Systems Engineering, MS at George Mason University

Systems engineers are the visionaries who take a global perspective of the system.  Whereas discipline-specific engineers deal with system components, the systems engineer is concerned with the integration of these components and the overall success of the system throughout its life cycle. Systems engineers focus on needs and requirements, design, production, deployment, operation, maintenance, refinement, and retirement of systems, considering multiple objectives and constraints from different stakeholder groups. Systems engineering comprises product, process, and resource management and focuses on architecture, human factors, decision support, performance and evaluation, and management. Our educational and research program reflects the systems engineer's unique perspective on the system life cycle.

Mason's graduate program in Systems Engineering recognizes the importance of balancing an education in quantitative models and engineering tools with a proper understanding of the systems perspective. Concentration areas include Advanced Transportation Systems (ATS), Architecture-Based Systems Integration (ABSI), Command, Control, Communications, Computing, and Intelligence (C4I), Energy Systems (NRGS), Financial Systems Engineering (FNSE), Systems Engineering and Data Analytics (SEDA), Systems Engineering of Software-Intensive Systems (SESI) and Systems Management (SMG).   

The graduate program leading to the Master of Science in Systems Engineering emphasizes both analytical and practical aspects of engineering complex systems.  Students are expected to demonstrate proficiency in using qualitative and quantitative tools relevant to systems engineering practice.  The program also prepares students for careers in research and development and for pursuing advanced graduate study leading to the PhD degree in Systems Engineering and Operations Research.

Total credits: 30-33

To obtain the Master of Science degree, students must complete a minimum of 30 semester hours of graduate level courses that consists of five core courses, three concentration courses, an elective, and a systems engineering project.

Students must have a working background in engineering mathematics and computer systems. A student lacking these foundations may be required to take one or more foundation courses. The department offers SYST 500 Quantitative Foundations for Systems Engineering as an intensive review of undergraduate engineering mathematics, including matrix algebra, calculus, differential equations, probability and statistics. Students who have not completed a two-semester calculus sequence and matrix algebra will be required to complete these courses prior to taking SYST 500.

Approved basic methods and concentration courses for the eight concentration areas are listed below.  Students are expected to select a set of concentration courses that constitute a clearly defined focus.  These courses must be approved by the student's advisor.  Each student is required to have a current plan of study on file with the Systems Engineering and Operations Research Department.

Candidates for the MS must have a minimum GPA of 3.00 in coursework applied to the degree, which may include no more than 6 credits of C. The GPA calculation excludes all transfer courses and Mason nondegree studies credits not formally approved for the degree.