Top 10 Best UK Universities for Space Engineering & Space Science Degrees (2025 Guide)

1. Cranfield University

Department overview – Cranfield’s School of Aerospace, Transport & Manufacturing runs the flagship MSc Space Engineering, taught on the university’s own airport with access to a 120 m clean-room satellite-integration hall.
Cranfield University

Sample modules
• Space Mission Analysis & Design
• Satellite Payload Instrumentation
• Launch & Re-Entry Vehicle Systems

Research environment – A 2 km runway for sounding-rocket drop tests, a Mars-regolith vacuum chamber and shared time on ESA’s OPS-SAT in-orbit testbed.

Careers & links – Graduates join Airbus Defence & Space, Thales Alenia Space, Astroscale and the UK Space Agency’s flight dynamics team.

Admissions – 2 : 1 in aerospace, mechanical or electrical engineering; CAD and Matlab proficiency expected.

2. University of Surrey

Department overview – The Surrey Space Centre underpins an MSc Space Engineering and a spacecraft-systems pathway in the MEng Electronic Engineering.
University of Surrey

Sample modules
• Small-Satellite Platforms
• Spacecraft Thermal Control
• GNSS & Satellite Communications

Research environment – Three clean rooms (ISO-5 to ISO-8), a 5 m thermal-vacuum chamber and the ground station that first controlled the UK’s historic UoSAT microsats.

Careers & links – Direct pipeline into Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd (on the same campus) plus Inmarsat and OneWeb; many students fly hardware on the annual Surrey payload ride-share.

Admissions – ABB (undergrad) or 2 : 1 (postgrad) with strong electronics background; personal statement should cite space-club or CubeSat work.

3. University of Leicester

Department overview – Space Park Leicester and the School of Physics & Astronomy deliver an MSc Space Exploration Systems and BSc Physics with Space Science.
University of Leicester

Sample modules
• Planetary Instrumentation
• Spacecraft Operations & Ground Segment
• Earth-Observation Data Analytics

Research environment – A £100 m integration facility for low-Earth-orbit payloads, Harwell-linked clean rooms and direct involvement in ESA JUICE and Ariel missions.

Careers & links – Employees at Airbus, Teledyne e2v and RAL Space often started here; spin-outs include space-weather forecaster Helix.

Admissions – 2 : 1 in physics or engineering; coding in Python or IDL recommended.

4. University of Strathclyde

Department overview – The Department of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering hosts an MSc Satellite Applications and a PhD CDT in Future Space Technologies.
University of Strathclyde

Sample modules
• Spacecraft Guidance, Navigation & Control
• Space Plasma & Radiation Environments
• On-Orbit Servicing & Debris Removal

Research environment – Access to the Scottish Small-Satellite Test Facility, CubeSat flatsats, and laser-ranging time on the 3.5 m Malcolm telescope.

Careers & links – Partnerships with AAC Clyde Space, Skyrora and Astroscale; Glasgow’s “Space Cluster” hires many MSc alumni.

Admissions – Upper-second in aero/mech/EEE; applicants should evidence C/C++ or GN&C MATLAB projects.

5. University of Southampton

Department overview – Aeronautics & Astronautics offers a four-year MEng Astronautics & Space Engineering plus a one-year MSc Space Systems Engineering.
University of Southampton

Sample modules
• Space Propulsion & Rocketry
• Systems Engineering Practice (ESA-style reviews)
• Space Environment & Survivability

Research environment – Wind tunnels up to Mach 5, a cryogenic propulsion test stand and Chilbolton Observatory’s 25 m dish for satellite tracking.

Careers & links – Alumni work at ESA ESTEC, Rocket Factory Augsburg and UK launch start-up Orbex; students compete in the IMechE Satellite Design competition.

Admissions – AAA (undergrad) or 2 : 1 (postgrad); portfolio pieces on rocketry or CanSat projects stand out.

6. University of Glasgow

Department overview – Space Glasgow within the James Watt School of Engineering leads an MSc Aerospace Engineering & Management with a Space Systems option.
University of Glasgow

Sample modules
• Spacecraft Dynamics & Control
• CubeSat Avionics Design
• Space Mission Business Cases

Research environment – ISO-5 CubeSat clean-room cluster, crystal-growth labs for GaN thrusters and shared access to the Scottish Satellite Application Centre’s ground station.

