursue courses of study in the sciences and space-related engineering and technology programs. Many computer experts who lost their jobs in the crash of the "dot-com" industry subsequently explored the field of aerospace engineering. Even if students do not decide on a space-related career, an aerospace engineering degree provides them with a wide variety of employment choices.

What are these students looking for in a college or university? They not only want a good selection of courses in the fields of their interests, but students also want exposure to innovative research in the field. Colleges and universities are addressing these needs largely by building valuable relationships with space-related organizations, aerospace companies, government agencies like the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), and other colleges and universities. Internships are frequently beneficial experiences for students, and often lead to employment opportunities at the sponsoring facility.

How Universities Attract New Students to Space Sciences

The public affairs departments at some universities have realized the potential of promoting their students' and professors' accomplishments. A good example of this is the University of Arizona in Tucson, which sends out weekly press releases about discoveries made by faculty and student astronomers using their Kitt Peak Observatories and astronomical spacecraft.

A university whose graduates become astronauts or known in a field of space science or aerospace engineering is also a pull for students. This is not only true for the University of Arizona at Tucson, but also the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the California Institute of Technology, and Purdue University, among others.

One of the opportunities Purdue University affords both its graduate and undergraduate students is the chance to be a part of a tight-knit academic community with top professors in the aerospace field. This personal attention makes their program a popular one with students. Purdue claims to have produced more astronauts than any other university.

A New Array of Space Courses

Many colleges and universities have expanded their degree programs and course offerings in the fields of space sciences, astronomy, and Earth sciences to attract more students, as well as professors and research grants. The future holds a vast array of space-related careers. For example, space tourism in the decades to come will require a wide range of careers, and students at Rochester Institute of Technology are getting ready. In the departments of hotel management, food management, and travel programs, students are enrolled in what is likely the world's first college course on space tourism.

Promoting Space in Universities

National Space Grant Consortium.

One of the most effective programs for bringing more space research and related projects, as well as funding, to universities is NASA's National Space Grant College and Fellowship Program. This program funds space research, education, and public service projects through a network of consortia in each of the fifty states, Puerto Rico, and the District of Columbia.

Each state's space grant consortium provides the students with information about local aerospace research and financial assistance. They also develop space education projects in their states. Some space grant projects, such as the one at the University of Colorado in Boulder (CU Boulder), involve students in current space missions. Students at CU Boulder are monitoring a spacecraft from their own mission control room on campus. At the Colorado School of Mines, students can enroll in courses on space resources and work with former and current NASA experts.

Universities Space Research Association.

The Universities Space Research Association (USRA) is a private nonprofit corporation formed under the auspices of the National Academy of Sciences. All member institutions have graduate programs in space sciences or aerospace engineering. Besides eighty-two member institutions in the United States, there are two member institutions in Canada, two in England, and two in Israel.

USRA provides a mechanism through which universities can cooperate effectively with one another, with the government, and with other organizations to further space science and technology and to promote education in these areas. A unique feature of USRA is its system of science councils, which are standing panels of scientific experts who provide program guidance in specific areas of research. Most of USRA's activities are funded by grants and contracts from NASA.

Universities Worldwide

The International Space University (ISU), through both its summer courses and its permanent campus in France, has made major contributions to establishing new curricula. It draws the top students worldwide, because their professors are leading figures from space-related industries, government and international organizations, and universities around the world. ISU students come to the university with their specialist backgrounds and broaden their perspectives through increased knowledge in other relevant fields. Another example of international efforts to attract students is found at Saint Louis University at its Madrid campus in Spain, whose aerospace program has drawn students from abroad to study in St. Louis, Missouri.

Student Space Competitions

Universities are also involved in efforts to reach out to younger students and expose them to space sciences. Space-related projects and competitions for kindergarten through twelfth-grade students sponsored by a university member of the National Space Grant—or in collaboration with other organizations such as the National Space Society, the Challenger Center for Space Science Education, the Space Foundation and the Planetary Society—can make an impression on students that will influence their career decisions much later.

The experience of being involved in science fair projects also provides students with a sense of ownership and interest that lasts throughout their careers. Many university scientists and engineers, as well as experts from aerospace companies, are involved in helping and judging science fairs.

Through space-related professional organizations like the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, the aerospace division of American Society of Civil Engineers, and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, universities are providing opportunities for students to submit papers and projects to be judged by experts in the field. These competitions, which are held at the organizations' conferences, provide an avenue for building relationships with aerospace professionals, as well as other students. These relationships can form an essential network of colleagues as students launch into their careers.

NASA and other organizations sponsor an array of design projects for students of all ages. Projects can include flying their experiment on a KC-135 airplane that provides 25 seconds of microgravity at a time. Other competitions involve designing space settlements and Moon and Mars bases.

NASA's Commercial Space Centers

NASA's commercial space centers are a consortia of academia, government, and industry who partner to develop new or improved products and services, usually through collaborative research conducted in space. The NASA Space Product Development office manages 11 of the 17 centers that perform research in the areas of biotechnology, agribusiness, structure-based drug design, and materials research. Topics of interest at the centers include space power, satellite communication networks, remote sensing, mapping, microgravity materials processing, medical and biological research and development, crystallography, space automation and robotics, engineering, space technology, and combustion in space.

SEE ALSO CAREER ASTRONAUTS (VOLUME 1); CAREERS IN ASTRONOMY (VOLUME 2); CAREERS IN BUSINESS AND PROGRAM MANAGEMENT (VOLUME 1); CAREERS IN ROCKETRY (VOLUME 1); CAREERS IN SPACE (VOLUME 4); CAREERS IN SPACE LAW (VOLUME 1); CAREERS IN SPACE MEDICINE (VOLUME 1); CAREERS IN SPACE SCIENCE (VOLUME 2); CAREERS IN SPACEFLIGHT (VOLUME 3); CAREERS IN WRITING, PHOTOGRAPHY, AND FILMMAKING (VOLUME 1); INTERNATIONAL SPACE UNIVERSITY (VOLUME 1).

Barbara Sprungman

Bibliography

Sachnoff, Scott, and Leonard David. The Space Publication's Guide to Space Careers. BethSpace Publications, 1998

Internet Resources

NASA Commercial Space Centers. <http://spd.nasa.gov/csc.html>

National Space Grant Consortium. <http://www.hq.nasa.gov/spacegrant>

Universities Space Research Association. <http://www.usra.edu>

ELV See Launch Vehicles, Expendable (Volume 1).