http://uanews.ua.edu/2015/05/ua-engineering-students-win-national-contest/
Actually I don’t think it matters where one goes for Aerospace engineering. The CEO of Boeing graduate from a relatively unknown school from Somewhere. I mean I don’t remember the exact name unless I google for it.
Dennis Muilenburg, president and CEO of Boeing, went to Iowa Stste and the University of Washington, both of which are very well-known aerospace schools.
OP wants to study mechanical engineering, not aerospace. Question was about placement of mechanical engineers into aerospace companies. Which schools have good aerospace majors is not relevant. All aerospace companies hire mechanical engineers from everywhere, even if they don’t specifically recruit at the school. DS is in electrical, had multiple internship offers from major aerospace companies that did not recruit at his school. Same for several of his friends. His just-completed internship had students from all over the country, most obtained without campus recruiting. Internet has made applying to any company quite easy. For the most part, the aerospace industry is more about what you know than where you go. A strong candidate from any accredited school will have plenty of opportunities.
Which schools have aerospace engineering as a major course of study is not relevant. Which schools offer the right set of skills in whatever major course of study for aerospace companies to be hiring their graduates is important. At any rate, most solid mechanical engineering departments have at least some aerospace-related research and courses anyway. In that sense, it absolutely is important which schools have good "aerospace programs insofar are the aerospace companies view it, regardless of the actual title on the department.
Also, it’s certainly not required that your school be specifically targeted for recruitment by a given company. However, aerospace companies are pretty well-known for having a list of target schools at which they prioritize their recruiting efforts. It certainly helps to be at one of those schools. If a company is already familiar with your school and considers it good enough to spend some of its precious recruitment dollars there, it’s a lot more likely that your resume will get a second look.
Also, I’d like to add that it’s not important where the CEO got his or her degree. At the end of the day, it’s a single sample point in an otherwise huge company. Further, I’ve met a number of people who got their degree from a school and later said they regretted not going somewhere else, so there’s no guarantee that a highly-placed executive will lead to heavier recruiting of that person’s alma mater. It’s probably more likely than not by a fair margin, but it’s not a given. Shoot, by the time you get to that level in a company, it’s not really what you learned in school that’s driving your ability and success anyway.
@Bobbx123 , This is from 2014 re: GMU but is about their Career Fair . Sounds like they are doing a good job of increasing interest in their school among employers. Boeing and Lockheed Martin are mentioned. http://newsdesk.gmu.edu/2014/10/career-fair-introduces-record-number-students-alumni-employers/
Sorry if I am late on this one, but I would recommend Penn State, they have a very well-known and respected aero program with a top 20 engineering school. Lockheed does a lot of recruiting at PSU and they have their own Engineering Career Fair there so companies can go and see who they would like to offer full-time jobs, internships, and co-ops.
If you’re seriously considering OSU, check out their placement stats and compare them to the other schools you’re considering.
https://ecs.osu.edu/post-graduate-status-major
If you look through the info posted on ecs.osu.edu, you’ll also be able to find a more detailed post grad report which lists top employers of OSU grads.
(Oops.,…just realized original question is many months old but site won’t let me delete my response.)