Princeton Weekly Bulletin April 12, 1999
New engineering master's offers real-world training
The School of Engineering and Applied Science's new Master of Engineering Program, offered for the first time this past fall, offers real-world oriented instruction in technical and business aspects of engineering. The one-year program, which does not require a thesis, allows students to choose between two degree tracks: a more technical pathway focused on a particular aspect of engineering, and an entrepreneurial management track that mixes technical classes with business-oriented studies such as entrepreneurship, public policy and international economics.
"The program is particularly appropriate for people who have finished their bachelor's in engineering and don't feel they have enough training for a job, or who have a job but feel stymied and want more training," says electrical engineering professor Stuart Schwartz, director of the new program. "With the new master's, students not interested in academia or research can get exposure to advanced technical aspects of engineering beyond a bachelor's, without making the longer commitment for a PhD."
Students may choose a "home base" in any one of five departments: Chemical Engineering, Civil Engineering and Operations Research (CEOR), Computer Science, Electrical Engineering or Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. Each department works within the broad outlines of the program while designating core classes in its particular discipline.
For students with a managerial or entrepreneurial bent, four courses in the home department can be taken with four nontechnical classes throughout the University. The goal is to impart management and leadership skills along with advanced training in applied technology, says Schwartz. He believes the program will have particular attraction for students planning to enter or go back to a technical consulting position with a management consulting company or a job with an engineering firm.
Seventeen students completed the first semester of the program. The program's goal is to have approximately 50 students distributed over the five departments, according to Schwartz.
"With the new master's, we offer a very practical education designed around the skills and expertise of the faculty," says CEOR Professor Rene Carmona, who teaches two classes for students in the Financial Engineering Program. "While learning the fundamentals, students apply concepts to real data, such as prices of options, and acquire technical skills that can be applied in the real world."