New Changes Coming to the Engineering Management Degree Program!
As new and innovative technology continues to become an integral part of our society, the need for engineers who can integrate technical expertise, business acumen, and effective interpersonal communication skills is in high demand and growing. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment of engineering managers is projected to continue increasing as the nation’s aging infrastructure requires expansion and repair in addition to the rise of renewable energy construction and design.
It is likely that companies will place a higher priority on engineers with advanced technical knowledge, excellent communication skills, and expert business management skills as prime candidates for these positions. The need for engineers with management skills has resulted in a growing of popularity of engineering management and leadership programs in the academic landscape.
The Cockrell School of Engineering’s on-campus and online Engineering Management Master’s Degree program has offered engineers and STEM professionals a flexible approach to attaining an MSE for over 20 years. However, as the industry continues to diversify and evolve, engineers must continue to develop their skills to stay ahead of the growing competition. In response, Texas Engineering Executive Education, the continuing education division of the Cockrell School of Engineering has overhauled their MSE program in order to provide engineers the knowledge and skills required to address current industry trends and forward looking projections for the dynamic STEM sector.
“We have undergone a rigorous restructuring of our engineering management program over the last nine months. We started by mapping our current curriculum to the ASEM body of knowledge, listening to our industry advisors, and assessing the programs at peer institutions to ensure our courses were aligned with today’s industry standards.” said Dr. Eric Roe, Executive Director of Texas Engineering Executive Education and Assistant Dean of Continuing Education at the Cockrell School.
Dr. Eric Bickel, Program Director of MSE in Engineering Management, developed an external advisory committee of industry leaders and alumni to refine the new graduate program. This updated MSE program has been developed based on The feedback and direct guidance from business and tech leaders such from Facebook, Adobe, Samsung, Chevron, WelderXP, USAA, ExxonMobil, Sandia National Labs, Emerson, and more served to identify the specific technical, organizational and management abilities their engineering managers need on the job every day.
"After listening to the feedback provided by our external advisory committee, we have implemented several updates to the curriculum, including the addition of three new courses to our program and redesigned projects courses including the comprehensive capstone project.", continued Roe.
The updated 30-credit hour program provides an applied approach to learn and explore the essential topics designed to equip engineers and STEM professionals with the specific skills needed to become successful engineering managers and leaders. Our course curriculum fuses business acumen with technical knowledge aligned with the most current ASEM Engineering Management Body of Knowledge and best practices. These Cockrell School of Engineering courses are led by world-renowned faculty and experts of the industry. With the program update, joining the program’s faculty roster is Dr. Rob Oshana Vice President of Software Engineering R&D for the Microcontroller and Microprocessor business line at NXP Semiconductors, responsible for software enablement, operating systems, machine learning, software services and advanced technologies. Dr. Oshana will be leading the Legal Issues and Technology Management course, now enrolling for the Fall 2021 semester.
Exciting times for the UT Austin Engineering Management program. Prospective students must submit all application materials before July 1st, 2021 to be considered for admission for the Fall 2021 semester. We encourage prospective graduate students to connect with a graduate coordinator or attend our monthly information sessions to learn more about the program.
Be sure to visit our website to learn more about all of the updates coming to the MSE Engineering Management graduate program and check out the new and innovative courses launching in Fall 2021!
