MS Option

MS Option in Systems Engineering

The Industrial Engineering option requires 30 credits with at least 21 credits from the ISE program. Each student is required to either write a masters thesis or pass the comprehensive examination.

The thesis is a closely supervised project of original research. Most of our masters theses have been published in leading IE journals. Students who write a thesis register for 6 credits of research and 24 credits of regular classroom courses.

The administrative steps for students who write an MS thesis are as follows:

The MS thesis proposal:

- By the end of the first semester identify an advisor.

- Select a committee of at least three members of the ISE program.

- Set the date for the thesis proposal with the committee and reserve the conference room.

- Distribute a notice to all faculty and graduate students (see Cindy Ielmini in IE Office) to invite them to
attend the proposal presentation.

- Distribute the written proposal at least one week in advance to committee members.

- Present the proposal.

- Prepare a 30-minute talk.

The MS thesis defense:

- Prepare the Admission to Candidacy Form for the MS degree which can be obtained from the IE office.

- Fill in all your courses and submit it to the IE office for verification.

- Set the date with the committee and reserve the conference room.

- Distribute a notice to all faculty and graduate students (see Cindy Ielmini in IE Office) to invite them to
attend the defense.

- Distribute the written proposal at least ten days in advance to committee members.

- Defend your thesis - approximately one hour.

The comprehensive examination covers material from the following three courses:

540:510 Deterministic Models in Industrial Engineering

540:515 Stochastic Models in Industrial Engineering

540:560 Production Analysis

The examination is three hours long. It is scheduled twice a year on the second Fridays of November and April. Students take this examination after accumulating at least 18 credits of course work. Students may not take this examination more than twice