Engineering

The core principle of sustainable engineering is to enable long-lasting improvement of the human experience. One key goal toward this mission is avoiding any serious or irreparable damage to the environment. Similarly, sustainable engineers strive to complete work that supports the availability of natural resources in the future. Incorporating sustainability into engineering from the ground up is an increasingly common strategy in many engineering professions.

The topics covered in this program may sound similar to the goals of a master’s in environmental engineering program. However, engineering professionals with a sustainability focus consider a wider variety of concerns for every project. Along with the environment, they also consider a project’s potential influence on societies, economies and local governments.

The skills you’ll gain in this master’s program

Sustainable engineering roles typically require at least a bachelor’s degree with many senior positions preferring applicants who have a graduate degree as well. This program can prepare you to advance within your current sustainable engineering career or equip you to make a career change. In this program, you’ll develop the technical knowledge and skills necessary to succeed in this industry. You can expect to build expertise with:

• Core sustainable engineering principles.
• Engineering and technological systems.
• Essential tools, such as life cycle assessment and design for sustainability.
• Key environmental and social considerations and how they can be integrated into technology design.
• Natural and human-made system modeling, dynamics and adaptive behavior.
• Technical communication.

Who’s a good candidate for this program?

This program builds on engineering fundamentals while incorporating an emphasis on sustainability to help you develop specialized knowledge in this field. The ideal candidate for this program is someone with a technical background in the natural sciences or engineering from an undergraduate degree or previous work experience. You may also qualify if you have educational and career experience in physics, chemistry or environmental-related fields. However, you may need to take a few additional courses to complete the degree and gain the technical expertise required for the advanced courses in this program.

Concurrent programs allow you to complete two degrees at once. Not only does this save you time, but it also costs less than if you were to complete two degrees separately. This concurrent program allows you to bolster your MBA from the W. P. Carey School of Business with a Master of Science in electrical engineering from the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering. This is a great way to maximize your time in graduate school and develop the skills needed to advance your career.

Does this program mix MBA and engineering curriculum?

Throughout this concurrent program, you’ll complete business and engineering courses. However, the courses will be separate and the curriculum will not overlap. To complete this concurrent program and earn both degrees, you’ll take 11 courses from the MBA program and eight courses from the MSE program.

What will you learn in this concurrent program?

In the business-focused courses, you’ll develop leadership skills and improve your knowledge of advanced business strategies. Through this program's hands-on curriculum, you’ll analyze the human side of organizations through management theories and applications. You’ll also investigate contemporary financial accounting and reporting systems, explore contemporary management issues, study the impact of the economic environment on business and more.

In the engineering-focused courses, you’ll explore advanced and specialized electrical engineering topics related to circuit theory, microelectronics, semiconductor technology, nanostructures, energy systems and more. This program’s curriculum will cover advanced topics in a variety of areas of electrical engineering including electromagnetics, signal processing, photonics, renewable energy, power engineering and more.

Building upon the fundamentals of engineering and science, this program equips students to lead in industries that address society’s needs. In your courses, you’ll explore the nature, structure, performance and applications of various materials. Through a cross-disciplinary approach, you’ll also discover how practitioners combine chemistry, physics and engineering skills to create and improve materials, as well as identify issues and design solutions.

The curriculum provides opportunities to tailor your learning to various areas of materials science including development, processing and characterization for industrial applications. Depending on your professional interests, you can also explore:

• Advanced materials characterization.
• Advanced thermodynamics.
• Concepts in materials science.
• Fundamentals of electrical, optical and magnetic materials.
• Fundamentals of semiconductor packaging.
• Kinetics and phase transformations.
• Nanomaterials in energy production and storage.
• Structure and mechanical properties.

Materials scientist: A well-paid and in-demand job

Completing this program can put you on a path to success for lucrative roles in industries as diverse as energy, sustainability, security, aerospace, manufacturing and the life sciences. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) predicts faster-than-average job growth for chemists, materials scientists and materials engineers.

According to the BLS, employment for chemists and materials scientists is projected to grow 8% from 2023 to 2033, which is faster than average for all occupations. Similarly, employment is expected to grow by 7% in the same time frame for materials engineers, also representing faster than average growth. Further, per the BLS, the median annual wage for materials scientists was $106,160 in 2023 and $104,100 for materials engineers.

Additionally, for those interested in advancing in the semiconductor industry, you can concurrently pursue ASU’s online graduate certificate in semiconductor processing. This is optional and can give you a leg up when applying for roles in semiconductor manufacturing and processing.

This concurrent program enables you to earn two distinct degrees in three years, offering a faster and more cost-effective path than pursuing them separately. It’s designed for professionals with at least one year of work experience seeking to advance into management roles.

You’re an ideal candidate if you want to build on your undergraduate studies in industrial engineering, another engineering discipline, computer science, mathematics or science. Applicants with business-related undergraduate degrees are also considered on a case-by-case basis. Graduating with these concurrent degrees will position you as a skilled business leader, prepared to lead technical teams confidently.

The skills you’ll develop across these two programs

Business courses will deepen your understanding of contemporary management practices and the human aspects of organizations. You’ll sharpen your skills in marketing, leadership, finance and other key areas while learning to make ethical decisions that balance societal impact with economic outcomes.

Industrial engineering courses integrate the physical, mathematical and social sciences. You’ll learn to connect people, equipment and information to optimize complex systems and enhance quality of life. These courses will teach you how to review workflows, develop management control systems, improve quality control procedures and analyze data to create efficient processes and innovative products.

