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BACKGROUND:
Title: Program in Ergonomics, HF, and Safety Engineering, a National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Occupational Safety and Ergonomics Program (MIE, MSIE, PhD). Contact: Lawrence Schulze, IE Department, University of Houston, E206-D3, Engineering Building 2 Houston , TX 77204-4008; 713/743-4196, fax 713/743-4190;mailto:ljhs@uh.edu, http://www.uh.edu/.Est: 1987. Semester. Granted last 3 years: MSIE (thesis) 7, MIE (nonthesis) 5, PhD 4. Part-time: yes. Program: Basic and applied research studies are conducted in the IE labs and in local industry. Industrial ergonomics focuses on workplace, work area, and workstation design; tools; work methods; and materials handling. HF focuses on the interface between human operators and machines. Safety Engineering focuses on system- and equipment-related issues with access to the largest chapter of ASSE and the largest concentration of process facilities in the US. Additional interfaces provided by the Southwest Center for Occupational and Environmental Health in the Texas Medical Center and NASA-Johnson Space Center. Accredited by: ABET. HFES student chapter: no. ASSE Student Section: yes. Catalog: (free):  Mary Patronella, U. of Houston, IE Dept., E206-D3, Engineering Building 2, Houston, TX 77204-4812; 713/743-4188, fax 713/743-4190; mpatronella@uh.edu.

APPLICATION:
Deadlines: US/permanent residents: 7/1 (fall), 10/1 (spring), 4/1 (summer). International: 5/1 (fall), 9/1 (spring), 2/1 (summer). Fee: $25 for US citizens or permanent residents with US transcripts; $75 for international students or those with foreign marksheets/transcripts.

ADMISSION REQUIREMENTS:
GPA: 3.0 for last 60 semester or 90 quarter hours for unconditional admission. Transfer students: 3.0 GPA on all completed graduate work. GRE: 1100 v + q rec. for MS and 1200 for PhD. Other: TOEFL 550; degree in engineering (those with degrees in closely related fields may be accepted subject to additional requirements or leveling courses). Research: high. Work experience: high. Letters: medium. Interview: high.

ADMISSIONS:
Students applying last year: 51. Accepted: 9. Entered program: 10. Openings/year: 5-10.

TUITION AND FEES:
Resident: $160/credit hour. Nonresident: $370/credit hour.

FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE:
% receiving: 85. Amount: MA TA $700-$750/mo., MA RA $800-$850/mo., PhD TA $750-$800/mo., PhD RA $850-$1100/mo. Available: fellowship, scholarship (tuition exempt); TA, RA $998 tuition waiver provided equivalent to 9 h/semester. Apply: after acceptance.  NIOSH Trainees receive $1250/mo. + tuition and fee payment.

DEGREE REQUIREMENTS:
MIE (nonthesis): 36 hours, exams, practical experience, no research or languages, GPA 3.0, 1 1/2-2 years. MSIE (thesis): 24 hours classes, 6 hours research = 30 hours, exams, research, practical experience, no languages, GPA 3.0, 1 1/2-2 years. PhD: 54 hours beyond MA (including 30 hours research and dissertation), exams, research, practical experience, no languages, GPA 3.0, 3-4 years.

CURRICULUM:
Required courses (units): MIE: HF in Systems Design (3), Industrial Ergonomics (3), Occupational Biomechanics (3), Advanced Engineering Statistics (3), Optimization Methods (3), Occupational Safety Engineering (3). MSIE: same as MIE plus Graduate Seminar. PhD: same as MSIE + Digital Simulation (3) and Expert Systems (3). Electives: Reliability and Quality Control, Special Topic in Applied Ergonomics, Special Topics in HF Engineering, Special Topics in Applied Safety and Management, Epidemiology, Issues in Occupational Health, Ethics in Research, Engineering Administration, Management & Organization of Projects, Scheduling and Planning, Industrial Ecology. Courses outside department: MIE: 9 hours; MSIE: 6 hours; PhD: 9 hours; NIOSH Trainees:  MSIE 9 hours, PhD 12 hours. Offered: night, summer. Class size: 15-20.  NIOSH Trainees Required Courses:  Same as MIE and MSIE plus System Safety Engineering, Safety Engineering Management, Industrial Ecology, Legal Aspects of Engineering, Fundamentals of Industrial Hygiene, and Occupational Health Field Trips.

RESEARCH/TEACHING OPPORTUNITIES:
Research facilities: 1000 square foot computer laboratory with 20 computer workstations, 200 sq ft Human-Computer Interaction Laboratory, 1000 square foot library of hard-copy and relational database research and product information; a 2000 square foot Lab for Industrial Engineering Activities houses a simulated manufacturing/material handling environment; a 1000 square foot HF Lab houses the latest in computer and design workstation hardware and software where human-machine interfaces can be developed and evaluated. The 3000 sq ft Industrial Ergonomics and Analysis Lab houses equipment for analysis of worker activities and assessment of work capacities, including static and dynamic strength and hand-eye coordination. Teaching: MA students can assist with lectures, exams, and assignments and teach labs; PhD students may teach an entire class. Current research: Maximum acceptable operational volitional rotations applied to operation of manually operated valves; gate valve operation torque requirements; reduction of accidents and injuries in high-hazard occupations through bilingual communication; determination of average weights of backpacks of children pre-K through 12th grade; development of predictive models of accidents, injuries, and incidents through the use of trailing and leading indicators; development of an anthropometric database for Latin American populations; development of an anthropometric database for Latin American school children; determination of ethnic differences in Web page scanning strategies; evaluation of differences between Web-based and traditional contact methods of instruction; evaluation of arm support devices for adults and children with limited control of arm movements.

STUDENT STATISTICS:
Active: 12 men, 13 women. First-year students: 6. Mean scores: MIE: GRE 550 v, 650 q, 690 a, GPA 3.5. MSIE: GRE 570 v, 690 q, 700 a, GPA 3.5. PhD: GRE 600 v, 700 q, 720 a, GPA 3.7.

FACULTY:
Chris Chung, PhD, 1997, U Pittsburgh; simulation. Charles Donaghey, PhD 1967, U Pittsburgh; facility layout, applied statistics, reliability. John Hunsucker, PhD 1969, Lousiana State U; risk management, safety, system design and evaluation. Lawrence J. H. Schulze, PhD 1989, Texas A&M U; industrial ergonomics, accommodation, analysis and design of operator-machine systems.