MSc in Aerospace Vehicle Design - Avionic Systems Design Option
Bedford, United Kingdom
MSc
DURATION
1 year
LANGUAGES
English
PACE
Full time
APPLICATION DEADLINE
21 Sep 2026*
EARLIEST START DATE
Sep 2026
TUITION FEES
GBP 33,045 **
STUDY FORMAT
On-Campus
* for UK and Irish students
** for overseas students | £14,520 - for home students
Key Summary
About: The MSc in Aerospace Vehicle Design (Avionic Systems Design option) at Cranfield gives focused training in avionic systems design, analysis, development, test and airframe integration. It responds to rising civil traffic density and the need for military precision by teaching systems engineering, embedded avionics, flight-control integration and multidisciplinary design. You'll work on applied projects and gain practical skills in system architecture, test and evaluation, and airworthiness considerations, preparing you for engineering roles in avionics, aircraft systems, and aerospace vehicle design.
Career Outcomes: Graduates take roles as systems, structural, avionic or project-design engineers, progressing to technical manager or chief engineer.
With the ever-increasing traffic density of civil aircraft and the need for increased military precision in conflicts around the world, safer aircraft operations require more sophisticated avionic systems.
This specialist option of the MSc Aerospace Vehicle Design provides you with an understanding of avionic systems design, analysis, development, test and airframe integration.
Compulsory Modules
All the modules in the following list need to be taken as part of this course.
- Design of Airframe Systems
- Cockpit Environment
- Modelling of Dynamic Systems
- Avionics Air Traffic Control
- Aircraft Stability and Control
- Reliability, Safety Assessment and Certification
- Control Systems
- Inertial and Satellite Navigation Systems
- Aerospace Software Engineering and Ada
- Aircraft Performance
- Radio Systems
- Flight Control and Autopilot Systems
- Aeronautical Communication Systems
- Avionics Data Networking, Hardware Integration and Testing
- Integrated Navigation Systems
- Fault Tolerant Avionics Design
- Flight Test Experience
Elective Modules
Six of the modules from the following list need to be taken as part of this course.
- Aircraft Aerodynamics
- Computer-Aided Design
- Aerospace System Development and Life Cycle Model
- Initial Aircraft Design
- Integrated Vehicle Health Management
- Aircraft Power Plant Installation
- Cranfield University has been ranked amongst the world’s top universities in the latest QS World University Rankings by Subject.
- In Engineering – Mechanical, Aeronautical and Manufacturing, Cranfield has been ranked 27th in the world and attained top scores in Employer and Academic Reputation.
The Avionic Systems Design option aims to provide an understanding of avionic systems design, analysis, development, test and airframe integration.
This includes a detailed look at robust and fault-tolerant flight control, advanced 4D flight management and RNP navigation, self-separation and collision avoidance and advanced digital data communications systems, as well as pilot-friendly and intelligent cockpit displays and situation awareness.
To help students find appropriate funding, we have created a funding finder where you can search for suitable sources of funding by filtering the results to suit your needs. Visit the funding finder.
ISTAT Foundation Scholarships
The ISTAT Foundation is actively engaged in helping young people develop careers in aviation by offering scholarships of up to $US10,000. One student will be nominated for a scholarship each year by Cranfield University.
Cranfield University GREAT Scholarship
In partnership with the British Council and the GREAT Britain Campaign, Cranfield University is offering 5 scholarships of financial support to the value of £10,000 to students from Bangladesh, India, Kenya, Thailand and Vietnam.
Master's Loan from Student Finance England
A Master's Loan is now available for UK and EU applicants to help you pay for your master’s course.
Royal Academy of Engineering MSc Motorsport Scholarship Programme
The scholarships aim to help address the underrepresentation of Black or mixed Black ethnic engineers and accelerate the rate of progress of change.
Commonwealth Scholarships for Developing Countries
Students from developing countries who would not otherwise be able to study in the UK can apply for a Commonwealth Scholarship which includes tuition fees, travel and a monthly stipend for master’s study.
Chevening Scholarships
Chevening Scholarships are awarded to outstanding emerging leaders to pursue a one-year master’s at Cranfield University. The scholarship includes tuition fees, travel and a monthly stipend for master’s study.
