Explore Our Graduate Degree Programs

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In the School of Industrial Engineering, we’re making strides toward the next giant leap, changing the world, one step at a time. Your adventure in higher education begins the same way, by finding the program that resonates with you. It’s the first small step toward your next giant leap.

Professional Master's Program

The Professional Master’s Program (PMP) provides students from both industrial engineering and non-industrial engineering undergraduate backgrounds the opportunity to supplement their education with a curriculum that prepares them for success in industry. The PMP provides graduate-level technical education, with a focus on professional skills development that meets the needs of globally dispersed industrial enterprises. Our Professional Master's Program develops industrial engineering consulting professionals by providing hands-on experience with Fortune 500 companies. 

Online (Non-Thesis)

This option offers the ability to develop a plan of study that maximizes the credits dedicated to their topic of interest, for example, Human Factors. This option closely mirrors the structure of the traditional non-thesis Master's degree, but is fully-online to accommodate students who need the flexibility to be off-campus.

Thesis Master's

The Master's degree with a thesis option allows students to work with world-renowned faculty to dig deeper in an area of interest. The development of a thesis involves utilizing the knowledge gained in a sub-field of study (e.g., human factors) to a novel engineering problem. In addition, students deepent their competence in surveying cutting-edge research, leading a project independently, design (especially in emerging fields), and communication. 

A thesis is a major undertaking, requiring deep interest in the subject matter and a close relationship with the faculty member supervising the research. Prospective students are encouraged to consider the research profiles of IE faculty, including recent publications, to determine program fit. Pursuing a thesis-option Master's degree is often a step toward pursuing a Doctor of Philosophy degree, and may be required for admission to some doctoral programs. However, the skills gained through completing a thesis-option Master's program still are highly sought after in industry. Students who intend to earn the doctoral degree must pursue this option. 

Prospective Thesis Master's students are encouraged to consult with faculty members with whom their interests align prior to applying for admission. You can learn about our research areas and the faculty doing work in them here, and can directly peruse faculty profiles via our IE Faculty Directory.

Non-Thesis

The Non-Thesis Master’s Program provides students from both industrial engineering and non-industrial engineering undergraduate backgrounds the opportunity to supplement their education with a curriculum that prepares them for success in industry through graduate-level technical education. This program is offered in either an online or residential format. 

PhD

Purdue's School of Industrial Engineering continues to offer one of the nation's preeminent PhD programs, providing research areas in human factors, manufacturing, operations research, and production systems. Our focus is to expand IE's role in addressing 21st century challenges, expanding industrial frontiers, and designing and building the enterprise of the future.

Our PhD students work  closely with an energetic and well-qualified faculty, most of whom have already achieved recognition as leaders in their specialization areas. The School was home to one of the first National Science Foundation (NSF) Engineering Research Centers and Department of Defense (DOD) University Research Initiatives, and now – with the help of our PhD students - is performing cutting edge and impactful research in the above areas.

We invite highly motivated individuals to join our program. Prospective PhD students are encouraged to consult with faculty members with whom their interests align prior to applying for admission.You can learn about our research areas and the faculty doing work in them here, and can directly peruse faculty profiles via our IE Faculty Directory.

Chart Summarizing Industrial Engineering Masters Degree Program Attributes

Depending on academic background, the following coursework is recommended for all incoming students. Prospective students with a IE baccalaureate degree would naturally have completed equivalents to all of these courses during their undergraduate program.

  • Mathematics through multivariate calculus, differential equations, and linear algebra (Purdue equivalents: MA 26500 and MA 26600);
  • Applied probability and engineering statistics (Purdue equivalents: IE 23000 & (IE 33000 or STAT 51100); Alternately, students can include STAT 51600 and STAT 51700 in their plan of study and earn graduate credit for these courses);
  • Proficiency in computer programming (Purdue equivalent: CS 15900)
  • Note: Credits earned in basic prerequisite courses are not used in the plan of study for the master’s degree. Some graduate courses can be taken concurrently with the above prerequisites.