Course Information for MSSE and GSCE
This page provides information about all Systems Engineering courses and other courses that are frequently taken by systems engineers as their technical or general electives of choice. Some additional advising suggestions are also presented.
Please note that planned course offerings may change due to extraordinary circumstances. For the most up-to-date information on an upcoming semester, check the U’s official course schedule for all available Systems Engineering offers.
Prerequisites
- MSSE:
- One year of calculus
- One semester of statistics
- GCSE:
- Bachelor’s degree from a recognized engineering or allied science program.
- For both programs, it is highly encouraged that students have had at least one computer programming course in the past.
Mastering the Prerequisite Material
Many students entering the program will have passed the prerequisite courses years in the past and may have forgotten the bulk of the material. The following advising notes provide classes where students can gain sufficient mastery of the prerequisite material for the MSSE. These graduate classes can also be used to fulfill the MSSE course requirements.
- Individuals meeting the statistics requirement but feeling weak in their statistical knowledge can take either ME EN 6183 or MEEN 61 85 early in their coursework.
- Individuals that have no computer coding experience or feel weak in this area can take ME EN 6185 early in their coursework.
- Any relevant calculus topics will be covered in their respective courses.
Core Courses for the MSSE
Fall
- ME EN 6160 Fundamentals of Systems Engineering | 3 credits | Online
- ME EN 6166 Model-Based Systems Engineering | 3 credits | Online starting Fall 24
- ME EN 6183 Discrete Event Systems Simulation | 3 credits | Online
Spring
- ME EN 6165 Requirements Engineering and Management | 3 credits | Online
- ME EN 6170 System Engineering and Integration | 3 credits | Online
- ME EN 6035 Design of Experiments | 3 credits | Online starting Spring 25
Systems Engineering Elective Courses
Fall
- ME EN 6185 Analytics for Systems Management | 3 credits | Online starting Fall 24
Spring
- ME EN 6180 Project Management for Engineers | 3 credits | Online starting Spring 25
- ME EN 6184 Operations Research for Systems | 3 credits | Online starting Spring 25
Summer
- ME EN 6182 Design of Production and Service Systems | 3 credits | Online starting Summer 25
- ME EN 6186 Engineering Economic Analysis | 3 credits | Online
Related Elective Courses offered On-Campus by the Mechanical Engineering Department
Fall
- ME EN 6010 Principles of Manufacturing Processes | 3 credits
- ME EN 6100 Ergonomics | 3 credits
- ME EN 6130 Design Implications for Human-Machine Systems | 3 credits
- ME EN 6150 Product-Safety Engineering and Engineering Ethics | 3 credits
- ME EN 6205 System Dynamics | 3 credits
- ME EN 6960 Space Mission Engineering | 3 credits
Spring
- ME EN 6210 State Space Control | 3 credits
- ME EN 7110 System Safety | 3 credits
- ME EN 7200 Nonlinear Controls | 3 credits
Additional Guidance on Degree Pathways
First Year Suggested Courses
Note: These courses are listed in order. If you take 6 credit hours in a given semester, choose to take the first two in the list. However, any courses that help master the program prerequisites should be prioritized. These course schedules are merely suggestions and other schedules are possible.
Starting Fall or Summer
Fall
- ME EN 6160 Fundamentals of Systems Engineering
- ME EN 6183 Discrete Event Systems Simulation
- Engineering Elective
Spring
- ME EN 6170 System Engineering and Integration
- ME EN 6165 Requirements Engineering and Management
- ME EN 6035 Design of Experiments
Summer (in no particular order)
- ME EN 6182 Design of Production and Service Systems
- ME EN 6186 Engineering Economic Analysis
Starting Spring
Spring
- ME EN 6165 Requirements Engineering and Management
- ME EN 6170 System Engineering and Integration
- ME EN 6035 Design of Experiments
Summer (in no particular order)
- ME EN 6182 Design of Production and Service Systems
- ME EN 6186 Engineering Economic Analysis
Fall
- ME EN 6160 Fundamentals of Systems Engineering
- ME EN 6183 Discrete Event Systems Simulation
- ME EN 6166 Model-Based Systems Engineering
Additional Advising Comments:
The first two courses to take are ME EN 6160 and ME EN 6170. These courses provide a broad overview of Systems Engineering. Although not required, ME EN 6160 should be taken before ME EN 6170. Not observing this guidance may become a problem for individuals that begin in the Spring. Still, taking 6170 without 6160 is manageable and is the fastest degree completion option for people first enrolling in the Spring and choosing to take two concurrent courses.
A student should have at least one of ME EN 6160, 6165 or 6170 prior to taking ME EN 6166.
One Year Graduate Certificate in Systems Engineering
Taking the suggested 2 courses in the Fall, 2 courses in the Spring and one in the Summer provides the core and elective credits to earn the Graduate Systems Engineering Certificate (subject to grade requirements). Do not forget that you need to fill out the departmental form in the semester you earn the certificate to be awarded it.