Institution of Mechanical Engineers Postgraduate Master's Scholarship
IMechE is offering a number of postgraduate research scholarships worth up to £6,500 to graduates with a 2:1 honours IMechE-accredited BEng (Hons) degree to allow them to undertake an IMechE-accredited master's degree.
IGEM Postgraduate Master's Scholarship
The Institution of Gas Engineers and Managers (IGEM) is offering postgraduate master's scholarships worth £6,500 to those studying an Engineering Council-accredited degree.
Royal Aeronautical Society
The Royal Aeronautical Society offer Centennial Scholarships for those studying an accredited course.
Lendwise Postgraduate Student Loan
The Lendwise Postgraduate Student Loan provides tuition fees and maintenance loans of between £5,000 and £100,000 for eligible applicants studying at Cranfield University.
The Avionic Systems Design option is valued and respected by employers worldwide. The applied nature of this course ensures that our graduates are ready to be of immediate use to their future employer and has provided sufficient breadth of understanding of multi-disciplinary design to position them for accelerated career progression.
This course prepares graduates for careers as project design engineers, systems design, structural design or avionic engineers in aerospace or related industries, with the aim of progressing to technical management/chief engineer. Graduates from the MSc in Avionic Systems Design can therefore look forward to a varied choice of challenging career opportunities in the above disciplines.
Many of our graduates occupy very senior positions in their organisations, making valuable contributions to the international aerospace industry. Typical student destinations include BAE Systems, Airbus, Dassault and Rolls-Royce.
This course is suitable for students with a background in aeronautical or mechanical engineering or those with relevant industrial experience. It provides a taught engineering programme with a focus on the technical, business and management aspects of aircraft design in the civil and military aerospace sectors.
Why this course?
The course also covers future ATM systems, which have been at the forefront of postgraduate education in aerospace engineering since 1946. Aerospace Vehicle Design at Cranfield University was one of the original foundation courses of the College of Aeronautics. Graduates of this course are eligible to join the Cranfield College of Aeronautics Alumni Association (CCAAA), an active community that holds a number of networking and social events throughout the year.
You will have the opportunity to fly during a Student Experience Flight in our National Flying Laboratory Centre’s (NFLC) light aircraft. This flight experience will complement your MSc studies, focusing on the effects of controls, aircraft stability and angle of attack. During the flight, you will have the opportunity to take control of the aircraft. Each experience is 2 to 3 hours in duration and includes a pre-flight safety briefing outlining the details of the manoeuvres to be flown, a flight of approximately 1 hour, and a post-flight debrief. Read Hari's blog on his flight experience.
Cranfield University is well located for students from all over the world, and offers a range of library and support facilities to support your studies. This enables students from all over the world to complete this qualification whilst balancing work/life commitments.
This option comprises 16 mandatory modules and six optional modules. You are also required to complete a group design project and an individual research project. Delivered via a combination of structured lectures, industry guest lectures, computer-based workshops and private study.
A unique feature of the course is that we have four external examiners: two from industry who assess the group design project and two from academia who assess the individual research project.
Taught modules 10% | Group project 50% | Individual research project 40%
Group Project
The extensive group design project is a distinctive and unique feature of this course. This teamwork project takes place over six months, usually between October and March, and recreates a virtual industrial environment, bringing together students with various experience levels and different nationalities into one integrated design team.
You will be given responsibility for the detailed design of a significant part of the aircraft, for example, the flight control system or navigation system. The project will progress the design of the aircraft and avionic systems from the conceptual phase through to the preliminary and detailed design phases. You are required to run project meetings, produce system schematics and conduct detailed analyses of their design. Problem-solving and project coordination must be undertaken on a team and individual basis. At the end of the project, groups are required to report and present findings to a panel of up to 200 senior engineers from industry.
This element of the course is both real and engaging, and places the student group in a professional role as aerospace design engineers. Students testify that working as an integrated team on real problems is invaluable and prepares them well for careers in a highly competitive industry.
Individual Project
The individual research project aims to provide the training necessary for you to apply knowledge from the taught element to research and takes place over six months. The project may be theoretical and/or experimental and drawn from a range of topics related to the course and suggested by teaching staff, your employer, or focused on your own area of interest.