EPMA – European Postgraduate Master in Aeronautical Engineering

Abstract

EPMA is a was joint European postgraduate master programme for part time students. It was intended to award a joint/double master degree. Partners in the programme were: Hochschule für Angewandte Wissenschaften Hamburg, Katholieke Hogeschool Brugge-Oostende (KHBO) and Université Bordeaux 1 (UB1). The programme responded to a European shortage of highly qualified human resources in the field of aeronautical engineering by pooling transnational expertise in those specialised fields of aeronautical engineering that are crucial to today's aeronautical development activities. Academia's and industry's expertise were combined in teaching to deliver the best of both worlds to students. This provided an international dimension for students. Target group were graduates with an aeronautical engineering (or related) degree who were working in the aeronautical industry. The participants had a minimum of 4 years of academic training (or equivalent credits) and some years of relevant industrial experience.

EPMA was running very successful from 2007 until 2011 with 30 short courses. However, EPMA never got started as a degree programme. The political situation at the lead university (Hamburg University of Applied Sciences) and the industrial environment (Airbus) did not allow to take the financial risk and the obligations resulting from starting EPMA as a degree programme.