Space Test Course awards graduates master’s degrees for first time

Published Dec. 12, 2025
By 1st Lt. Margaret Blice
Space Training and Readiness Command

EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- The graduating class of Space Test Course 25A were the first to earn master’s degrees through the program Dec. 6, 2025, marking an historic achievement as the course continues to expand and deliver on its mission.

Originally designed as a three-month short course which began in January 2021, STC is now a year-long, graduate accredited course of study, fully integrated with U.S Air Force Test Pilot School’s flight test curriculum. The program’s graduates will receive a Master of Science in Flight Test Engineering – Space Test Concentration, a 40-credit hour degree accredited through Air University.

The new accreditation comes after four years of curriculum development and partnership with the Air Force’s Flight Test Course, TPS, and Air University, and mirrors how other TPS graduates receive a Master of Science in Flight Test Engineering upon completion of their courses.

“Looking back at where the STC began in 2021 and comparing that to where we are today is amazing,” said Dr. Andrew Freeborn, who has been with the program since its inception. “The explosive growth in quantity and quality of the students’ educational experience is a testament to the dedication and commitment of a fantastic team here at Edwards, the strong partnership we have with Delta 12, Space Training and Readiness Command, and headquarters USSF, as well as several interagency and industrial partners around the country.”

The development highlights the importance of the Space Force’s professional testers. It also ensures Guardians receive education that keeps up with the fast-paced rate of change of the capabilities they’re required to test. The STC’s focus is to produce adaptive, critical thinking test leaders to conduct full-spectrum test and evaluation of space-domain systems. The intent is to provide students with a broad base of technical knowledge to prepare them for future Test and Evaluation (T&E) projects that span a variety of technical areas. STC accomplishes this with an integrated curriculum.

Approximately two-thirds of the academic offerings at TPS, including test foundations, mission systems, and test leadership, are shared by STC and FTC students. The remaining third is made up of “domain sciences” that are unique to the different courses; FTC gets material on flight sciences and STC receives lessons on astronautical sciences.
Lt. Col. David Heinz, Air Force TPS deputy commandant and STC director, explained how the courses’ integration and rigorous academic evaluation reflects how Guardians and Airmen are improving education systems to better prepare service members in the future.

“Conferring the master’s degree to the recent STC graduates acknowledges the academic intensity of the education that the students received and is a testament to the dedication of the faculty and staff who built out the course over the past four years,” said Heinz. “This was truly a joint effort between the USAF and USSF and is a shining example of how we can continue to partner to win.”

Col. Sacha Tomlinson, Delta 12 commander, spoke on how the changes to STC also gets after recent initiatives to empower the acquisition workforce to rapidly deliver capabilities and modernize test infrastructure.

“The value of the STC to our service is immeasurable,” she said. “It produces the test professionals we need to lead our test forces to meet the challenges laid out in Department of War’s acquisition reform, accelerate war-winning capabilities to our warfighters, and ensure the only ones surprised in combat are our adversaries.”

STC graduates support the service’s ability to lead combat-credible evaluation of the USSF enterprise and associated weapon systems.
Reflecting on the impact of the course, Freeborn stated, “Conferring the degree is recognition of the rigor of the program and the hard work and perseverance of the students who strive to graduate from STC and take their place as leaders of the T&E community.”

For more information on STC and the application process, please visit https://www.edwards.af.mil/Site-Management/USAFTPS/.