Course Descriptions
The notation after each course title indicates the number of credit hours for the course.
MSEM 500 Management of Engineering, Scientific and Technical Professionals (3)
This course will cover the management of human resources in a technology-based enterprise with special emphasis on interactions with engineering, scientific and technological professionals. The course will also concentrate on the development of personnel policies regarding training, employee-labor relations, and relations with technical staff and administrative personnel. Students will apply coursework via interaction with human resources professionals and research assignments.
MSEM 505 Economic Analysis in Engineering Planning (3)
The course covers the principles and methodologies of economic analysis and selection of projects as they pertain to engineering activities. Individual, corporate and public projects will be considered. Among topics covered are time value of money, short term and long term investment analysis, management of assets, inflation, and taxation analysis. Basic concepts such as stochastic analysis and deterministic methods will be introduced. Students will be able to utilize financial principles including: accounting income and cash flow, equivalence, cash flow modeling, depreciation, taxation, investment worth, selection of alternatives, and budgeting models. Students will also have a special appreciation for comparisons of project viability and risk for selection of projects including investment worth under risk, comparing projects, and decision trees.
MSEM 510 Organizational Behavior (3)
The determinants of individual and group behavior within the engineering organization are discussed. Motivation, leadership, group behavior, organizational structures and processes as they affect performance and satisfaction in the organization will be covered. Students will obtain practical knowledge of organizational behavior via reading, research projects and interactions with engineering and business professionals.
MSEM 520 Contract Law and the Engineering Enterprise (3)
Introduction to the legal factors affecting contractor activities; contract responsibilities of contractors, engineers and owners; subcontracts and third party liability; legal as well as ethical issues facing engineering managers; federal and state regulations relating to contracts.
MSEM 525 Engineering Project Management (3)
The course will include extensive coverage of project management related to staffing, planning, and budgeting engineering projects. Course content will include client satisfaction, cost control and development of the project team, along with the engineering manager’s role in motivation, performance reviews and negotiations. The effects of deregulation will be discussed. Students will apply practical knowledge of how to plan and execute a successful engineering project.
MSEM 530 Engineering Analysis (3)
The course provides an introduction to deterministic operations research models and solution techniques. Specific topics covered include: linear programming formulation, graphical solution, simplex method, special applications of the simplex method introduction to duality, the transportation and assignment problems, network flow problems, integer and dynamic programming. Design projects will involve spreadsheet software, spreadsheet ad-ins, LINDO and other special purpose packages. Students will become familiar with deterministic math models.
MSEM 540 Seminar in Contemporary Issues in Engineering Management (3)
Students will interact with visiting experts, fellow students and faculty in open discussions relating to a diverse range of topics including human resource management, legal issues, strategic planning and financial management. Field activities will reinforce classroom experience. Students will become familiar with topical issues confronting engineers and managers.
MSEM 545 Project in Engineering Management (3)
Students will apply classroom learning in the execution of a project of substantial magnitude. Together with faculty, the student will select a topic that focuses on an application in one of the eight course areas, or one that is more broadly based. Faculty will evaluate a detailed student report. Students will achieve significant expertise in engineering projects, learn to work independently in applying previously learned concepts to specific problems, demonstrate appropriate written and oral communication skills and demonstrate the ability to select and utilize appropriate computing tools.
