Space Studies

This degree is one of five tracks in the professional master’s program at Rice housed in the Wiess School of Natural Sciences and focuses on training students in Space Engineering and Science with the intent of creating new options for those students interested in working in the space technology industry or related government entities, e.g. NASA, as well as governmental relations positions in non-profit organizations, industry and academic institutions. 

The Space Studies track is a collaboration between the Wiess School of Natural Sciences and the George R. Brown School of Engineering, and is geared to help individuals increase their knowledge of space engineering and related science, program management, and policy. The program includes advanced engineering, biological and physical science classes and introduces students to economics, public policy, and management disciplines, which impact space commercialization and national policy. It focuses on training engineers and scientists interested in program management, providing them with the tools to face the complex challenges inherent in US space policy, human and robotic space exploration, and science in space exploration and technology development.

These master’s degrees are designed for students seeking to gain further technical core expertise coupled with enhanced management, communication and leadership skills instilling a level of scholastic proficiency that exceeds that of the bachelor’s level, and creating the cross-functional aptitudes needed in modern industry and government.  

In addition, a coordinated MBA/MSSpS degree is offered in conjunction with the Jesse H. Jones Graduate School of Business. 

Students pursuing the MSSpS degree must complete:

• A minimum of 15 courses (39 credit hours) to satisfy degree requirements.
• A 3-6 month internship. Students must present a summary of their internship project in both oral and written form as part of the professional master's seminar.
• A minimum of 30 credit hours at the 500-level or above.

CORE REQUIREMENTS 
Students must complete a total of 12 courses (30 credit hours) as listed below to satisfy the MSSpS degree's Core Requirements.

Required Cohort Courses
Students must complete the following 5 courses (9 credit hours):

• NSCI 501 Master Seminar (required for 1 semester) [ 1 credit hour ]
• NSCI 502 Space Studies Seminar Course [ 1 credit hour ]
• NSCI 511 Science Policy and Ethics [ 3 credit hours ] 
• NSCI 512 Internship Project [ 1 credit hour ] 
• NSCI 610/ENGI 610 Management for Science and Engineering [ 3 credit hours ]  

Core Technical Courses 
Students must complete the following 3 courses (9 credit hours):

• ASTR 570 Solar System Physics [ 3 credit hours ] 
• STAT 615 Intro to Regression and Statistical Computing [ 3 credit hours ]  
• MECH 572 Aerospace Systems Engineering [ 3 credit hours ] 

Core Science Electives
Students must complete a total of 2 courses (6 credit hours) from the following:

• ASTR 554 Astrophysics of the Sun [ 3 credit hours ]   
• BIOC 415 Experimental Physiology [ 1 credit hour ]
• BIOC 540/CHBE 640 Metabolic Engineering [ 3 credit hours ]
• ESCI 540 Earth's Atmosphere [ 3 credit hours ] 
• ESCI 660 Geological and Geophysical Fluid Dynamics [ 3 credit hours ]
• MECH 554/BIOE 554/CEVE 554 Computational Fluid Mechanics [ 3 credit hours ]  

Statistics/Computation Courses
Students must complete a total of 2 courses (6 credit hours) from the following. Depending on the background, other courses can be chosen with permission of advisor.  

• CAAM 453 Numerical Analysis I [ 3 credit hours ]
• CEVE 528/ENGI 528 Engineering Economics [ 3 credit hours ] 
• ESCI 650 Remote Sensing (not available every year) [ 3 credit hours ]
• MECH 554/BIOE 554/CEVE 554 Computational Fluid Mechanics [ 3 credit hours ]  
• PHYS 416 Computational Physics [ 3 credit hours ] 
• STAT 310/ECON 307 Probability and Statistics [ 3 credit hours ] 
• STAT 605 R for Data Science [ 3 credit hours ]
• STAT 502/COMP 502/ELEC 502 Neural Machine Learning I [ 3 credit hours ]
• STAT 541 Multivariate Analysis [ 3 credit hours ]
• STAT 640 Data Mining and Statistical Learning [ 3 credit hours ] 

ELECTIVES
Students must complete a total of 3 courses (9 credit hours) from one of the following areas, depending on the student's individual interests and career goals.

