If you Google or ChatGPT this question, you will most likely get an answer along the lines of Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or Mechatronics as the most common backgrounds for controls engineers. And while that’s not wrong, in my experience it doesn’t paint the full picture of how things actually work in the aerospace industry, which is the industry I know.

My coworkers come from electrical, mechanical, and aerospace engineering backgrounds, and for some of them, they only had one mechatronics class or one intro to controls class in college before landing their first controls job. Every university and every program is going to be different.

For instance, while some of my friends and I all have aerospace engineering degrees, because we went to different universities our backgrounds still differ — not drastically, but enough to matter. My program required two controls classes, and I chose to take a UAV design class where we dove a bit deeper into controls. Some of my friends only had one controls class and focused more on systems engineering than I did.

So what degree should you get if you want to become a controls engineer and work in GNC, automation, avionics, robotics… the cool kids’ stuff?

I actually think that’s the wrong question to ask.

ChatGPT isn’t wrong, yes, electrical, mechanical, or mechatronics are safe bets. But I think the better question is:

Which program will offer the classes I need to get where I want to be and acquire the skills I need?

More generally, when trying to figure out a degree or career path in engineering, reframing the question to “what skills do I need for this role?” is far more helpful than asking broad questions like what degree should I get or what company should I work for.

If you focus on the skills, you’ll realize that two engineers with completely different degrees can end up doing the same work. One might understand electronics better, another might understand stability analysis and flight mechanics better, but they still work on the same team solving the same problems.

Controls engineering will typically require you to understand dynamics, control theory, and modeling and simulation. In aerospace, this means working with tools like MATLAB and Simulink to model systems and design controllers. If you want to work in GNC, you will also likely need programming skills in languages like C++, so you can play with embedded systems.

It’s also important to develop systems engineering thinking, understanding requirements, verifying that your models meet those requirements, and learning how to test your work not only in software but eventually with hardware in the loop.

Lastly, many students ask me if they can get into GNC, controls, or automation with a computer science degree or a totally different background.

The answer is absolutely yes.

Again, it comes back to skillset. If you start building projects, learning the tools, and shaping your resume to show that you understand the basics of controls theory and system modeling, you can absolutely transition into this field.

And honestly, that mindset applies to any transition in engineering.

To get you started on controls check out: