Graduate Program: Systems Engineering (MS) - Accelerated Master's Program

General Information

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Program/Degree
Systems Engineering (MS) - Accelerated Master's Program  
Program Description

The MS in Systems Engineering program is focused on providing design, modeling, and analytical methods for sociotechnical systems in various application domains such as aerospace, communication, defense, health care, transportation, and manufacturing. This department was the first Systems Engineering department in the country. It was founded on the premise that if complex systems are to do what is intended, without unwanted side effects, they must be designed not only with imagination and technical skill, but with rigorous attention to the design process itself and to the interactions among the system components and with other systems and society.  Consequently, the curriculum provides students with design viewpoints, methods, and tools for modeling and analysis that are especially appropriate for large complex systems. 

 
Department/Academic Unit(s)

The Department of Systems and Industrial Engineering (SIE) at the University of Arizona was established in 1961 as the nation's first department of systems engineering.  Since then, the SIE Department has achieved international prestige for its contributions to the inter-disciplinary design of large-scale complex systems involving people, technology, and information.  With the introduction of a modern industrial engineering curriculum in 1972 and a reliability and quality engineering degree in 1987, the department offers a truly diverse and successful graduate program.  Career opportunities for graduates of the Systems and Industrial Engineering programs are outstanding.  Over the years, graduates from these programs have found employment in the nation's leading corporations, research institutes, and universities.

 
College

College of Engineering

 
Campus where offered

University of Arizona - Main - Tucson

 
Contacts
Admissions Contact
Cindy T Nguyen
520-626-4644
Graduate Program Coordinator
Cindy T Nguyen
520-626-4644
Director of Graduate Studies
Vignesh Subbian
520-621-6559
Graduate College Degree Counselor
Megan Jia Mcnulty-Luoma
520-626-9962
 
Tuition and Fees
Please refer to the UA Bursar's Office Tuition and Fees Calculator for up-to-date information about tuition and fees. 
Please refer to the UA Registrar's's Office Special Course Fees for up-to-date information about special course fees. 

Admissions Information

Admissions Requirements

AMP in SYE Admission Requirements

  • Completion of a minimum of 75 undergraduate credit hours is required at the time of application; a minimum of 90 undergraduate credit hours is required at the time of entry into the AMP.  If the student’s GPA falls below 3.3 at the time they have completed 90 units, the student will not be admitted into the program.  Courses taken for audit may not be included in the total number of units counted for eligibility or admission
  • Students whose cumulative GPA on a minimum of 12 units of undergraduate credit hours at UA is equal or above 3.3 can apply
  • Completion of at least 12 earned undergraduate credits in their major (SE, IE, EM) at The University of Arizona’s main campus.  Units still graded Incomplete, units graded Pass/Fail or units taken as audit will not count toward the requirement of the 12 undergraduate units
  • Completion, or near completion, of general education requirements at the time of application
  • Students who have taken the MS prerequisite courses, including:
    • SIE305 (Introduction to Probability and Statistics) 
    • SIE321 (Probabilistic Models in Operations Research)
    • SIE340 (Deterministic Models in Operations Research)
      • Courses equivalent to these prerequisites taken at other departments or institutions will be allowed
  • Regular application requirements for the MS program (e.g. statement of purpose, GRE scores (for students who seek for a departmental teaching or research assistantship), plan of study, submission of a UA graduate application and graduate application fee) apply.
  • Demonstration of the maturity necessary for success in an accelerated, highly competitive program
  • Expectation to complete the undergraduate degree within four years.  The undergraduate degree requirements must be completed before the student is eligible to have the Master’s degree awarded
 
Standardized Tests

GRE:

The GRE test scores are not required for MS students, unless a student is requesting funding from the department or the College of Engineering. Review for MS funding is handled on a case-by-case basis.

If students choose to provide GRE, below subject tests below are considered competitive: 

  • Minimum GRE Verbal: 153
  • Minimum GRE Quantitative: 155
  • Minimum GRE Analytical: 4.0
 
Funding Opportunities

The Department of Systems & Industrial Engineering offers Teaching Assistantships and Research Assistantships to students on a competitive basis.  If applying for funding you must submit the required GRE scores of Verbal - 153, Quantititave - 155 and Analytical - 4.0

 
Admissions Deadlines

 

  • Fall: June 1st 
  • Spring: November 1st

 

 
International Conditional Admission

International applicants will not be considered for conditional admission by this program.

Other Information
The GRE Institution Code for The University of Arizona is 4832

Completion Requirements

Minimum Credit Units

30 

Core Coursework Requirements

The Master of Science in Systems Engineering requires 30 or 33 units credit hours, depending on program route. 

Students are required to select one of the following degree options to earn their degree: The Master's Report Option (30 units), the Master’s Thesis Option (30 units) or the Coursework option (33 units)

  • Master's Report Option: 27 units of SIE Graduate Coursework & 3-6 units of SIE 909 Master's Report 
  • Master’s Thesis Option: 24 units of SIE Graduate Coursework and 6 units of SIE 910 Master’s Thesis
  • Coursework only Option: 33 units of SIE Graduate Coursework

The following 12.00 units are required in the major:

  • SIE 554A Systems Engineering Process (3.00 credits) (Fall, Spring)
  • SIE 558 Model-based Systems Engineering (3.00 credits) (Spring Only)
  • Select either SIE 550 Theory of Linear Systems (3.00 credits) (Spring Only) OR SIE 531 Simulation Modeling and Analysis (3.00 credits) (Fall, Spring, Summer)
  • Select either SIE 520 Stochastic Modeling I (3.00 credits) (Spring Only) OR SIE 530 Engineering Statistics (3.00 credits) (Fall Only)
 
Elective Coursework

The remaining SIE graduate elective credits will be selected with the approval of an SIE Faculty Advisor.

A list of approved SIE graduate electives can be found below and on the SIE website.

  • SIE 506: Quality Engineering (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 508: Reliability Engineering (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 511: Human-Machine Interaction (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 512: Human Factors Engineering Research Methods (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 514: Law for Engineers and Scientists (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 515: Technical Sales and Marketing (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 520: Stochastic Modeling I (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 530 Engineering Statistics (3.00)
  • SIE 522: Engineering Decision Making under Uncertainty (3.00 redits)
  • SIE 525: Queuing Theory (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 530: Engineering Statistics (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 531: Simulation Modeling and Analysis (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 532: Sports Analytics (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 533: Fundamentals of Data Science for Engineers (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 536: Experiment Design and Regression (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 540: Survey of Optimization Methods (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 544: Linear Programming (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 545: Fundamentals of Optimization (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 546: Algorithms, Graphs, and Networks (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 552: Space Systems Engineering (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 555: Sensor Systems Engineering (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 557: Project Management (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 556: Fundamental of Guidance for Aerospace Systems (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 558: Model-Based Systems Engineering (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 561: Traffic Modeling and Simulation (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 562: Advanced Production Control (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 563: Integrated Logistics and Distribution Systems (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 564: Cost Estimation (3.00 credits) 
  • SIE 565: Supply Chain Management (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 566: Life Cycle Analysis (3.00 credits) 
  • SIE 567: Financial Modeling for Innovation (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 570: Intelligent Control Systems & Applications (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 571: Systems Cyber Security (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 572: Information Security and Research (INSuRE) (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 577: Introduction to Biomedical Informatics (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 578: Artificial Intelligence for Health and Medicine (3.00 credits)
  • SIE  581: Design for Additive Manufacturing (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 583: Computer Integrated Manufacturing Systems (CIM) (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 596: Special Topics in SIE (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 606: Advanced Quality Engineering (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 608: Advanced Reliability Engineering (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 631: Distributed Multi-Paradigm Simulation Systems (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 640: Integer and Combinatorial Optimization (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 645: Nonlinear Optimization (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 654: Advanced Concepts in Systems Engineering (3.00 credits)
  • SIE 678: Transportation Systems (3.00 credits)
 
Additional Requirements

Students pursuing the Master's Report Option or the Master’s Thesis Option are required to work with their Master's Report/Thesis Committee to develop a Master's Report/Thesis and defend their report subject by degree completion.

The Master's Report /Thesis Committee must abide by the Graduate College's committee requirements. A minimum of two SIE eligible faculty members must serve on the committee. The third member may be a Special Member. 

Master’s Thesis Option Students are also required to submit their Master’s Thesis to ETD ProQuest as a part of their degree requirements per the Graduate College’s requirements.

Students may transfer up to 6.00 units of graduate coursework (non University of Arizona courses) to be applied to their Master's Plan of Study subject to approval by department. 

Students may take up to 6.00 untis of non-SIE University of Arizona Graduate Coursework to be applied to their Master's Plan of Study subject to approval by department. 

 

 

 
Student Handbook

Please refer to the Graduate Student Handbook for students who are pursuing this program of study.

 

Additional Information

This is an Accelerated Master's Program (AMP).

The Graduate College offers exceptional undergraduate students in selected majors the opportunity to earn both a bachelor's degree and master's degree in as few as 5 years. The Accelerated Master's Program is for the top undergraduates in participating majors who plan to continue in a graduate program in the same, or closely related, UA discipline.

Programs will select from among a qualified pool, based on the following criteria. Individual programs may have more stringent or additional requirements:

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Last revised 08 Mar 2023