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As one of the fastest growing areas of technology, robotics engineering presents opportunities across a wide range of industries—including security and national defense, factory automation, healthcare, consumer products, customized manufacturing, and interactive entertainment. 

Through our pioneering Online MS in Robotics Engineering program—the first in the nation—you will advance your knowledge of the mathematical and mechanical frameworks needed to design safer and more efficient robotics systems and explore innovative ways of using robots to tackle and solve real-world problems.

Program Highlights

  • Students master the fundamentals of computer science, electrical and computer engineering, mathematics, and mechanical engineering underlying robotic systems while studying advanced topics such as artificial intelligence, computer vision, wireless networking, and nanotechnology.

  • Courses are taught by WPI faculty members who are leading the way in developing new possibilities for robotic technology in health care, manufacturing, security, and emergency response.

  • Culminating capstone experience enables you to apply your knowledge to solve a real, practical problem in your workplace under the guidance of faculty and industry mentors.

  • Courses are delivered via live and self-paced virtual sessions that enable you to connect with our global community of highly-engaged faculty members, industry professionals, and peers.

  • Did you know that WPI is the first university to offer BS through PhD degrees in robotics engineering? Our program is also the first in the nation to receive accreditation from the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET.

 

This degree is also offered on campus.
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Courses

DEGREE REQUIREMENTS

10 courses, 30 credit hours, including a capstone. The options listed below are specific to the ONLINE program and meet the overall degree requirements. You will work with a faculty advisor to develop a customized and relevant plan of study selected from the courses below. Additional courses may become available online and are available on-campus.

FOUNDATION (9 Credits)

*Requires RBE 500.

CORE (Minimum of 6 credits of additional RBE Courses)

ENGINEERING CONTEXT (3 credits)

ELECTIVES (9 credits)

  • SYS 501. Concepts of Systems Engineering
  • Three credit hours selected from courses at the 500 level or above with a prefix of RBE
  • Three additional credit hours selected from courses at the 500 level or above with a prefix of RBE, CS, ECE, MA, ME or SYS. Note that not every graduate level course will be offered online. Visit the course catalog for a complete list of course descriptions.

CAPSTONE PROJECT (3 credits)

  • RBE 594. Capstone Project Experience in Robotics Engineering
  • One of the central priorities in WPI’s educational philosophy is the application of academic skills and knowledge to real-world problems. With an advisor's guidance, students choose a robotics engineering project that offers substantive evaluation and application of the coursework covered in the program.
  • Example of a capstone project from our Systems Engineering Department

 

Course Schedule

FALL TERM

EARLY SPRING TERM

SUMMER TERM

  • SYS 501. Concepts of Systems Engineering
  • MIS 576. Project Management
  • Elective or RBE Core

RBE CORE

  • RBE 580. Biomedical Robotics (2 credits)
  • RBE 595. Special Topics:  Adv Robot Navigation
  • RBE 595. Special Topics: Adv Rob Para and Walk Mech
  • RBE 595. Special Topics: Deep Lrng for Adv Rob Perc
  • RBE 595. Special Topics:  Soft Robotics (2 credits)
  • RBE 595. Special Topics:  Mobile Robotics* (course title likely to change)

ADDITIONAL RBE ELECTIVES

  • CS 546. Human Computer Interaction
  • SYS 501. Concepts of Systems Engineering
  • Other select courses from ECE, SYS, MA and ME

 

Faculty

Robotics Department Faculty
Robotics Department Research

Prerequisites

The MS program in robotics engineering requires a bachelor of science in mechanical engineering, electrical & computer engineering, or computer science from an ABET-accredited university with a GPA of 3.0 or higher.

In addition, students should be able to demonstrate strong skills and a modest amount of course work (2-3 courses) in each of the following areas:

  • Mechanical engineering
  • Electrical & computer engineering
  • Computer science

Students with backgrounds in other engineering or science disciplines will be considered based on their demonstrated skills in engineering and programming.

This program assumes familiarity with an object oriented programming language (OOP), such as C/C++, Java, Perl, and/or Python. Students that lack or feel that they should refresh their programming skills should consider taking a suitable college course in an OOP language prior to enrollment. A working knowledge of Calculus, Differential Equations and Linear Algebra are also required. These mathematical foundations are critical for MatLab, system dynamics modeling and other topics explored in the MS robotics engineering curriculum.

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Graduate Course Catalog 2016-2017

After Graduation

With the demand for robotics engineers poised to grow by as much as 13% by 2018, graduates find employment opportunities across a variety of industries, including national defense, factory automation, healthcare, consumer products, and interactive entertainment.

Career Outlook

Virtual Open House

View the on demand Virtual Open House to learn more about the program.

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Robotics Engineering program