Welcome to the Daniel Guggenheim School of Aerospace Engineering

The Daniel Guggenheim School of Aerospace Engineering has quietly resided among the top 5 aerospace engineering schools in the country for more than a decade - attracting the best minds to study on our Atlanta campus. With a faculty of more than 40 tenure-track professors and enrollment of more than 1,900, the School brings both breadth and depth to its research, scholarship, and instruction that few institutions can match.

The Aerospace Engineering School at Georgia Tech is currently ranked #1 in the nation for undergraduate programs and #4 in the nation for graduate programs

Source: US News & World Reports, 2022-2023 Ranking Surveys

From the AE Chair
Mark Costello

Mark F. Costello
William R. T. Oakes
Chair

Welcome to the Daniel Guggenheim School of Aerospace Engineering at Georgia Tech. I am honored and energized to have recently been appointed chair of the school that launched my own career in aerospace engineering many years ago. I am even more excited about supporting the career launch of those coming through our doors today.

I am not alone in that enthusiasm. In fact, I am surrounded by it.

On the one side, I am bolstered by the AE faculty – colleagues whose stellar reputations transcend the boundaries of this Institute. In depth and breadth, they are without peer.

On the other side, I am inspired by the AE students, who come to us from all over the globe, full of ambitions that prevent any of us from ever being too satisfied. 

And behind me all the way are thousands of AE alumni and the AE advisory board–men and women whose distinguished careers in the military, government, industry, and academia are the embodiment of our School’s legacy. Role models abound. 

It is an exciting time to be in the field of aerospace engineering. An entrepreneurial spirit is rapidly expanding research opportunities and breakthroughs -- in space exploration technologies, urban air mobility, hypersonics, robotics, and more. The enthusiasm for this growth is palpable among our students, faculty, alumni, industry partners, and academic colleagues. As chair, I look forward to tapping into that energy for guidance and inspiration.

I hope you will join me.

Go Jackets!

Mark F. Costello Signature

Mark F. Costello, M.S. AE '89, Ph.D. AE '92
W.R.T. Oakes Professor & Chair
Daniel Guggenheim School of Aerospace Engineering
Georgia Institute of Technology
404.894.3002

100 Years of Teaching the World to Soar

The School of Aerospace Engineering has its roots in waning days of World War I when the Georgia School of Technology helped to train U.S. Army pilots for a brief time. Our name and our legacy truly flourished in 1930, when philanthropist Daniel Guggenheim donated $300,000 to establish a center for aeronautical research -- one of seven such grants that he made at various institutions across the country.

That money immediately went to work: $91,088 for the Guggenheim Building;  $41,829 for equipment and maintenance; and $150,213 for an endowment. Under the provisions of a prior agreement with the State of Georgia, Fulton County, and the City of Atlanta, an additional $9,000, per year was furnished to operate a School of Aeronautics. About $6,000 in annual endowment funds were then committed to aeronautical research. Eighteen students attended the first classes, which were held in the newly constructed Guggenheim Building in 1931. Freshmen and sophomores took mechanical engineering courses; it was only during junior and senior years that they had access to the six basic aeronautical courses offered.

A lot has changed since then. In 1962, our name was officially changed to the School of Aerospace Engineering - a move that better reflected our growing influence in areas beyond aeronautics. But one thing remains the same: the Daniel Guggenheim School continues to stress both fundamental engineering and ground-breaking research.