Careers & links – Leonardo UK, Spire Global (Edinburgh) and AAC Clyde Space recruit heavily; ESA BIC Scotland supports Glasgow spin-outs.

Admissions – 2 : 1 in engineering or physics; statement should highlight systems-engineering experience.

7. University College London (UCL)

Department overview – The Mullard Space Science Laboratory delivers an MSc Space Science & Engineering and hosts ESA instrument hardware production lines.
University College London

Sample modules
• Space Instrumentation & Detectors
• Satellite Systems Engineering
• Astrodynamics & Mission Design

Research environment – Flight-qualified clean rooms in rural Surrey, a 40 kN vibration shaker and labs that built hardware for Solar Orbiter and Euclid.

Careers & links – Graduates join RAL Space, NASA Goddard fellowships or UCL spin-out Planetary Visions; many progress to PhD posts on future ESA missions.

Admissions – 2 : 1 physics, astrophysics or engineering; Python and CAD experience expected.

8. Imperial College London

Department overview – The Department of Aeronautics offers a space-systems stream within its MEng and an MSc in Space Engineering launching autumn 2025.
Imperial College London

Sample modules
• Spacecraft Structures & Materials
• Autonomous Deep-Space Navigation
• Advanced Space Propulsion

Research environment – A netted micro-gravity drop tower, nano-sat fabrication suite and London’s only university-operated S-band ground station.

Careers & links – Students intern at Astroscale, Satellite Applications Catapult and Phase Four UK; Imperial alumni populate ESA mission-analysis teams.

Admissions – AAA (Maths, Physics) for MEng; first/strong 2 : 1 for MSc plus evidence of orbital-mechanics coursework.

9. University of Bristol

Department overview – The Faculty of Engineering embeds a Space Engineering pathway in the MEng Aerospace Engineering and co-leads the West-of-England Space Hub.
University of Bristol

Sample modules
• High-Altitude Flight & Re-entry
• Space Robotics & In-Orbit Assembly
• Spacecraft Power & Thermal

Research environment – Hypersonic wind tunnel up to Mach 6, additive-manufacturing labs for titanium thrusters and shared time on the Filton satellite-integration hall.

Careers & links – Thales Alenia Space, Rolls-Royce Electrical and Space Forge Cardiff recruit local graduates; many students launch stratospheric balloons for final-year data.

Admissions – 2 : 1 with aerodynamics strength; ROS or thermal-analysis tools (Ansys) experience valued.

10. University of Manchester

Department overview – The Department of Physics & Astronomy offers an MSc Radio Astronomy & Space Science and an MEng Aerospace Engineering with Space Technology modules.
University of Manchester

Sample modules
• Radio-Frequency Systems for Space
• Space Debris Tracking & SSA
• Astronomical Instrumentation

Research environment – Jodrell Bank Observatory (76 m Lovell Telescope) supports satellite downlink demos, plus a new Space Environment Prediction Centre opening 2025.

Careers & links – Graduates join GMV, SSTL microwave-payload divisions and the UK Space Surveillance & Tracking programme.

Admissions – 2 : 1 physics or EEE; applicants should showcase RF design or orbital-dynamics projects.

Final tips

• Pick your niche – Small-sat hardware? Surrey or Glasgow. Human-spaceflight systems? Southampton. Space science instruments? Leicester or UCL.

• Check facilities – A thermal-vacuum chamber or on-site ground station will supercharge your thesis.

• Look for launch opportunities – Cranfield and Surrey fly student payloads annually; Strathclyde’s CubeSat rideshare lifts in 2025.

• Brush up on tools – STK, GMAT, MATLAB, ECSS documentation and KiCad/Altium are common course prerequisites.

• Apply early – High-demand MScs (Cranfield, Imperial) close by January 2025; UCAS equal-consideration ends 29 January 2025.

Choose the programme that matches your orbital ambitions, and you’ll graduate poised to shape the UK’s growing space economy. Clear skies and nominal trajectories!