Get across why you want to study this subject, what skillset you’re bringing with you, and how you want to contribute to the future of aviation, spacecraft, and defence systems.
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Think about why you want to study the subject
- Have you been inspired by someone, a news story, a documentary, or a podcast?
- Do you have career aspirations in this area of study?
- What interests you about the subject – be specific; rather than saying you enjoy it or are good at it, try to explain the ‘why’ behind your reasoning.
- What do you already know about the subject and what are you looking forward to learning more about?
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What makes you suitable to study the subject?
- Have you done projects or essays in this subject at school or college?
- Think about who you are as a person; your personality, your strengths, your experiences in life – how do these make you suited to study the subject?
- How have you shown an interest in the subject outside of school or college – have you done extra reading, online courses, been part of clubs or competitions?
- Your current subjects and grades will be included elsewhere in your application, so try to think about specific things you’ve learned during your studies that relate to the subject, rather than listing your grades and subjects.
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Look at the bigger picture
- Have you done any work experience, an internship or had a part-time job in this subject area or related? Most job or work experience will give you transferable skills, even if it’s in a different industry.
- Do you have any hobbies you can mention that might relate to your chosen subject? Many hobbies show that you can be motivated outside of school to achieve and succeed in something you’re interested in.
- Think about how your life and personal experiences have helped make you the person you are today, and how these challenges and experiences can support your application by evidencing essential qualities for certain subjects.
- If you’ve got ambitions and goals for your life and career, can you express how this subject will help you reach these goals?
Guidance and examples you can use
Question 1: Why do you want to study this course or subject?
This is your opportunity to showcase your passion and knowledge of your chosen subject area and to demonstrate to universities and colleges why it’s a good fit for you and your future ambitions.
Examples:
- Show admissions tutors where your interest in aeronautical and aerospace engineering comes from, and mention any areas of the course you’re applying to that particularly appeal, whether that’s aerodynamics, space systems, or the mechanics of flight.
- Reference any sites you follow or books you’ve read that have furthered your understanding of the industry, and particularly what its future holds. Perhaps you follow the United Kingdom Space Agency (UKSA) or NASA on social media – tell tutors something specific you’ve learned, such as space travel’s role in tackling climate change, and why it’s relevant to your degree.
- If you know where you’d like to work after your degree, mention that too. You could become an air accident investigator, aircraft mechanic, or an aerospace, design, or mechanical engineer, among other roles.
Question 2: How have your qualifications and studies helped you to prepare for this course or subject?
This is your chance to shout about the relevant or transferable skills you’ve gained from your formal education and highlight your understanding of how they will help you succeed in this subject area.
Examples:
- Write about a project or coursework you’ve done that sparked an interest in an area of aeronautical or aerospace engineering. Perhaps you did something on aerodynamics or heat transfer in physics, or learned CAD (computer-aided design) in design technology. Reference how you can use these skills on your course.
- Mention other skills you’ve picked up during your studies, whether it’s attention to detail, good teamwork and communications skills, project management, or an understanding of patterns and modelling from maths.
- Have you done any online courses to boost your knowledge in the subject? For example, why not try Subject Spotlights or Virtual Work Experiences from Springpod to grow your skills and interest?
Question 3: What else have you done to prepare outside of education, and why are these experiences useful?
This is your chance to talk about any other activities you have undertaken outside of your formal education, or personal experiences which further demonstrate your suitability for the course. This section is likely to be highly personal to you and anything you do include should reflect on why you’re including it.
Examples:
- Reference your hobbies and outside interests, and what skills you’ve picked up from those. You may have learned technical or problem-solving skills from teaching yourself programming, playing Minecraft, or learning to use music editing software.
- Whilst it may be hard to get work experience in this industry, do mention if you’ve managed to shadow at an aerospace company, airline, or engineering company. Talk about what you saw and what you learned from any experiences you’ve had.
- Think about relevant transferable skills you’ve picked up from part-time jobs and hobbies too, such as teamwork in an office or retail role, or problem-solving in a customer service role.
Dos
- Do relate any examples back to the subject you’re applying to – make it relevant
- Do make it personal – admissions staff want to get to know who you are
- Do use a spell-checker and grammar-checker to ensure there are no errors
- Do ask people for feedback, whether that’s family members or teachers
- Do your research to find out what universities are looking for, and make sure you include evidence to show how you are suitable for the course
Don'ts
- Don’t just list out examples, subjects you study, or experiences you’ve had without any evidence
- Don’t copy something you’ve seen online or use AI to write something for you
- Don’t make things up just because you think they’ll make you look good on paper
- Don’t leave it until the last minute – you need time for several drafts
- Don’t worry about making each section the same length; as long as you hit the minimum character count, you can use the 4,000 characters across each answer in the way that suits you best
What do you love doing?
As well as understanding your passion for the subject, your skills and your attributes, admissions tutors want to know about your personality. If you love going to an airport viewing park, or aviation museums, explain what you’ve learned from looking at different aircraft and studying how they fly.
Aeronautical and aerospace engineers need to be creative and innovative. So, whether you’ve built your own replica models in or out of school, or you’ve come up with an ingenious solution to a dripping tap at home, talk about the planning, design and engineering process behind your inventions.
Finally, reference anything from current affairs or culture that ties in with your course and your interests. Maybe you follow the International Space Station (ISS) on Instagram, or you’ve been reading about trials of the new air defence laser protection system in the UK. Elaborate on what you’ve learned or how it relates to the course you’re applying for.
Some more tips to consider
- Examples of your relevant skills: Can you describe situations where you’ve demonstrated relevant skills like good communication or teamwork, problem-solving, initiative, or achieving goals?
- Research the course: Why do you want to study aeronautical and aerospace engineering, what specific aspects of the course interest you, how does it relate to your academic studies, and what additional reading or other activities have led you to apply?
- Show initiative: When have you built something from scratch or disassembled and reassembled something? Show you’ve got creative flair and initiative when it comes to engineering and design.
- Making your work experience count: It’s not just what you've done but how you've reflected on it. If you work-shadowed at an air defence company or an airport, that's great, but it will have zero impact unless you spell out what you personally gained from it.
- Transferable skills: Whether through extracurricular or supercurricular activities, work experience or a part-time job, you’ll have lots of skills that will be relevant to your course. Try to think outside the box – ok, so you’re part of a cricket team; can you explain how that has given you teamworking or management skills, helped with your self-motivation or your ability to switch off after a long week?