You can tailor your studies by specializing in areas such as:

• Information systems and management systems.
• Operations research and production systems.
• Logistics/supply chain.
• Quality and reliability.

Taught by internationally acclaimed faculty, courses in this program build the analytical skills and expertise needed to accelerate a career in industrial engineering. You’ll learn to design efficient systems that connect people, equipment and information, while mastering tools such as statistics, optimization, computer simulation and advanced analytics.

Through this program, you’ll develop the technical skills to create practical, economical and efficient solutions to complex problems across various industries. You’ll gain experience reviewing workflows, developing management control systems, analyzing data and more to design optimal processes and products. Optionally, you can also enhance your qualifications by earning a Lean Six Sigma Black Belt graduate certificate online from ASU during this program.

Industrial engineer: An in-demand and well-paid career

Industrial engineers play a vital role in automation, information control and process quality across industries from manufacturing and health care to transportation and technology. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment for industrial engineers is projected to grow 12% from 2023 to 2033, much faster than average for all occupations. The BLS also reports that the median annual wage for industrial engineers was $99,380 in May 2023.

While a master’s degree isn’t required to enter the field, pursuing one can help you specialize in the discipline and advance into leadership roles. Graduate-level education can also open doors to opportunities in research, development and other advanced positions. Additionally, as a graduate, you’ll be equipped to take the Professional Engineer (PE) licensure exam through the National Society of Professional Engineers.

Earn your industrial engineering master’s and MBA concurrently

By pursuing ASU’s online concurrent MBA and industrial engineering master’s programs, you can earn two distinct degrees in complementary disciplines. Combining advanced engineering expertise with business knowledge can give you a competitive edge in the job market.

Industrial engineering courses will deepen your understanding of information systems, management systems, operations research, production systems and quality and reliability engineering. To strengthen your business acumen, you’ll complete MBA courses covering managerial statistics, operations and supply chain management, economics, accounting, strategic management, organizational theory and more.

In this systems engineering master’s emphasis, you’ll explore the development and enhancement of all types of engineered systems from phone networks and supply chains to business software. The primary goals for all system engineers are defining needs and supporting risk management.

Throughout your coursework, you’ll focus on foundational concepts that build a broader perspective on topics such as design synthesis, engineering and system management and system validation. You’ll build the knowledge and abilities needed to comprehend complex projects in a holistic sense, including:

• Connecting system concepts and designs with their practical, day-to-day uses.
• Identifying potential problems that can arise in systems and crafting solutions.
• Understanding how the many components of a system function together and support each other.

In addition to these skills, you’ll have the opportunity to choose one specialized topic to focus your elective courses on, including hardware, innovation and entrepreneurship, quality and reliability, software or supply chains. You can also take a combination of electives that qualify you for Lean Six Sigma Black Belt certification.

Who’s a good candidate for this MEng?

The ideal candidate for this systems engineering master’s emphasis already has a career in a field such as engineering, consulting, operations, manufacturing or transportation. More broadly, this program is fitting for applicants with an interest in the early-stage needs and requirements of a manufacturing or development cycle. Completion of courses in differential and integral calculus, calculus-based probability and statistics and operations research is also crucial.

What is a degree emphasis? Is it the same as a concentration?

A degree emphasis is similar to a concentration, but there are key differences.

• A concentration is a formalized selection of courses within a major. A concentration requires a minimum of 15 credit hours of which at least nine credit hours must be upper division. Your concentration appears on both your ASU diploma and your transcripts.
• An emphasis is a selected topic area defined within the major. It’s typically 9–12 credit hours and doesn’t need to be officially declared. The emphasis will not appear on your diploma or transcripts.

The areas of quality, reliability and statistical engineering in this emphasis contribute to improving complete systems and processes. While similar, they have key distinctions.

• Quality engineering emphasizes quality assurance and control for products and services, which can apply to both development and production.
• Reliability engineering is based on ensuring a product or service continues to function as intended.
• Statistical engineering focuses on resolving intricate questions and business issues through data and analysis.

Throughout this program, you’ll learn the techniques of each and how they’re deployed in a variety of industries. The focus on customization allows you to choose courses that align with your academic and professional goals. You can continue to refine your technical skills while gaining an understanding of the management side of an organization. Additionally, you have the unique opportunity to pair your degree with ASU Online’s Lean Six Sigma Black Belt graduate certificate, with the benefit of not needing to earn additional credit hours.

Who’s a good candidate for this master’s program?

You’re an ideal candidate for this program if you have work experience in a related field. Your interest in one or more of the following disciplines can also indicate this program may be a good fit:

• Distribution and supply chain.
• Manufacturing.
• Process development.
• Product, service and engineering design.

Additionally, an advanced background in mathematics is essential. To understand the course material, you must have completed differential and integral calculus courses, as well as a calculus-based probability and statistics course.

What is a degree emphasis? Is it the same as a concentration?

A degree emphasis is similar to a concentration, but there are key differences.

• A concentration is a formalized selection of courses within a major. A concentration requires a minimum of 15 credit hours of which at least nine credit hours must be upper division. Your concentration appears on both your ASU diploma and your transcripts.
• An emphasis is a selected topic area defined within the major. It’s typically 9–12 credit hours and doesn’t need to be officially declared. The emphasis will not appear on your diploma or transcripts.