2020-21 Academic Catalog

Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering

This is an archived copy of the 2020-21 catalog. To access the most recent version of the catalog, please visit http://catalog.msstate.edu.

Head: Dr. John M. Usher
Undergraduate Coordinator: Dr. Lesley Strawderman
Office: 260 McCain Engineering Building

Industrial and systems engineering is the application of engineering methods and the principles of scientific management to the design, improvement, and installation of integrated systems of people, materials, information, equipment, and energy. The industrial and systems engineer is concerned with the design of total systems, and is the leader in the drive for increased productivity and quality improvement.

The industrial and systems engineering profession uses a variety of specialized knowledge and skills. These include communications, economics, mathematics, physical and social sciences, together with the methods of engineering analysis and design.

The industrial and systems engineer is often involved in designing or improving major systems that encompass the total organization. Consequently, he/she is often in contact with individuals from many segments of the organization. From his/her education and these experiences, the industrial and systems engineer develops a global view of the many inter-related operations necessary to deliver a firm’s goods and services. Because of their management skills and global view of the organization, a large proportion of industrial and systems engineers move into management, and later advance into top management positions.

Although industrial and systems engineering is especially important to all segments of industry, it is also applied in other types of organizations, such as transportation, health care, public utilities, agriculture, defense, government, merchandising, distribution, logistics, and other service sectors. With increasing emphasis on quality and productivity for successful international competition, it is expected that industrial and systems engineers will be in increasing demand in the coming decades.

The objectives of the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering are founded in Mississippi State University’s educational philosophy and in the industrial engineering profession. They were developed to satisfy the needs of the department’s constituents: students, employers, alumni, faculty, and the industrial engineering profession.

The Industrial Engineering program aim is to graduate students having a broad education, with emphasis in industrial and systems engineering fundamentals and practices, which enables them to function effectively in systems involving people, materials, information, energy, and money.

The four educational objectives of the Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial Engineering are stated below.

  1. Graduates of the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering are versed in math, science, and engineering theory, know how to apply that theory, and are capable of functioning effectively producing solutions in a broad range of organizations.
  2. Graduates of the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering lead and interact cooperatively in professional situations with individuals having diverse backgrounds, cultures, training, education, and interests.
  3. Graduates of the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering think independently, critically examine ideas, and make discerning professional judgments, whether intellectual, ethical, or aesthetic.
  4. Graduates of the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering are professionally mature, responsible, and informed citizens who pursue lifelong learning.

Because of the importance of systems design in the many facets of industrial and systems engineering, instruction of the principles and methods of design is integrated throughout the curriculum of industrial engineering, and culminates in a major design experience in the student’s senior year.

The Industrial Engineering Program is accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET, http://www.abet.org.