To return to the contents page, click your browser's "Back" button.

BACKGROUND:
Title: Industrial Engineering -- Industrial Ergonomics Option (MSIE). Contact: Luis Rene Contreras, U. of Texas at El Paso, Mechanical and Industrial Engineering Dept., 500 W. University Dr., El Paso, TX 79968-0521; 915/747-77098; lrcontreras@utep.edu, http://www.me.utep.edu/. Est: 1995. Joint program: with Departments of Kinesiology and Psychology. Semester. Granted last 3 years: MS 4. Part-time: yes. Program: The Industrial Ergonomics option of the Industrial Engineering Program addresses human capabilities and behavior and how these characteristics are incorporated into the design, evaluation, operation, and maintenance of manufacturing systems that are intended for safe, effective, and efficient use. The Industrial Ergonomics option focuses on job performance and evaluation and on the ability of people to perform tasks. The Industrial Ergonomics option will prepare the student to address such issues as work design and measurement, worker safety, worker productivity, and human reliability. HFES student chapter: no. Catalog: (free) Graduate School, 500 W. University Dr., El Paso, TX 79968-0521.

APPLICATION:
Deadlines: 7/1 (fall), 11/1 (spring), 4/1 (summer). Fee: $15 US or permanent residents, $65 international applications.

ADMISSION REQUIREMENTS:
GPA: 3.0. GRE: 400 v, 600 q, 1000 v + q. Other: TOEFL for international applicants: minimum 550. BS in engineering or science, one semester of calculus-based probability and statistics. Research: medium. Work experience: medium. Letters: low. Interview: low.

ADMISSIONS:
Students applying last year: 17. Accepted: 11. Entered program: 9. Openings/year: 25 in 1997, 35 in 1998.

TUITION AND FEES:
Resident: $993 per 10-hour semester. Nonresident: $3053 per 10-hour semester.

FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE:
% receiving: 25. Amount: $1000/month for 9 months; $1000/month for 3 summer months. Available: TA, RA, scholarship, none tuition exempt, but international students pay resident rates. Apply: Once enrolled. After one semester of registration.

DEGREE REQUIREMENTS:
MSIE: 24 hours + 6 hours of thesis + 1 hour of graduate seminar, or 36 hours in nonthesis option; no languages, thesis for thesis option, no practical experience, 1 1/2 years. Nonthesis option: yes.

CURRICULUM:
Required courses (units): Industrial Engineering core: Design of Experiments (3), Graduate Seminar (1); Thesis (6). Industrial Ergonomics core: Advanced Work Design (3), Advanced Concepts in Safety Engineering (3), Advanced Ergonomics (3). Electives: Core: Measurement Techniques in Exercise Physiology (3), Advanced Exercise Physiology (3), Psychological Foundations of Physical Activity (3), Measurement Techniques in Biomechanical Analysis (3), Neuroscience Applied to Exercise and Work (3), Advanced Cognitive Processes (3), Seminar in Industrial/Organizational Psychology (3), Personnel Selection and Placement (3), Seminar in Human Performance (3), Industrial Hygiene and Toxicology (3). General: Advanced Dynamics (3), Industrial Statistics (3), Advanced Engineering Economy (3), Management of Technology (3), Computer Simulation (3), Design for Manufacturability (3), Organizational Behavior Seminar (3). Required courses outside department: 0. Recommended courses outside department: 4. Offered: night, weekends, summer. Class size: 12.

RESEARCH/TEACHING OPPORTUNITIES:
Research facilities: Through the Ergonomics, Safety and Productivity Applications Laboratory, industrial ergonomics graduate students have extensive research opportunities with local industry and government. There are more than 360 American twin-plants, with Fortune 500 firms represented. There are also 3 military bases within a 100-mile radius. Many of these firms support students as RAs through the Engineering Consortium. Teaching: Lab instructors for Ergonomics, Methods Engineering, and Industrial Layout courses. Current research: Prediction methodologies for RMI and industrial accidents, work design methodology, computational models for sit versus stand work, and simulation and animation models of work.

STUDENT STATISTICS:
Active: 5 men, 7 women. First-year students: 8. Mean scores: GRE 475 v, 650 q, 505 a, GPA 3.05.

FACULTY:
Luis Rene Contreras, PhD 1995, Kansas State U; biomechanics, systems safety. Thomas J. McLean, PhD 1976, Arizona State U; occupational safety, human productivity and reliability, cost models. Arun Pennathur, PhD 1999, U Cincinnati; workstation design, electromyography. Rolando Quintana, PhD 1995, New Mexico State U; work design, industrial ergonomics, systems safety.