Students who have completed this program have gone on to apply to the Aeronautical Engineering major offered by Rensselaer's School of Engineering's Mechanical, Aerospace, and Nuclear Engineering department. In addition to engineering degrees students have gone on to study Physics and other degrees offered from the Rensselaer's School of Science.

Registration Information

2009 Aerospace Engineering Summer Career Exploration Program Registration Form (60KB PDF file)

Cost: $625 per student per session

Registration Deadline: Early registrations are encouraged. Space is limited. A non-refundable deposit of $120.00 must accompany the registration. Final payment and the below accepted student forms are due two by July 13, 2009. If you have any questions, please contact Kari Bennett at (518) 276-6431.

Note a residential option is available upon request: For an additional fee, a residential option may be added to this program. The added cost will include residential room and board meals. Students adding the residential option will check in Sunday, July 26 and check out Friday, July 31. If you are interested, or have any questions, please contact Kari Bennett at (518) 276-6431.

Program Details

A typical day consists of lectures/discussions on different topics in Aerospace Engineering, wind tunnel experiments, and model fabrication. In the wind tunnel, the students will be exposed to various measurement/visualization techniques, they will conduct experiments on different airplane models (one of them is the jet trainer - T38). Each student will build 2 airplane models. One will be built from a rubber-band and the other will be driven by electrical motor and controlled by remote control. Students will take their models with them at the end of the camp. On the last day of the camp, we will conduct "flight test" which will likely include a competition for the best looking model and the model that performs the best.

Faculty Profile: Professor Michael Amitay received his D.Sc. in Aerospace Engineering from the Technion, Israel Institute of Technology in 1994. He was a post-doctoral fellow at the University of Arizona from 1994-1996. From 1996 until 2003 Dr. Amitay was at GA Tech where he held several positions the latest was Senior Research Engineer. He joined the faculty of the Mechanical, Aerospace and Nuclear Engineering Department in the summer semester of 2003. Professor Amitay's research interests are focused on active and passive flow control techniques and their applications in aerodynamics (airfoils, bluff bodies and mini and micro Unmanned Aerial Vehicles). Another research topic includes the application of flow control to particle-laden flows and sprays with applications in medical engineering (specifically in micro-dentistry).

Sample Day Schedule
8:30am-9:00am -- Drop Off
9:15am-10:15am -- Intro to Aerospace Eng
10:15am-10:45am -- Break
10:45am-11:45am -- Wind Tunnel Experiments: Model Fabrication
11:45am-12:45pm -- Lunch
12:45pm-1:45am -- Into to Aerospace Eng
1:45pm-2:45pm -- Wind Tunnel Experiments: Model Fabrication
2:45pm-3:15pm -- Break
3:15pm-3:45pm -- Wind Tunnel Experiments: Model Fabrication
4:00pm-4:30pm -- Pick Up

Flight tests will be held on Friday. Parents, family members and friends are welcome to attend.

Parent Feedback
"A great program that my son really enjoyed. It helped make science exciting at a time of too many distractions."
"The program, instructors and materials were excellent!"

Accepted Student Forms

Check list for completing Medical History Form - Day Programs (52KB PDF file)
Medical History Form - Day Programs (58KB PDF file)
Medication Sheet Form (54KB PDF file)
Self Medication Waiver (52KB PDF file)
Authorization to Visit - Summer Day Programs (159KB PDF file)

Note for Summer program participants Medication Sheet Form and Self Medication Waiver: For children who do not have any prescriptions the parent and doctor should sign the Medication sheet for the three over the counter medications listed so they can be administered by the Health Services Office. If your son/daughter does not have any medications to self administer then the Self Medication Form is not applicable.

Transportation: All participants must furnish their own transportation to and from campus.

To report a student absent or late: If your child will be absent please call prior to 9:00am and speak with program director or Kari Bennett in the Summer Programs Office at (518) 276-6431. Students arriving to campus late (after 9:00am) need to be escorted by a parent or guardian to the Aerospace Engineering Summer Career Exploration Program classroom. If at all possible we ask that you call ahead of time to report the lateness.

Snack and Lunch: Please remember that each student should bring their own snack and bag lunch every day.

Program Inquiries/Questions: For further information about the program, Request Information, or contact, Mike Gunther, Program Manager for Recruitment, (518) 276-8351, gunthm@rpi.edu.

MAIL OR FAX MATERIALS TO:
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute – Attn: Outreach Programs Office
110 8th Street – Low Center Suite 4011
Troy, NY 12180-3590
(518) 276-6431 (Voice)
(518) 276-8738 (Fax)
An email will be sent to confirm receipt of materials.

Special Needs: If you have any special needs please contact Kari Bennett at (518) 276-6431.

Registration Questions & Answers: If you have any registration questions, please contact Kari Bennett at (518) 276-6431.