I am interested in having a meeting with an OAS staff member, how do I do that
Please email accessibilityservices@wpi.edu or call us at 508-831-4908 and a staff member will be in touch with you regarding your meeting request. You may also email Amy (acurran@wpi.edu) or Jessica (jlszivos@wpi.edu) or Taylor (tvgarnes@wpi.edu) directly. We each have Zoom accounts set up for virtual meetings. We can send our Zoom manual to you should you need assistance in setting up a Zoom account.
Arriving to Bartlett Center
After parking in the garage, please place the parking permit that is included with your confirmation email on your dashboard to notify WPI police that you are a registered visitor. Then you may proceed up the stairway adjacent to the Sports and Recreation Center, past the "Charging Goat" statue in the middle of the traffic circle. (Walk outside the parking garage and look across the street to the right for a tall flight of stairs.) To use an elevator, head into the Sports and Recreation Center via the ramp to the right of the stairs – you will need to use the intercom for access to the elevator.
At the top of the stairway is a plaza. Walk to the end of the plaza, which is also where those using the elevator will walk out of the Sports and Recreation Center. Look straight ahead – Bartlett Center is the center building across the quad to the right of the WPI Innovation Studio. There are several walkways from this location to arrive to Bartlett Center. You can enter the building via the doors just behind the "Proud Goat" statue.
Check in at the front desk, then proceed into our presentation room for your information session!
Are accommodations needed for alternate means of assessment?
If you decide to offer alternate means of assessment (e.g., projects, un-timed exams, essays, etc.) please know that extended time may not apply. This is when you would want to speak directly with students to ensure a mutual understanding of what is expected.
If you have questions about implementing accommodations for alternate means of assessment, please contact OAS by phone at 508-831-4908 as well as accessibilityservices@wpi.edu.
Master’s in Systems Engineering
Master’s in Systems Engineering
This is the engineering-focused track, designed to increase your technical skills in addition to systems management.
Learning Outcomes
- Gain technical depth in system dynamics, systems engineering, and systems thinking
- Learn to lead technical teams on complex engineering projects
- Analyze requirements for systems, explore alternatives for implementations and design and engineer systems in a way that minimizes technical risks.
- Develop integration, verification and validation strategies for systems to determine they were built correctly, and they meet users’ needs.
- Describe, design and develop complex hardware and/or software architectures that enable the functionality of complex systems and systems-of-systems.
- Work with program managers to plan, document and control the design and development of systems in a way that minimizes budget and schedule risks.
Program Requirements
30 credit hours required, and specific courses are determined in conjunction with an academic advisor. All courses are three credits each unless otherwise specified. A thesis is not required but all students must complete a capstone experience.
Core Requirement (12 credits)
Each student must complete the core of the Systems Engineering degree program, which consists of the following four 3-credit graduate courses:
- SYS 501. Concepts of Systems Engineering*
- SYS 510. Systems Architecture and Design
- SYS 511. Systems Integration, Verification and Validation
- OIE 542. Risk Management and Decision Making
Leadership/Management Requirement (3 credits)
System engineers need to be aware of, and trained in, leadership/management methods and practices. Accordingly, each student must also complete one of the following 3-credit graduate courses:
- MIS 576. Project Management
- MIS 582. Information Security Systems and Management
- OBC 506. The Heart of Leadership: Power, Reflection, and Interpersonal Skills
- OIE 554. Global Operations Strategy
- SD 550. System Dynamics Foundation: Managing Complexity
Depth Requirement (6 credits)
To ensure sufficient breadth of knowledge in Systems Engineering, each student must complete a minimum of 18 Systems Engineering graduate credits. In addition to the courses noted in the Core Requirement section, each student must complete two additional 3-credit Systems Engineering graduate courses from those listed below.
- SYS 502. Business Practices
- SYS 512. Requirements Engineering
- SYS 520. Systems Optimization
- SYS 521. Model-based Systems Engineering
- SYS 540. Introduction to Systems Thinking
- SYS 579. Software Engineering for Systems Engineering
- SYS 579C. Complex Decision Making
- SYS 579D. Engineering Dependable and Secure Systems
- SYS 579R. System Reliability Engineering
- SYS 579S. System of Systems Engineering
Elective Courses (6 credits)
Six credit hours of elective graduate courses can be selected to meet the specific needs of students and organizations. All elective courses must be approved by the student’s faculty advisor and can be selected from courses offered by the following departments and programs: Computer Science (CS), Systems Dynamics (SD), any WPI engineering department or program (such as ECE, BME, ME, ChE, EnvE and RBE), the School of Business, and Mathematics (MA).
Capstone Experience (3 credits)
The capstone experience requirement may be satisfied by an instructor-led systems engineering project (SYS 585 Systems Engineering Capstone Experience), an individual directed research project (SYS 598 Directed Research), or a Master’s Thesis (SYS 599 Thesis). Courses taken to satisfy the capstone experience requirement must not exceed a total of 9 credits. Students may not transfer credits to satisfy the required capstone experience. The capstone cannot be taken until the student has successfully completed at least 24 credits, including all Core Requirements.
Learn more about the Capstone Experience here.
Thesis option: Currently, WPI’s online graduate programs do not offer a thesis option, as theses cannot be completed online. If you wish to pursue a thesis on campus, it is the student’s responsibility to find an advisor. Please note that depending on the project’s subject and timeframe, there might not be a faculty member willing or able to advise.
How do I work with a partner or team or study with others in virtual classes?
Connect with your professor about expectations for partner and/or group work. Remember, WPI policies around academic honesty still apply. If you are looking to find ways to connect with peers for any of these reasons or more, consider emailing a classmate through the course Canvas site and/or utilizing WPI tools such as Microsoft Teams and Zoom to virtually connect. Learn more about these tools in the Canvas Online Student Center site.
Interactive STEM Activities
Need materials? Check out the Central MA STEM Network Ecosystem Lending Library of STEM Kits!
Project ideas, activities, and simulations for teachers to use with students.
- Activities with Connections to STEM Careers (Learning Blade, 4-8)
- Citizen Science
- Design Squad Global
- Explore Engineering with Games & Activities (TryEngineering!, K-12)
- Fun STEM Activities to Do at Home (NASA, K-4)
- Hacking STEM Library (Microsoft, 6-12, activities may require microcontrollers)
- Interactive STEM Activities (Concord Consortium, K-12)
- NSTA e-Books (K-12) - free during school closures
- OkGoSandbox (3-12)
- Outschool
- Science at Home (Museum of Science and Industry, Chicago)
- Simulations (Explore Learning, 3-12)
- Simulations (pHet)
- STEM Challenges to do at Home (Technovation Families, modifiable for grades above or below 4)
- STEM Lesson Plans (Space Foundation Discovery Center, PK-12)
- Teacher- and Parent-Friendly STEM Resources (Seeds of STEM, PK)
- Videos, Simulations (PBS Learning Media, 3-12)
- Explore - LabXchange