Industrial Engineering

Industrial engineers are in the business of making things work better – and every industry can benefit from that. The field gives its practitioners an education in engineering and business, and the opportunity to work in a variety of fields such as bio- and nano-engineering as well as traditional manufacturing, health care, entertainment, shipping and logistics, public utilities, telecommunications and management consulting. The Master of Industrial Engineering (MIE) provides the education and credentials necessary for the professional, practitioner-oriented individual seeking graduate-level breadth in the field.

Because this program is designed for self-supported, military, part-time and co-op students preparing for a career in industry, government or consulting, assistantship awards are usually not available. No final oral examination or thesis research is required for this degree. Project work (up to six credit hours) is optional. This degree may be obtained by a combination of project and coursework or by coursework alone.

Students should have an undergraduate degree in engineering or in the behavioral, physical or mathematical sciences. The 30-credit-hour degree program does not require on-campus residency.

Eligibility

Applicants must have:

• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university in an engineering or related discipline. The discipline does not have to be industrial engineering but it must have a strong engineering/mathematical curriculum.
• An overall undergraduate GPA of at least 3.0.
• Completion of the Graduate Record Exam (GRE) for all applicants.
• TOEFL or IELTS scores (no more than two years old) for international applicants unless they have completed one year of study at a university in the United States.
• Three letters of recommendation from persons able to comment on the applicant’s qualifications for graduate study.

Plan of Study

A minimum of 30 credit hours is required, of which at least 21 hours must be in Industrial Engineering courses. At least 27 hours of the 30 must be at the 500 level or above, and at least one 700 or 800 level ISE course must be included in the Plan of Graduate Work. Project work for the degree is optional; up to 6 hours of credit for ISE 677 (Industrial Engineering Projects) may be allowed toward the degree. As a breadth requirement, the student must elect one course from four of the five breadth requirement groups in ISE plus one course from Computer Science, Mathematics, or Statistics, for a total of 15 credit hours. No more than 6 hours of 400-level coursework are permitted on the Plan of Graduate Work from outside the Department of Industrial Engineering.

Breadth Requirement (15 hours)

This requirement is met by selecting:

• One course from four of the following groups in the Breadth Requirement Course Listing (12 credit hours):
  • Economic Analysis and Decision Making
  • Human Factors and Ergonomics
  • Manufacturing Systems
  • Supply Chain
  • Systems Analysis and Optimization
• One course from group F (Computer Science, Mathematics, and Statistics) in the Breadth Requirement Course Listing.

For students with an undergraduate degree in Industrial Engineering, these breadth requirements should be discussed with the Director of Graduate Programs.

Minor Requirements

There is no minor; however, the student may elect a "concentration" from another department.

Project Work

Project work is optional. Credit may be allowed, for example, for work pursued during a co-op experience. Proposals for project work should be prepared using the form shown in the Appendix G, and must be reviewed and approved by the student's degree advisor. It is recommended that all project work should be documented in a formal report with properly listed references, abstract, etc. Such efforts should represent scholarly work above and beyond that done for other purposes, such as course term papers. M.I.E. students must register for ISE 677 (or ISE 589) in order to obtain course credit toward the degree for project work.

Career Prospects

Efficiency drives profits in the world of production and manufacturing. Industrial engineers explore ways to get work done in the most efficient ways while taking into consideration competing factors like the number of workers needed, actions required, an acceptable margin of error, available technology, worker safety, environmental concerns, budget and cost. The Master of Industrial Engineering provides the education needed for industrial engineers to effectively improve the bottom line for companies and agencies.

Additional Resources

For detailed information regarding engineering online programs and how to apply and enroll, please visit the Engineering Online website.