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Session 3263

A Successful Masters Curriculum in Quality Engineering

Robert G. Batson Department of Industrial Engineering University of Alabama

INTRODUCTION

Quality engineering as a job title in industry existed well before any 4-year degree or masters programs were created in U.S. universities. By 1985, there were eight colleges that provided a 4- year degree program in quality1 . However, universities have continued to be reluctant to establish new 4-year degree programs in specialized areas such as quality engineering. This is not the case with a master’s degree in quality engineering, many of which are now offered as a major (or concentration) in industrial and manufacturing engineering departments. The reason is that industrial engineering and/or manufacturing engineering programs “provide an excellent background for quality engineers because of the emphasis on cost, schedule, and quality parameters...courses in statistical methods are required, and some schools require courses in quality control 1 .”

In 1988, the author established a major in quality engineering within the Master of Science in Industrial Engineering (MSIE) degree program at The University of Alabama. The objectives of the major in quality engineering were to:

& Provide a comprehensive education in the philosophy of Total Quality, the preventive process- oriented methodologies of Quality Engineering, and the planning, control, and improvement techniques--both classical (statistical process control--SPC, acceptance sampling, statistical design of experiments--DOE, regression, reliability and maintainability) and modern (Taguchi Methods, Quality Function Deployment, failure modes and effects analysis--FMEA, Total Productive Maintenance, etc.).

& Prepare individuals for early and mid-career transition into quality program leadership positions in their organizations.

& Prepare B.S.-level engineers, regardless of undergraduate majors, for entry-level jobs as quality engineers.

Prerequisites were established to enable non-BSIEs to enter the program and, within a semester, be prepared to tackle seven required quality engineering courses. The prerequisites are:

& Calculus, through differential equations (offered every semester, including summer)

& A two-semester undergraduate-level course in probability and statistics, or enroll in GES 500 Engineering Statistics (survey) during first semester in program (every semester).

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Batson, R. (1998, June), A Successful Masters Curriculum In Quality Engineering Paper presented at 1998 Annual Conference, Seattle, Washington. 10.18260/1-2--7441