Return to: School of Graduate Engineering and Applied Science: Degree Programs
Overview
The Systems Engineering (SE) Master of Engineering (M.E.) is a coursework-based graduate professional degree that may be completed on-Grounds as a full-time student; in our weekend Accelerated Master’s Program (AMP); online as a student in the Virginia Engineering Online (VEO) program.
The M.E. degree in the SE program is built of two components:
- Core courses, supplying the fundamentals of systems engineering.
- Elective courses, focusing on techniques of analysis and application of fundamentals to a problem area.
Advising and Professional Development
Upon admission to the program, the student is assigned to the M.E. program faculty advisor. The student should meet with M.E. program advisor to plan their course selection and career objectives before the start of each semester.
Program Requirements
A candidate for the M.E. degree must fulfill the School of Engineering and Applied Science M.E. degree requirements (see “M.E., M.C.S., and M.M.S.E. Milestone Requirements” on the School of Engineering and Applied Science—Academic Rules page of the Record) and complete an approved plan of study. The plan of study must be prepared under the guidance of the faculty advisor by the end of the first semester of study. It then must be approved by the graduate program directors. The approved plan of study may be revised if necessary but must be submitted for approval.
Plan of Study for On Grounds and VEO Programs
The plan of study must include at least thirty (30) credit hours of graduate-level work, be approved by the student’s graduate advisor and SE graduate program director, and satisfy the following requirements:
- Nine (9) credit hours of core courses:(3) credit hours of SYS 6001, plus six (6) credit hours from SYS 6003, SYS 6005, SYS 6007, or SYS 6021.
- At least twenty-one (21) credit hours of elective courses distributed thusly:
- At least twelve (12) credit hours of systems engineering courses at the 6000 or 7000 level. (These credit hours cannot be earned through Independent Study SYS 6993 and SYS 7993; Supervised Project Research SYS 6995 and SYS 8995; Graduate Teaching Instruction SYS 8997 and SYS 9997; Thesis SYS 8999; and Dissertation SYS 9999.)
- No more than three (3) credit hours of Independent Study SYS 6993 or SYS 7993.
- No more than three (3) credit hours of Supervised Project Research SYS 8995.
- No more than three (3) credit hours at the 5000-level from the School of Engineering and Applied Science.
Plan of Study for Accelerated Master’s Program
The plan of study must include at least thirty (30) credit hours of graduate-level work and satisfy the following requirements:
- Nine (9) credit hours of core courses: SYS 6001, SYS 6043, SYS 6045.
- At least twenty-one (21) credit hours of elective courses distributed thusly:
- Fifteen (15) credit hours of systems engineering courses at the graduate level.
- Six (6) credit hours of general elective courses that must be pre-approved by the AMP program director.
Special Circumstances
Prerequisites: The student who does not have the prerequisites (e.g., calculus, linear algebra, probability and statistics, computer programming) should take articulation courses. The SE M.E. program advisor will work with the student to identify the required articulation courses. These courses cannot be used to satisfy the degree requirements.
Equivalent Courses: The student who, prior to enrolling in the SE M.E. program, has already taken a course equivalent to a core course may petition the M.E. program advisor for the substitution of the core course by an elective course.
Additional information about the programs and administrative forms can found on the Master of Engineering in Systems Engineering, the Accelerated Master’s in Systems Engineering and the Virginia Engineering Online webpages.
Students should consult “Transfer Credit” and “Time Limit” in the School of Engineering and Applied Science—Academic Rules section of the Record for policies that govern transferring credits and limits on the time that may be taken to earn a degree.
