A department entered after arrival
Princeton says students apply to the University, not to departments, and engineers choose one of six engineering departments at the end of their first year.
Undergraduate · Princeton
Princeton Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering: motion, energy and flight
Princeton admits students to the University, not to a department, and Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering (MAE) is one of the six engineering departments that award the B.S.E. For an applicant drawn to propulsion, energy, robotics and flight, the useful questions are what the department says it is known for, how engineers choose a department at the end of the first year and how it differs from Princeton's other engineering departments. This guide makes no claim of a separate application to the department.
Official information · read 1 November 2026, no entry-year label
What Princeton says about Princeton Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
Taken from Princeton Engineering's Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering department page, Princeton Admission's Academics, Standardized Testing and International Students pages, read on 1 November 2026. The pages carry no entry-year label, so for a 2028-entry application every statement below is evidence for the previous cycle and may change; check Princeton's pages for the 2028-entry details.
Research strengths named
Combustion, fluid flow, lasers, propulsion, environmental science and aerospace dynamics, among others, in the department's own words.
Ties to many fields
The department lists control systems, materials, satellites, robotics, energy conversion and storage, nuclear security and biomechanics.
A senior thesis or independent project
Princeton says every senior writes a thesis or, in some engineering departments, undertakes a substantial independent project.
The SAT or ACT is required
Princeton says fall 2028 first-year applicants need to submit either SAT or ACT scores.
Official sources
- Princeton Admission: Academicsadmission.princeton.edu
- Princeton Engineering: Mechanical and Aerospace Engineeringengineering.princeton.edu
- Princeton Admission: Standardized Testingadmission.princeton.edu
Read on 1 November 2026 on Princeton Engineering's Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering department page, Princeton Admission's Academics, Standardized Testing and International Students pages, which describes 2027 entry. The pages carry no entry-year label. Princeton's Undergraduate Announcement, the course lists, deadlines and financial aid were not read, and the page read is a department research overview and does not set out the undergraduate curriculum and are not stated.
The department
What Princeton says MAE is known for
Princeton Engineering's department page says Mechanical and Aerospace engineers at Princeton have played leading roles over the past half century in combustion, fluid flow modelling and measurement, laser technologies and materials, propulsion, environmental science and aerospace dynamics, with a wider impact on control and dynamical systems, satellite technology, robotics, aircraft performance, energy conversion and storage, nuclear security and biomechanics. The page read is a research overview. It does not set out the undergraduate curriculum, and this guide does not describe courses or the path to graduation.
Is it the right department?
MAE beside Civil and Environmental, Chemical and Biological, and ORFE
Princeton describes these separately, so the choice is made after admission. Avandy's comparison is general.
MAE fits if
you want mechanics, propulsion, energy and flight as your engineering base.
Civil and Environmental Engineering fits if
you want infrastructure and the environment. Avandy's Princeton Civil and Environmental Engineering guide covers it.
Chemical and Biological Engineering fits if
you want health, energy and industrial processes. Avandy's Princeton Chemical and Biological Engineering guide covers it.
Admission and testing
A Princeton application and the SAT or ACT
Princeton asks for an academic record that includes internal grades and marks from external exams such as A levels or the IB, with predicted or achieved results sent as they become available. It says first-year applicants for fall 2028 will need to submit either SAT or ACT scores. The department is chosen after enrolment, not applied for separately. This guide states no score.
A decision framework
Three questions before you commit
This is Avandy's own framework, not Princeton's.
Which part of MAE's range draws you: propulsion, energy, robotics or aerospace?
The page spans all of them.
Are mathematics, physics, chemistry and computer science comfortable first-two-year foundations?
Princeton lists them as engineering requirements.
Can you plan the SAT or ACT with your A levels or IB?
Princeton says fall 2028 first-year applicants need to submit one of them.
Planning for 2028 entry
Planning for 2028 entry: what carries over and what is awaiting publication
Princeton's pages carry no entry-year label, so nothing on them is confirmed for 2028 entry. Use them to understand the structure of the application, then check Princeton's own pages for the 2028-entry details.
The requirements and descriptions on the pages read on 1 November 2026, which carry no entry-year label
These are the best guide to what to prepare. Princeton has not confirmed them for 2028 entry.
Deadlines, fees, financial aid and any department prerequisites not quoted here: not stated
This guide has not read them. Check Princeton for the values that apply to your application year.
What to do now
Read the department page and the Undergraduate Announcement entry, and plan the SAT or ACT alongside your A levels or IB.
Support
Independent support with planning your own application
Avandy provides independent academic and admissions support. It is not affiliated with Princeton University or any of its colleges or departments. Preparation sits within the Avandy Trinity Advisory Model: a Strategic Admissions Consultant, a PhD-level Academic Mentor and a Subject-specific Tutor, working to the actual requirements of each course. Support here is limited to understanding the requirements and planning the applicant's own work; Avandy does not write or edit essays, does not submit any materials and has no partnership with Princeton University. No outcome is promised.
Questions
Questions applicants ask
Can I apply directly to Princeton Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering?
No. Princeton says students apply to the University, not to individual departments, programs or schools.
Can I apply directly to MAE?
No. Princeton says students apply to the University and engineers choose a department at the end of the first year.
Is there a thesis?
Princeton says every senior writes a thesis or, in some engineering departments, undertakes a substantial independent project.
Do I need the SAT or ACT?
Princeton says first-year applicants seeking to enrol in fall 2028 will need to submit either SAT or ACT scores.
Do A levels and the IB count?
Princeton asks for marks from external exams such as British A levels or the International Baccalaureate, with predicted or achieved results as they become available.
Are these the rules for 2028 entry?
No. They are Princeton's wording with no entry-year label. Check Princeton's pages again when Princeton publishes its 2028-entry requirements.
Students and families
Talk to us about Princeton Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
Tell us about the student's curriculum, their mathematics and physics, their interest in aerospace and energy and their SAT or ACT plan, the universities on the list, and the intended year of entry. A senior adviser will review the academic profile before recommending how to prepare.