Purdue University has sponsored this post.
Technology has been advancing rapidly for the last few decades, and especially over the last five to ten years. In particular, the integrated systems that are enabled by technology are evolving at warp-speed, with increasing material, project and integration complexity. In order to meet the needs of our society and its dependence on current and future products, technologies, and services, we need more engineers who are able to support the development and sustainment of these technologies and their systems.
“Engineering as a discipline is growing, and has been growing,” says Patrick Brunese, assistant head of the Edwardson School of Industrial Engineering at Purdue University. “There were calls during the Obama administration for rapidly scaling up the number of engineering graduates in the U.S. and abroad. Purdue attempted to meet that goal head-on by rapidly growing our engineering programs at the bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral levels, over the last decade. And that trend is continuing.”
When it comes to systems engineering in particular, the last several years have seen substantial growth, in the realm of 10%, which is expected to continue over the next decade. While 10% growth may not necessarily seem like a large number, the reality is that from 2022 to 2023 there were around 80,000 to 90,000 unique job postings for systems engineers. “That’s a lot of new opportunities, or opportunities created by promotion and turnover of existing engineers,” Brunese says.
For engineers who want to take advantage of these opportunities, whether they are currently in a systems role looking to upskill, wanting to move into a systems role for the first time, or seeking promotion and higher salary, a master’s degree in systems engineering is essential.
Purdue offers a unique educational opportunity through its new, fully-online master’s of science in systems engineering. Offering the program online, rather than only as a residential experience, is because many engineers seeking a master’s degree are already employed, often as some other type of engineer. When they have the opportunity to move into a more formal systems engineering role, or are in a systems engineering role for their organization and looking to upskill, a flexible online option is what they need.
Building the master’s in systems engineering
When asked how Purdue decided to create the new program, “the simplest answer is, demand,” Burnese says. “We regularly communicate with different employers, many of whom come to Purdue every year through job fairs, research engagements, to recruit our students and interface with our faculty. They would often note the need for more direct education in systems engineering.”
“And speaking as someone who has taught classes, we saw the same thing from the student side, saying ‘it would be really nice if there was a systems engineering program online,’” he adds.
The discipline isn’t a new one for Purdue, which has been educating talented systems engineers for decades through the programs that already existed in the College of Engineering, such as industrial engineering, aeronautics or astronautics, mechanical, electrical and computer engineering. But an integrated educational program with the systems engineering title didn’t exist, even though the discipline has become increasingly vital to the engineering industry
“Purdue has the Systems Collaboratory, which is a university-wide initiative for systems engineering education,” Burnese says. “It’s administratively led out of the Edwardson School of Industrial Engineering, but engages faculty from all over the university, in engineering and systems, and also social systems, technological systems, and the interface between these two things.”
To design the systems engineering program, Purdue examined the organizations that help guide the discipline of systems engineering, such as the International Council on Systems Engineering, and the Institute of Industrial and Systems Engineers, to determine the core competencies and skill sets that systems engineers need. The curriculum was designed to bring together the coursework that would meet those needs, highlighting key components of systems engineering such as systems analysis and design, economics and decision-making, project management, systems tools and methodologies, and more.
The program contains coursework from industrial, mechanical, electrical and computer engineering, as well as core systems engineering courses. This enables students to craft a program that meets their particular needs within their systems context, and makes the best use of Purdue’s interdisciplinary approach to systems engineering education.
“The interdisciplinary curriculum gives our students the ability to emphasize the elements that matter to them, while ensuring they still get the core knowledge that is necessary to say we’ve educated students in a particular area,” says Burnese.
Courses are primarily taught by Purdue faculty, and there is no difference in coursework or course expectations between residential students and online students. “They’re getting the same educational experience, the same content, same assessments, same faculty teaching the class, and the same access to the faculty when you want to engage deeply with a topic,” Burnese says.
Students graduate with a broad set of systems skills, not just the hard classical systems engineering like model-based systems engineering and other tools. Purdue ensures graduates develop a soft systems perspective and approach, along with other types of breadth through elective courses that focus on a student’s primary area of interest. The depth and breadth of Purdue’s courses ensure that every student graduates with a deep understanding of systems engineering, and the latest up-to-date skills that their career and their industry needs.
Flexibility is key for working engineers
Flexibility is the name of the game when it comes to online education, and one of the primary benefits for engineers looking to complete a master’s program while working. With lectures and assignments delivered asynchronously, students can complete their coursework on a schedule that works with their job and personal schedules. Lectures are delivered live for residential students in classrooms featuring recording and video streaming equipment, and remote students can attend if their schedule allows. The recorded lecture video is then available online to watch on demand.
“If there were not programs like this in the online space, you’d have to be located — or be able to relocate — near an existing institution that offered a residential master’s degree program,” says Burnese. “You’d have to work that into your schedule, and very likely end up with constraints or sacrifices in order to make the program work.”
Purdue also prides itself on the support it provides its online students, who have different needs than residential students. “Our support systems are available from day one,” Burnese says. “They can help you through the process, end-to-end, and you always have access to that support. So you can be anywhere in the world, engaging with outstanding faculty, and supportive staff, to help you navigate the experience.”
Visit Purdue to learn more about the online Master of Science in Systems Engineering program.
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