Doctor of Philosophy in Industrial Engineering

Advisor:
Bob White,
Room E-216 Parkview Campus

The Doctor of Philosophy in Industrial Engineering is designed to intensify the student’s knowledge and comprehension in the various disciplines of the subject with emphasis on original research in a chosen area of specialty. It will assist individuals wishing to pursue a career as a research practitioner in industry and government or teaching and research careers in industrial engineering in colleges and universities. The program emphasizes breadth of knowledge and requires students to conduct a significant, focused field study, and to complete a dissertation research project.

Admission Requirements

Application materials may be obtained from the Office of Admissions and Orientation, Graduate Admissions and from the Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering. International students must contact the Office of International Student Services for admission information and to obtain application materials.

Admission decisions will be made by the department doctoral committee. All students must meet the general requirements for a doctoral degree specified elsewhere in this Graduate College Catalog. In addition to these requirements, the student must fulfill either of two educational requirements: a bachelor’s degree in engineering or related discipline from an Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET/EAC) accredited engineering program, including at least three courses in industrial engineering, or a master’s degree in engineering from a department offering an ABET accredited undergraduate program, including at least five courses in industrial engineering. Three letters of recommendation must be submitted. Students not having these requirements may be conditionally admitted, with full admission granted upon completion of additional prerequisites.

Applicancy Requirements

The applicancy requirements are those stated in the general requirements of The Graduate College. The student should establish a dissertation committee by the end of the first year. The committee will be composed of at least four members of the Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering, and one or more outside examiners.

Candidacy Requirements

The applicant must seek candidacy no later than the end of the third calendar year after enrollment in the Ph.D. program. By this time the student should have completed the course work and have a preliminary plan for the dissertation endorsed by the chair of his/her dissertation committee. To be admitted to candidacy, the student must successfully complete the comprehensive examination. This exam, administered by the doctoral committee, will be composed of both a written and an oral component. The written portion will include questions submitted by the student’s doctoral committee and those drawn from the departmental pool of questions relating to the core courses. The questions are designed to evaluate the student’s knowledge in the engineering management area of concentration as well as his/her area of specialization. The oral component will be administered by the doctoral committee. The student’s performance in this exam will be evaluated by the doctoral committee. If student fails the comprehensive exam, the student can apply to retake the exam in the next semester. A second failure results in dismissal from the program. Candidacy will be approved or denied based upon the student’s performance in the course work, successful completion of the comprehensive examination, and a positive recommendation of the dissertation committee.

Financial Assistance

The Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering offers opportunities for financial support of doctoral students through doctoral associateships, graduate assistantships, and fellowships. Information is available from the department or The Graduate College.

Program Requirements

In addition to The Graduate College requirements, the following requirements must be fulfilled:

Eighty-four (84) credit hours of courses beyond the baccalaureate. A student with a master’s degree may be able to transfer up to thirty-six (36) credit hours, with this decision being made by the doctoral committee at the time of admission:
1. The determination of how the master’s level credits can be used to fulfill the requirements listed below is made at the time of admission.
2. For a student entering the program with a bachelor’s degree, a maximum of twenty-one (21) credit hours of 5000-level, post-baccalaureate graduate courses can be applied to the Ph.D. program; for a student entering the program with a master’s degree, a maximum of six (6) credit hours of 5000-level courses beyond the master’s degree can be applied to the Ph.D. program.
The credit hours are grouped into seven areas as follows:
1. Eighteen (18) hours of core courses with three (3) hours of IME 7250 required.
2. Twelve (12) hours from the engineering management concentration area.
3. Nine (9) hours from one of the area of specialization course groups.
4. Eighteen (18) hours of electives chosen from the graduate offerings of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering or other departments appropriate to the student’s research interest as mutually agreed upon by the student and the dissertation committee.
5. Six (6) hours of electives related to teaching methodology.
6. Six (6) hours of IME 7120, Professional Field Experience.
7. Fifteen (15) hours of IME 7300, Doctoral Dissertation.
Successful completion of the comprehensive examination after completion of all course work.
Successful oral defense of the dissertation and approval of the dissertation by the committee and The Graduate College.
Successful completion of the teaching internship requirement.
Residency Requirement: Enrollment on campus in four consecutive semesters or sessions.
Research Tool: The required research tools are computer programming and statistics. Competency will be based on successful completion of CS 5060 and STAT 6600 or equivalent with a grade of “B” or better.