Engineering Management, offered by the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering , is a specialized form of management that is concerned with the application of engineering principles to business practice. Engineering management is a career that brings together the technological problem-solving savvy of engineering and the organizational, administrative, and planning abilities of management in order to oversee complex enterprises from conception to completion.

Engineering Management programs typically include instruction in the areas of accounting, economics, project management, finance, systems engineering, mathematical modeling and optimization, quality control and six sigma, operations research, human resource management, industrial psychology, safety, and health. At SJSU, the engineering management program emphasizes quality and six sigma, statistics, fundamentals of business accounting and finance, engineering economic analysis, business ethics, supply chain engineering, and systems engineering. Through technical electives, students become knowledgeable in other aspects of business management, such as project management, human resource management, and operations research.

Additional information can be found at the MS Engineering Management website.

University Admission Requirements 

Applicants must submit a complete graduate application by applying through the CSU Cal State Apply system and meet all the university admission requirements .

Applicants apply separately to the department to obtain admission into the MS, Engineering Management program. See the GAPE Graduate Admissions website and this Catalog for general information about graduate admissions at SJSU.

Applicants from countries in which the native language is not English must achieve a minimum English-language proficiency test score as indicated on the Graduate Program Test Requirements webpage at GAPE. For TOEFL Requirements, see the English Language Proficiency Requirement  section in this catalog.

Admission to Graduate Standing - Classified

Applicants must meet all university admission requirements . Applicants who meet the following requirements beyond university requirements will be considered for admission into the ISE Department. In addition, applicants must possess a baccalaureate degree from an ABET-accredited engineering program with a grade point average of at least 3.0 in the last 60 semester hours of upper-division work completed in all subjects and in technical subjects only. Students meeting these criteria may be admitted in classified standing; however, students may still be admitted conditionally if they need prerequisite courses for the selected option. An engineering technology degree does not satisfy the degree requirement for admission to this program.

Admission to Graduate Standing - Conditionally Classified

Applicants who do not meet the requirements for classified standing may be admitted with specific conditions as conditionally classified. An applicant whose undergraduate record indicates deficiencies in one or more technical areas and/or has a grade point average less than 3.0 in the last 60 semester hours of upper-division work completed in all subjects and in technical subjects only may be admitted for graduate work on a conditionally classified basis. Such students will be expected to satisfactorily complete additional course work before becoming classified. Any conditions stated in the admission notification must be fulfilled within the first year and before the student can be advanced to candidacy for the degree.

Advancement to Candidacy

The university requirements for advancement to candidacy  for the master’s degree are outlined in the Graduate Policies and Procedures  section. Students should seek advancement to candidacy as soon as possible for their given program and on the advice of their graduate program coordinator. Graduate students may submit a Petition for Advancement to Graduate Candidacy form to the Graduate Admissions & Program Evaluations (GAPE) office after satisfying the following: achieved classified status; completed a minimum of nine letter-graded units with all grades “C” or higher; fulfilled the Campus Graduate Graduation Writing Assessment Requirement (CGGWAR) requirement; achieved a minimum cumulative and program 3.0 GPA, and, graduate within the seven-year time limit for degree completion. Graduate students must submit their petition no later than one semester prior to graduating. Courses that satisfy the CGGWAR are listed in the course requirements for the program.

All MS EM students are encouraged to apply for advancement to candidacy as soon as they have completed the GWAR and three graduate courses.

Program of Study Requirements

Students must complete all residency, curriculum, unit, GPA, and culminating experience requirements as outlined in the Graduation Requirements  section of the Graduate Policies and Procedures . Students must comply with all other graduate requirements contained in this catalog.

Culminating Experience (Plan A or Plan B)

Students choose the Plan A (Thesis) or Plan B (Project) option as their program culminating experience. The decision as to whether to embark on a thesis or project will be made by the student in consultation with the program’s assigned advisor.

Plan A (Thesis)

Students wishing to pursue the thesis option must begin by obtaining the approval of the MS, Engineering Management (MS EM) program director, and then secure the agreement of a qualified faculty member to serve as Chair of the thesis committee. The candidate must provide the name of the committee Chair to the MS EM Program Director prior to the beginning work on the thesis. The thesis and thesis process must meet university requirements as stipulated in this catalog and in the SJSU Master’s Thesis and Doctoral Dissertation Guidelines. The thesis will be written under the guidance of the candidate’s thesis committee chair with the assistance of the thesis committee.

Plan B (Project)

The project is the expected choice for the MS, Engineering Management candidate’s culminating experience. Students must begin the project by identifying a qualified faculty advisor, or by having one appointed by the MS EM program director. The advisor and the student mutually agree on the scope of the project. The advisor determines when the student has met agreed-upon project requirements and when the project report is acceptable for submission to the MS EM program and notifies the MS EM program director of the student’s satisfactory completion of the culminating experience requirement.