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Information for Students

MISSISSIPPI STATE UNIVERSITY
Mississippi State, MS
Department of Industrial Engineering

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BACKGROUND:
Title: Industrial Engineering with a concentration option in Ergonomics and Human Factors Engineering (MS, PhD)
Est: 1962
Semester
Granted last 3 years: MS 4, PhD 2
Part-time: yes
HFES student chapter: no
Program: The Ergonomics and Human Factors Engineering Concentration Option in Industrial Engineering is designed for students who desire comprehensive education in industrial and cognitive ergonomics. The option provides students with knowledge of ergonomics and human factors design principles for systems engineering. Students electing this concentration are prepared for employment in industry or consulting as a human factors engineer at an intermediate or senior level depending upon prior work experience.
Contact: Vincent G. Duffy or Larry G. Brown, Department of Industrial Engineering, Mississippi State University, 125 McCain Engineering Building, Mississippi State, MS 39762-9542; 662/325-3865; http://www.ie.msstate.edu/
Catalog: (free; published four times per year: February, July; semi-monthly in April) Mississippi State University Registrar's Office, P.O. Box 5268, Mississippi State, MS 39762-5268 or Office of Graduate Studies, P.O. Box G, 116 Allen Hall, Mississippi State University, Mississippi State, MS 39762; grad@grad.msstate.edu

APPLICATION:
Deadlines: 6/1 (fall), 11/1 (spring), 4/1 (summer)
Fee: $25 out of state or international

ADMISSION REQUIREMENTS:
GPA (MS): 3.0/4.0 (junior and senior years)
GRE: Students entering with BS from program not accredited by EAC/ABET must submit composite v, q and a.
Other: TOEFL 550 (international) and BS from an EAC/ABET accredited program is recommended. For PhD, MS from an EAC/ABET accredited program is recommended.
Research: medium
Work experience: medium
Letters: high
Interview: medium

ADMISSIONS:
Student acceptance rate: 46%
Openings per year: 3-5

TUITION AND FEES:
Resident: $1793/semester
Nonresident: $4064/semester
Part-time: $199.25/hour for residents, $451.75/hour for nonresidents

FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE:
% receiving: 75
Amount: $10800/$14400/$18888
Available: assistantship (tuition exempt); GTA, and GRA (tuition exempt)
Apply: with application

DEGREE REQUIREMENTS:
MS: 30 hours including thesis research, thesis defense, no languages or practical experience required, 9-hour minimum enrollment (fall, spring), 6-hour minimum enrollment (summer), no internship, 1.75 years
MS nonthesis option: yes
PhD: preliminary exam (written and oral), dissertation research, dissertation defense, no languages or practical experience required, no internship, 3 years

CURRICULUM:
MS current course: Human Factors Engineering (3), Ergonomics (3), Occupational Safety Engineering (3), Cognitive Engineering (3), Engineering Statistics II (4), Transportation Human Factors (3), Cognitive Science (3), Human-Computer Interaction (3), Special Topics in Industrial Engineering (3)
Required courses outside department: 0
Recommended courses outside department: 2
Offered: night (occasionally), summer (frequently)
Class size: 5-20

RESEARCH/TEACHING OPPORTUNITIES:
Research facilities: The Department of Industrial Engineering has well-developed laboratories that support research and teaching in industrial and cognitive ergonomics. The labs have a combined size of approximately 1500 square feet. A new laboratory for Cognitive Systems Engineering will be opened in McCain Engineering Hall in fall 2002. The new state-of-the-art laboratory will be about 5000 square feet and will house sponsored projects related to the human aspects of advanced technologies, human-computer interaction, virtual industrial safety training systems, design for an aging population, and efforts to improve human reliability and performance in health care and transportation systems. Additional university facilities supporting cognitive ergonomics research include the Mississippi State University/National Science Foundation Engineering Research Center (ERC). The ERC has a Computer Automatic Virtual Environment (CAVE), which is supported by a multiprocessor and multipipe Silicon Graphics (SGI) Onyx RealityEngine2 and integrated with motion trackers and a wand hand control. Those facilities support research in human-computer interaction, distance learning, user cognition, scientific visualization and virtual reality.
Teaching: GTAs primarily assist faculty with laboratory teaching (Work Analysis & Design (3), Human Factors Engineering (3), Ergonomics (3)). Occasional opportunities to assume classroom teaching responsibilities or to serve as instructor of record are available to advanced PhD students.
Current research: Human aspects of advanced technologies, human-computer interaction, virtual reality applications in industrial safety training, transportation human factors, human factors testing and evaluation, computer system design for effective health system access, human reliability, cognitive engineering and human performance, human interface and the management of information.

STUDENT STATISTICS:
Active: 40
Mean scores: GRE 1767 v+q+a, GPA 3.2/4.0

FACULTY
Royce O. Bowden, PhD 1992, Mississippi State U; intermodal transportation systems and simulation
Gary L. Bradshaw, PhD 1984, Carnegie-Mellon U; scientific discovery, technology-mediated education, learning and transfer, cognitive models
Stanley F. Bullington, PhD 1990, Auburn U; quality management and engineering management
Stephanie M. Doane, PhD, 1986, UC Santa Barbara; skill acquisition, computational models of cognition, expertise
Vincent G. Duffy, PhD 1996, Purdue U; virtual environments, industrial ergonomics and transportation human factors
William N. Smyer, PhD 1981, Auburn U; engineering design and production
John M. Usher, PhD 1989, Louisiana State U; applications of AI to manufacturing, intelligent robotics, manufacturing and automation