Virginia Tech: Invent the Future Industrial and Systems Engineering
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Operations Research M.S.

Operations Research (OR) is a branch of industrial and systems engineering that deals with a scientific approach to solving problems faced by decision makers. Broadly defined, this field deals with the efficient design and operation of systems, usually seeking to determine an optimal or effective utilization and allocation of scarce resources. The tools of OR lie in the mathematical modeling and analysis of physical or economic systems, and its scope of application arises in varied walks of life, in the areas of business, industry, government, and national defense. As stiffer competition and lower resilience to business shock make companies and industries walk a tight line that separates success from failure, the emphasis of this field on both long-term (strategic) and short-term (tactical) efficiency and cost effectiveness are increasingly promoting its use in widely diverse areas.

The graduate course work and research orientation within the OR option is designed to educate the student in the process of constructing suitable analytical models for problems arising in various applications, using or developing appropriate (computerized) solution techniques for analyzing these models, and translating the results to implementation in practice. Toward this end, a series of courses have been designed that first provide a student with a knowledge of the tools of OR, followed by courses dealing with different areas of application in which such tools are utilized. The methodological courses cover optimization, stochastic systems modeling and analysis, and Monte Carlo simulation methodology. The application-oriented courses include a study of queueing networks, inventory systems, supply-chain systems, logistics, forecasting, quality assurance and reliability engineering, facilities design, sequencing and scheduling, and production planning and control. The OR faculty also operate and maintain a pc-workstation-based computer laboratory to support computational needs in the areas of optimization and simulation.

The graduate course work and research orientation within the OR option is designed to educate the student in the process of constructing suitable analytical models for problems arising in various applications, using or developing appropriate (computerized) solution techniques for analyzing these models, and translating the results to implementation in practice. Toward this end, a series of courses have been designed that first provide a student with a knowledge of the tools of OR, followed by courses dealing with different areas of application in which such tools are utilized. The methodological courses cover optimization, stochastic systems modeling and analysis, and Monte Carlo simulation methodology. The application-oriented courses include a study of queueing networks, inventory systems, supply-chain systems, logistics, forecasting, quality assurance and reliability engineering, facilities design, sequencing and scheduling, and production planning and control. The OR faculty also operate and maintain a pc-workstation-based computer laboratory to support computational needs in the areas of optimization and simulation.

Students pursuing the M.S. degree are strongly encouraged to select the non-thesis option but the thesis curriculum is also available. Under the thesis-based plan, a minimum of 30 credit hours is required including 15 credit hours of required courses, 9 credits of elective course work and 6 credit hours of thesis research. The non-thesis option specifies 15 credit hours of required courses and 15 credit hours of electives.

The required courses for the M.S. degree are given in the following table:


Course No. Course Title Credit Hrs.
ISE 5405Optimization I 3
ISE 5406Optimization II3
ISE 5414Random Processes3
ISE 5424Simulation 3
ISE 5984Mathematical Probability & Statistics3


Operations Research M.S. Thesis Curriculum

The thesis-based M.S. program requires 30 credit hours, including 24 course-credit hours (of which 15 are for required courses) and up to 6 thesis hours. Students must select 9 credit hours of elective course work from either the following list of ISE courses:


Course No. Course Title Credit Hrs.
ISE 4424Logistics Engineering3
ISE 5204Manufacturing Systems Engineering3
ISE 5244Facilities Planning and Material Handling3
ISE 5434Econ. Evaluation of Industrial Projects3
ISE 5454Production Planning and Control3
ISE 5464Queueing Theory I3
ISE 5474Statistical Theory of Quality Control3
ISE 5484Modeling Processes in Operations Research3
ISE 6404Graph Theory & Network Flows3
ISE 6414Integer Programming3
ISE 6424Dynamic Programming3
ISE 6434Scheduling and Sequence Theory3
ISE 6444Inventory and Operations Management3
ISE 6454Adv Topics in Supply Chain & Operations Mgmt3
ISE 6464Queueing Networks3
ISE 6474Reliability Theory3
ISE 6494Advanced Simulation3
ISE 6504Markov Renewal and Related Processes3
ISE 6514Advanced Topics in Math Programming3
ISE 6524Advanced Topics in Engineering Economy3

Or from the table on the following page or any relevant graduate courses offered by the university subject to the approval of the student’s committee and the option area coordinator.


