Master in Space Studies

“NASA has had a long and productive relationship with Rice University beginning at the establishment of Johnson Space Center. This collaboration continues today. As part of NASA's overall mission, we are dedicated to education at all levels with special emphasis on education programs that meet our workforce needs. Rice has historically educated our outstanding scientists and engineers.

The Professional Master's degree in Space Studies fits within our workforce needs as it provides training across technical areas, from science to practical engineering and management. These types of programs can enhance our workforce as we continue in the 21st-century transformation of human space flight. We look forward to continuing our strong relationship with Rice and your program."

– Craig Stencil, Deputy Director of Space Life Sciences, NASA, Johnson Space Center

The Space Studies track is geared to help individuals increase their knowledge of space engineering, 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. This program focuses on training scientists and engineers 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 the role of science in space exploration and technology development.

In addition to science and engineering courses, students will take a solar systems overview course, a Space Studies Seminar taught by industry experts, and cohort courses with students involved in the other tracks listed in this brochure. These courses include a Science Policy and Ethics course, a management course, and a corporate seminar. These courses are designed to equip students with the skills needed to connect advanced scientific concepts in a business or governmental setting.

Students are educated in the scientific approach to problems, while simultaneously being trained in vital business concepts, policy and ethics issues, verbal and written communication, and rounding out their education with advanced practical training in the field of their interest. This unique combination of an interdisciplinary curriculum and hands-on experience enables students to move seamlessly into the scientific/technical workforce.

The Rice Space Institute, led by Dr. David Alexander, provides a unique collaborative environment in which to meet the educational, research, and technological challenges faced by the human and robotic exploration of space.

Rice University has a proud and distinguished heritage of collaboration with NASA and the nation’s space program, recently celebrating 50 years of science and engineering partnership with the Johnson Space Center. As we embark on the first steps of the next 50 years, the Rice Space Institute is working to strengthen our ties with JSC and the broader Houston space community, to foster deeper research collaborations within this community, and facilitate multidisciplinary research to address the most pressing scientific and technological problems facing the exploration of space.

Space exploration has impacted society and culture across the globe in many diverse and imaginative ways, changing how we view the world, how we interact with it, and how we imagine our place within it. Increasingly, research in the humanities and social sciences is addressing this impact and exploring the cultural context in which it occurs. The Rice Space Institute aims to foster these discussions and to bridge the disciplines as we seek to understand the societal and cultural impact of space exploration.

Education is the cornerstone of our activities as we strive to produce the next generation of scientists, engineers, and scholars. Education at all levels is a crucial component of the mission of the Rice Space Institute and our goal is to expand our efforts in undergraduate and graduate-level study while enhancing our participation in Rice’s broad range of outreach programs and community engagement.

This program requires 39 Credit Hours for completion:

Five Cohort Courses/Requirements (9 Hours)

NSCI 511 Science Policy and Ethics (S)
NSCI 610 Management for Science and Engineering (F, S)
NSCI 501 Master Seminar (F, S)
NSCI 502 Space Studies Seminar (F or S)
NSCI 512 Internship Project Report/Presentation

Five Science courses: (15 Hours)

ASTR 570 Solar System Physics (F)
STAT 615 Intro to Regression and Statistical Computing (F)
MECH 572 Aerospace Systems Engineering (S)

With two courses to be chosen from the list below:

ASTR 554 Astrophysics of the Sun (S)
BIOC 415 Experimental Physiology (S)
BIOC 540 Metabolic Engineering (F)
ESCI 540 Physics and Chemistry for the Atmosphere (F)
ESCI 660 Geological and Geophysical Fluid Dynamics (S)

Two Statistics/Computation Courses (6 credit hours): The analytical competency requirement provides career-enhancing, marketable skills in finance, economics, and computation. Students can choose courses as follows:

Choose two courses from:

CAAM 453 Advanced Numerical Analysis

CEVE 528 Engineering Economics

MECH 554 Computational Fluid Mechanics

PHYS 416 Computational Physics
STAT 502 Neural Machine Learning

STAT 310 Probability and Statistics
STAT 541 Multivariate Analysis
STAT 605 Statistical Computing and Graphics
STAT 640 Data Mining and Statistical Learning
ESCI 650 Remote Sensing (not offered every year)

Note: Depending on background, other courses can be chosen with the permission of the advisor.

3 Electives according to student’s interest: (9 Hours) These course electives reflect individual academic interests and career goals.

Focus: Engineering

CEVE 504 Atmospheric Particular Matter

CEVE 505 Eng. Project Development& Management
CEVE 511 Atmospheric Processes
CEVE 576 Structural Dynamics and Control

COMP/ELEC/MECH498 Intro to Robotics
MECH 572 Aerospace Systems Engineering

MECH 591 Gas Dynamics (S)
MECH 592 Aerospace Environments (F)
MECH 599 Human Factors in Space (S)
MECH 599/Sect 2 Spacecraft Navigation (S)
MECH 599/Sect 3 Design for Aerospace Environments
MECH 691 Hypersonic Aerodynamics (F)
MECH 454 Computational Fluid Mechanics

Focus: Sciences (Astro Science/Earth Science/Life Sciences)

ASTR 542 Nebular Astrophysics
ASTR 554 Astrophysics of the Sun
ASTR 555 Protostars and Planets
ASTR 565 Compact Objects
BIOC 524 Microbiology and Biotechnology
BIOC 540 Metabolic Engineering
BIOC 544 Developmental Biology
BIOC 545 Advanced Molecular Biology and Genetics
BIOC 570 Computation with Biological Data
BIOC 580 Protein Engineering
ESCI 667 Geomechanics
ESCI 672 Numerical Methods Earth Systems
ESCI 540 Earth's Atmosphere
ESCI 581 Topics in Planetary Dynamics

and others

NOTE: FOCUS AREAS IN EARTH SCIENCE, PHYSICS, AND LIFE SCIENCES can be chosen - depending on the student’s background. Students will consult with an academic advisor about the appropriate selection of their elective science courses. 30 credit hours have to be in the 500-level and above.

Focus: Management

MGMT 734 Technology Entrepreneurship
MGMT 629 Business Plan Development
MGMT 601 Financial Statement Analysis
MGMT 618 Complexities of People and Organizations
MGMT 658 Applied Risk Management
MGMT 619 Corporate Governance ... and others

NOTE: This listing doesn’t reflect all courses available every year. Also note, not all courses are offered every year. Students are requested to consult with their academic advisors before enrolling.

A 3 – 6 months internship: Practical experience is offered via a 3 – 6-month work immersion. The internship will be under the guidance of a hosting company, government agency, or non-profit organization. A summary of the internship project is required in both oral and written form as part of the Professional Master’s Seminar.

The General Announcements (GA) is the official Rice curriculum. In the event that there is a discrepancy between the GA and any other websites or publications, the GA shall prevail as the authoritative source.