Focus: Engineering  
Students pursuing a focus area in Engineering must complete a total of 3-4 courses (9-12 credit hours) from the following:

• CEVE 504 Atmospheric Particular Matter [ 3 credit hours ]  
• CEVE 505/ENGI 505 Eng. Project Development& Management [ 3 credit hours ] 
• CEVE 511 Atmospheric Processes [ 3 credit hours ] 
• CEVE 576/MECH 576 Structural Dynamics and Control [ 3 credit hours ]
• COMP 498/ELEC 498/MECH 498 Intro to Robotics [ 3 credit hours ] 
• MECH 454/BIOE 454/CEVE 454 Computational Fluid Mechanics [ 3 credit hours ] 
• MECH 572 Aerospace Systems Engineering [ 3 credit hours ]
• MECH 591 Gas Dynamics [ 3 credit hours ]  
• MECH 599 Current Topics [ 3 credit hours ] 
• MECH 691 Hypersonic Aerodynamics [ 3 credit hours ] 

Focus: Sciences (Astro Science/Earth Science/Life Sciences)  
Students pursuing a focus area in Sciences must complete a total of 3 courses (9 credit hours) from the following. Focus areas in earth science, physics and life sciences can be chosen, depending on student’s background. Students will consult with academic advisor about appropriate selection of their elective science courses.

• ASTR 542 Nebular Astrophysics [ 3 credit hours ]
• ASTR 554 Astrophysics of the Sun [ 3 credit hours ] 
• ASTR 555 Protostars and Planets [ 3 credit hours ]    
• ASTR 565 Compact Objects [ 3 credit hours ] 
• BIOC 524 Microbiology and Biotechnology [ 3 credit hours ]
• BIOC 540/CHBE 640 Metabolic Engineering [ 3 credit hours ]
• BIOC 544 Advanced Concepts and Critical Analysis in Modern Developmental Biology [ 3 credit hours ]
• BIOC 545 Advanced Molecular Biology and Genetics [ 3 credit hours ]
• BIOC 570 Computation with Biological Data [ 3 credit hours ]
• BIOC 580/BIOE 580/CHBE 580 Protein Engineering [ 3 credit hours ]
• ESCI 540 Earth's Atmosphere [ 3 credit hours ]
• ESCI 581 Topics in Planetary Dynamics and Magmatic Processes [ 2 credit hours ]
• ESCI 667 Geomechanics [ 3 credit hours ]   
• ESCI 672 Numerical Methods Earth System [ 3 credit hours ]

Focus: Management  
Students pursuing the focus area in Management must complete a minimum of 9 credit hours from the following:

• MGMT 601 Financial Statement Analysis [ 3 credit hours ]
• MGMT 618 Complexities of People and Organizations [ 1.5 credit hours ]
• MGMT 619 Corporate Governance [ 1.5 credit hours ]
• MGMT 629 Business Plan Development [ 1.5 credit hours ]
• MGMT 658 Applied Risk Management [ 1.5 credit hours ]  
• MGMT 734 Technology Entrepreneurship [ 3 credit hours ] 

NOTE: Courses vary. Some listed courses may not be offered every year, and others may be offered that satisfy the requirements with pre-approval. Students should consult with their academic advisors before enrolling.

THREE TO SIX MONTH INTERNSHIP
Practical experience may be conducted under the guidance of a host company, government agency, or national laboratory. A summary of the internship project is required in both oral and written form as part of NSCI 512 Professional Master's Project.

• Completed application (apply on-line)
• Three personal letters of recommendation - recommenders can now submit their letters on-line
• General GRE scores (use the code 6609 for Rice; do not worry about a department code)
• Official transcripts from all universities attended
• TOEFL scores (if required)