Course No. Course Title Credit Hrs.
CS/Math 5485Numerical Analysis and Software I3
CS/Math 5486Numerical Analysis and Software II3
MATH 4226Elementary Real Analysis II3
MATH 5226Real Analysis II3
MATH 5454Graph Theory3
MATH 5464Combinatorics3
MATH 5524Matrix Theory3
MATH 5545Calculus of Variations and Optimal Control Theory I3
MATH 5546Calculus of Variations and Optimal Control Theory II3
STAT 5124Linear Models Theory3
STAT 5204Experimental Design & Analysis I3
STAT 5424Statistical Decision Theory3
STAT 5434Markov Chains & Renewal Theory3
STAT 5504Multivariate Statistical Methods3
STAT 5514Regression Analysis3
STAT 5554Variance Components3
STAT 5574Response Surface Design and Analysis I3
STAT 6106Measure and Probability3
STAT 6424Multivariate Statistical Analysis3
STAT 6574Response Surface Design and Analysis II3
STAT 6504Experimental Design II3
CS 5114Theory of Algorithms3
Any ISE Department course that is approved for graduate credit

Operations Research M.S. Non-Thesis Curriculum

Students selecting the non-thesis option must complete 30 credit hours of coursework including 15 credits of required courses as enumerated in the following table.


Course No. Course Title Credit Hrs.
ISE 5405Optimization I 3
ISE 5406Optimization II 3
ISE 5414Random processes3
ISE 5424Simulation 3
ISE 5984Mathematical Probability & Statistics3

Students in the non-thesis option must then complete 15 credits of courses at least 6 credits of which must be selected from the following list.


Course No. Course Title Credit Hrs.
ISE 4424Logistics engineering 3
ISE 5204Manufacturing systems engineering3
ISE 5244Facilities planning and material handling3
ISE 5434Econ. evaluation of industrial projects3
ISE 5454Production planning and control3
ISE 5464Queueing theory3
ISE 5474Statistical theory of quality control3
ISE 5484Modeling processes in OR3
ISE 6404Graph theory & network flows3
ISE 6414Integer programming3
ISE 6424Dynamic programming3
ISE 6434Scheduling & sequencing theory3
ISE 6464Inventory Theory3
ISE 6454Adv Topics in Supply Chain & Operations Mgmt3
ISE 6464Queueing networks3
ISE 6474Reliability theory3
ISE 6494Advanced Simulation3
ISE 6504Markov renewal & related processes3
ISE 6514Advanced topics in math programming3
ISE 6524Advanced topics in engineering economy3

Non-thesis students may elect up to 9 credit hours of coursework from the following list or any relevant graduate courses offered by the university subject to the approval of the student’s advisor and the option area coordinator.


Course No. Course Title Credit Hrs.
CS/Math 5485Numerical analysis and software I3
CS/Math 5486Numerical analysis and software II3
MATH 4226Elementary real analysis II3
MATH 5226Real analysis II3
MATH 5454Graph theory3
MATH 5464Combinatorics3
MATH 5524Matrix theory3
MATH 5545Calculus of variations and optimal control theory I3
MATH 5546Calculus of variations and optimal control theory II3
STAT 5124Linear models theory3
STAT 5204Experimental design & analysis I3
STAT 5424Statistical decision theory3
STAT 5434Markov chains & renewal theory3
STAT 5504Multivariate statistical methods3
STAT 5514Regression analysis3
STAT 5554Variance components3
STAT 5574Response surface design and analysis I3
STAT 6106Measure and probability3
STAT 6424Multivariate statistical analysis3
STAT 6574Response surface design and analysis II3
STAT 6504Experimental design II3
CS 5114Theory of algorithms3
Any ISE Department course that is approved for graduate credit