Annual Salary
£27,000 to £60,000
Average UK salary in 2023 was £34,963
(source Office for National Statistics)
Swap to Maintenance or Manufacturing or go back to all job sectors or go to green jobs
Aerospace engineers design, test, build and maintain aeroplanes, spacecraft and satellites.
Average UK salary in 2023 was £34,963
(source Office for National Statistics)
You could work: evenings / weekends; occasionally
There will be
2.4% more Aerospace engineer jobs in 2027.
As an aerospace engineer, you could:
You may need to wear protective clothing.
You could work in a factory, in an office, on an aircraft or in an aircraft hangar.
You can get into this job through:
You could do a degree in aerospace engineering, avionics, or a subject like:
Postgraduate study
You may be able to do a master's degree in aeronautical or aerospace engineering if you've studied for a degree in a related subject, such as engineering.
You'll usually need:
You could do A levels, a higher national certificate (HNC) or diploma (HND) in engineering before applying for a trainee technician job with an aerospace company.
Subjects include:
You would then take further training to become a fully qualified engineer.
You could do a Level 6 Degree Apprenticeship to begin your career in the aerospace industry. Apprenticeships include:
Some employers may offer other types of engineering apprenticeships, for example, a Power and Propulsion Gas Turbine Engineer Level 7 Degree Apprenticeship.
You'll combine workplace learning with study for a degree at university.
You'll usually need:
You might be able to join a company as an aerospace engineering technician and do training on the job to qualify as an engineer.
You can apply for aerospace engineering jobs if you've got relevant qualifications and experience. For example, you might have worked in mechanical, electrical or electronics engineering.
You can join the Royal Aeronautical Society for professional development, career resources and to make industry contacts.
You can find out more about working in aerospace engineering from Careers in Aerospace.
With experience, you could specialise in a particular field like:aerodynamics; fuel efficiency; space technology; air accident investigation
You could also become a project manager, consultant aerospace engineer, or move into technical sales.
You can find out more about careers in aerospace engineering from Careers in Aerospace.
Aerospace engineers design test and build the launch vehicles, payloads and propulsion systems that deliver everything into orbit.
Examples of post-16 courses you could study at a local school or college
Examples of post-18 courses you could study at a local provider in the South West
Apprenticeships you may be able to take with local employers
Search for apprenticeship vacancies
Employers in the South West
You'll need: