Program Overview
Our online Master of Science in Manufacturing Systems Engineering is specifically designed with working engineers in mind, whether you’re employed in the food and beverage, automotive, aerospace, or any other manufacturing industry. With a curriculum meticulously crafted by our expert faculty, you can complete the program in just two to three years while maintaining your current role.
As you complete your coursework, you’ll dive into a comprehensive range of manufacturing and business skills and emerge as a competitive operations leader in a diverse range of industries upon earning your degree. With a robust blend of technology and leadership courses spanning 30 credit hours, you’ll learn to lead technical projects while also understanding the financial implications of your decisions. What’s more, you can immediately apply these skills in real-world scenarios at your workplace—while simultaneously earning your degree. It’s a win-win.
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What You’ll Learn
UW–Madison’s experienced professors have created courses aligned with your goals of becoming a leader in manufacturing systems engineering. Some of the key concepts you can expect to master include:
- The manufacturing and business skills essential to becoming an operations leader.
- Technology and process innovations that will enhance your productivity and make your business more competitive.
- How to incorporate quality, lean, advanced automation, robotics, supply chain, sustainability and data analytics into your engineering decision-making and planning.
Why Choose UW–Madison?
While you could choose from any number of universities to earn your graduate degree, we’re confident that UW–Madison can offer you several career-changing benefits:
- Flexibility
Our manufacturing systems engineering program is 100% online, giving you the versatility to complete the coursework at your convenience to align with the demands of your career. - Small class sizes
Smaller class sizes mean that you’ll really get to know your faculty and fellow students. Our graduate students come from a range of industries working in companies of all shapes and sizes. As part of a talented, diverse cohort, you’ll engage in compelling discussions, examine scenarios through new lenses and gain a broader understanding of how your newfound skills will translate in different industries. - Frequent start dates
Not sure when you want to start? Don’t worry! We accept students in the fall, spring, and summer, so you can start whenever it’s right for you. - Custom curriculum
Work with an advisor to create an individualized program of study based on your undergraduate degree, current role, timeline, interests and career goals. - Enhanced career opportunities
With a specialized master’s degree from one of U.S. News & World Report’s leading online graduate engineering programs, you’re sure to stand out amongst the competition when applying for advanced roles.
Courses
This 30-credit online master’s program consists of 24 core credits and 6 elective credits.
With a wide selection of courses, you can customize your course load to align with your chosen career path and personal interests. Our expert faculty use an engaged model composed of videos, weekly live webinars, online discussions and real-life projects.
We offer a robust curriculum of course topics that will place you at the forefront of modern manufacturing systems engineering:
- Quality Engineering and Quality Management
- Smart Manufacturing
- Industrial Data Analytics
- Engineering Economics and Management
- Technical Project Management
- Supply Chain Management
- 3D Printing
- Production Systems Control
- Inspection, Quality Control and Reliability
- Design and Analysis of Manufacturing Systems
Advanced Career Opportunities
With a new set of skills and a widely recognized master’s degree in hand, your career opportunities expand exponentially. Graduates go on to roles including:
- Manufacturing engineer
- Robotics/automation engineer
- Technical project manager
- Director of continuous improvement
- Quality manager
- Supply chain manager
- Plant manager
Where Our Alumni Work
With a graduate degree from UW-Madison, you will open the door to new and exciting career opportunities from a wide variety of employers, not limited to:
- Amazon
- Deloitte
- Milwaukee Tool
- John Deere
- Polaris, Inc.
- Eaton
Webinar
Meet Graduate Program Director Susan Ottmann and learn more about the online Manufacturing Systems Engineering (MSE) master’s program at the University of Wisconsin–Madison including curriculum, the engaging nature of the program, and the flexibility of doing an online degree.
Required Courses
| Course Code | Course Title | Credits |
| EPD 611 | Engineering Economics and Management |
3 |
| EPD 612 | Technical Project Management | 3 |
| EPD 678 | Supply Chain Management for Engineers |
3 |
| ISyE 412 | Fundamentals of Industrial Data Analytics |
3 |
| ISyE 615 | Production Systems Control | 3 |
| ISyE 618 | Quality Engineering and Quality Management |
3 |
| ISyE/ME 641 | Design and Analysis of Manufacturing Systems |
3 |
| ME 529 | Smart Manufacturing | 3 |
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Electives
Students choose 6 credits of elective courses in consultation with their advisor.
All InterPro courses will fulfill elective requirements. Some offerings are listed below.
| Course Code | Course Title | Credits |
| ISyE/ME 512 | Inspection, Quality Control and Reliability | 3 |
| ME 514 | Polymer Additive Manufacturing | 3 |
| EPD 783 | Leading and Managing Teams Effectively | 1 |
| EPD 702 | Professional Presentations | 1 |
| EPD 613 | International Engineering Strategies and Operations | 3 |
| EPD 782 | Marketing for Non-Marketing Professionals | 3 |
| ME 447 | Computer Control of Machines and Processes | 3 |
| EPD 637 | Polymer Characterization | 3 |
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Admission Requirements
- A Bachelor of Science (BS) from a program accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) or the equivalent. *
- An upper-division GPA of 3.00 or a master’s degree with a cumulative GPA of 3.00.
The GRE is not required. However, you may submit your results if you feel it will improve your chances of qualifying for the program.
If you are registered as a professional engineer by examination, you should document this in your application.
*Equivalency to an ABET accredited program: Applicants who do not hold a bachelor’s degree from an ABET-accredited program may also qualify for admission to the program. Such applicants must have a BS in science, technology, or a related field with sufficient coursework and professional experience to demonstrate proficiency in engineering practice OR at least 16 credits of math and science coursework.
All applicants are advised to determine whether this program meets the requirements for licensure in the state where they live. See the National Society of Professional Engineers website for contact information for state licensing boards.
International Admissions Requirements
- A degree comparable to an approved U.S. bachelor’s degree.
- Academic performance comparable to a 3.00 for an undergraduate or master’s degree.
- Applicants whose native language is not English must provide scores from the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL). The minimum acceptable score on the TOEFL is 580 on the written version, 243 on the computer version or 92 on the Internet version.
Take the first step and start your application today.
Transfer Credits
This program accepts up to 6 transfer credits from other institutions. The courses you would like to transfer to the manufacturing systems engineering program must fit into the program’s elective requirements.
For more information on transfer credits, please email us.
Tuition
UW–Madison’s tuition costs for the manufacturing systems engineering program are as follows:
- Per credit
Tuition is $1,300 per credit, payable at the beginning of each semester.
- Total tuition
The total tuition for this program is $39,000.*
*This total does not include textbooks or course-specific software. Software required for courses is typically available by UW–Madison or in educational versions at substantial discounts. If you transfer 6 credit hours into this program, your tuition for the program will be $31,200, plus any additional costs for required course materials.
Faculty and Staff
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Program Director: Susan Ottmann
Susan Ottmann is a graduate program director in the Office of Interdisciplinary Professional Programs at UW–Madison’s College of Engineering. She leads the non-credit professional programs and the online degrees in manufacturing systems. She teaches courses in technical leadership and technical project management for both credit and professional development programs.Susan has more than 25 years of industrial engineering experience in multiple engineering, marketing, manufacturing and leadership roles for many multinational companies. In the 10 years prior to joining UW–Madison, she led global business for Danaher and Thermo Fisher Scientific. In these roles, she was responsible for teams in North America, Europe and Asia.
Her education includes a BS in mechanical engineering and an BS in engineering and public policy from Carnegie Mellon and an MS in management from North Carolina State University. She is active in the Society of Women Engineers and the Society of Manufacturing Engineers. In her free time, Susan volunteers with the Goodwill VITA Tax Program and is a board member for the Lake Waubesa Sailing Club.
Graduate Advisor: Libby Miller, MEd
Contact:
studentservices@interpro.wisc.edu
Libby is the graduate academic advisor for the following online graduate engineering programs:
- Manufacturing Systems Engineering (MSE)
- Engineering Data Analytics (MEDA)
- Power Engineering (ECE)
- Power Conversion and Control Capstone Certificate (PCC)
In this role, Libby supports all aspects of the student life cycle, including recruitment, admissions, new student orientation, academic advising, monitoring of progress towards the degree, course and enrollment management, diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, funding, course and/or program assessment and academic program review.
Prior to her role at UW–Madison, Libby served as a Graduate Advisor for the Electrical & Computer Engineering Department at UC Santa Cruz and as Admissions Coordinator for the College of Sciences & Mathematics at Belmont University. Before that, Libby was an Enrollment Adviser for the University of Wisconsin Extended Campus online degree programs. Throughout her career in education, she has facilitated graduate student advising, provided departmental leadership and administrative support and coordinated a variety of large events that support student success. Libby understands the challenges and requirements for success in graduate education and hopes to assist students in achieving this significant accomplishment.
Frank E. Pfefferkorn, PhD
Contact: frank.pfefferkorn@wisc.edu
Dr. Pfefferkorn is a professor at the University of Wisconsin–Madison Department of Mechanical Engineering and the director of the manufacturing systems engineering program. He earned his doctoral degree in mechanical engineering from Purdue University and is currently focused on building a scientific understanding of advanced manufacturing processes.Dr. Pfefferkorn’s research primarily focuses on discrete metal part manufacturing processes, specifically where the tool interacts with the workpiece. He is an associate member of the International Academy of Production Engineering (CIRP), highlighting his recognition and involvement in the field. Dr. Pfefferkorn has also received prestigious awards, such as the 2007 Kuo K. Wang Outstanding Young Manufacturing Engineer Award from the Society of Manufacturing Engineers and the Machine Tool Technology Research Foundation equipment loan award.
He’s held significant positions outside of academia, including serving as the assistant director for research partnerships in the Advanced Manufacturing National Program Office at the National Institute of Standards and Technology. He also has a visiting professorship at the Technical University of Vienna, funded by the Austrian Marshall Plan Foundation, allowing him to build research collaborations in advanced manufacturing between TU Wien and UW–Madison.
Raj Kamal, MS, MBA
Contact: kamal3@wisc.edu
Raj Kamal is a lecturer in the College of Engineering at UW–Madison and the owner of Credens LLC, a management consulting firm based in the Madison, Wisconsin, area.
He has 25+ years of industry and blue-chip consulting experience with both Fortune 500 and smaller organizations in manufacturing and distribution, financial services and insurance, government and higher education. Raj also brings extensive expertise in program management, quantitative modeling and statistical analyses.
He holds a master of science in management from Purdue University, an MBA from the Indian Institute of Management at Ahmedabad, India, and a bachelor of arts (with honors) in economics from Delhi University.
In the master of engineering MEM program, Raj teaches EPD 611: Engineering Economics and Management. Outside EPD, he also teaches operations management, statistics, strategy, information technology and quality in the MBA program at Edgewood College. Previously, he taught at Purdue University’s Krannert School of Business.
Kaibo Liu, PhD
Contact: kliu8@wisc.edu
Dr. Liu is an esteemed engineering professor specializing in system informatics and data analytics. His research focuses on utilizing the data fusion approach to model, monitor, diagnose, forecast and make decisions in complex systems. His work has garnered widespread recognition across multiple research communities, including quality, statistics, reliability and data mining.Notably, Dr. Liu has received several prestigious awards, including the Outstanding Young Manufacturing Engineer Award by SME, the Feigenbaum Medal Award by ASQ and the Dr. Hamed K. Eldin Outstanding Early Career IE in Academia Award by IISE. He has also been the recipient of several best paper awards from INFORMS and ISERC, as well as featured articles in IIE and INFORMS magazines. Dr. Liu’s research has been supported by esteemed organizations such as NSF, ONR, AFOSR, DOE and industry partners.
He holds a bachelor’s degree in industrial engineering and engineering management from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology and a master’s degree in statistics and a doctoral degree in industrial engineering from Georgia Institute of Technology.
Peter B. Lukszys, MBA
Contact: peter.lukszys@wisc.edu
Pete Lukszys teaches courses in supply chain management in the undergraduate, MS/MBA and professional development programs at the Wisconsin School of Business. His industry experience ranges from start-ups to Fortune 500 companies. He was the founding CEO of Atrility Medical, a UW spin-off that developed and launched a product used to monitor arrhythmias (which is currently in use in pediatric ICUs).Pete was head of corporate supply chain management and the US SAP implementation leader at EMD/Merck and held manufacturing management roles at Abbott Labs. He has served as a supply chain consultant and expert witness, advising organizations in the agriculture, automotive, biotech, defense, health care manufacturing, transportation and wind energy industries.
He has been recognized with teaching and service awards including the Mabel W. Chipman Outstanding Teaching Award from the School of Business, the Marketing Professor of the Year by the Mu Kappa Tau student organization and the COVID Resilience Service Award for providing emergency response logistics analytics support to the university during the early stages of the pandemic.
Pete is APICS-certified in production and inventory control. He received an MBA in supply chain management and a BS in industrial engineering from the University of Wisconsin–Madison.
Terry Mann, MS
Contact: tmmann@wisc.edu
Terry Mann is a senior lecturer with the UW–Madison College of Engineering and has an active consulting practice assisting companies in the implementation of ISO quality and environmental management system requirements. He is an Exemplar Global Principal QMS Auditor, EMS Auditor, Medical Device Auditor and Senior ASQ Certified Quality Auditor.
Terry teaches courses on quality engineering topics, including ISO Standards, Six Sigma, operations management, statistical process control, design of experiments, cellular manufacturing and facilities layout. He earned his master of science in manufacturing systems engineering from UW–Madison.
Jeffrey S. Russell, PhD, PE, Dist.M.ASCE, NAC, F.NSPE
Contact: russell@engr.wisc.edu
Dr. Russell is vice provost for lifelong learning, dean of continuing studies, a professor of civil and environmental engineering and co-founder of the Construction Engineering and Management program at UW–Madison. Over the last 25 years, he has earned a reputation as a leader in lifelong learning, adult education, continuing education, engineering education, construction engineering and management and civil engineering. Dr. Russell earned his PhD in civil engineering from Purdue University.
In the Master of Engineering in Engineering Management (MEM) program, Dr. Russell co-teaches EPD 612 Technical Project Management. In the Civil and Environmental Engineering department, Dr. Russell teaches CEE 498 Construction Project Management and CEE 578 Senior-Level Capstone Design.
Jiao (Tina) Xu, PhD
Contact: jxu25@wisc.edu
Charlene Yauch, PhD, PE
Contact: cyauch@wisc.edu
Dr. Yauch is the director of the Center for Quick Response Manufacturing (QRM) and a professor of practice in industrial and systems engineering at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. She conducts industry training workshops on how to implement QRM and how to design cells for production and office operations. Dr. Yauch advises student projects for companies that are members of the QRM Center and teaches classes on QRM, manufacturing processes and manufacturing systems analysis.Prior to her current job, Dr. Yauch worked at the Milwaukee School of Engineering, Oklahoma State University, Versa Technologies and McDonnell Douglas. She has a bachelor of science in industrial engineering from Purdue University, as well as master of science degrees in sociology and manufacturing systems engineering. She earned a PhD in industrial engineering from the University of Wisconsin–Madison.
Shiyu Zhou, PhD
Contact: szhou@engr.wisc.edu
Dr. Zhou is a professor in the Department of Industrial & Systems Engineering at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. Dr. Zhou has taught courses on facilities planning and computer-integrated manufacturing and has directed graduate student research and independent study.
His research interests are in the areas of modeling, diagnosis and control of complex manufacturing processes through data analytics. He has been sponsored by the National Science Foundation (NSF), the Air Force Office of Scientific Research and the Department of Energy, to name a few. He has authored and co-authored dozens of papers and received the NSF CAREER Award in 2006.
Dr. Zhou holds a doctorate in mechanical engineering from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.
David Ding, PhD
Contact: xding86@wisc.edu
Dr. David Ding is a lecturer within the MS Manufacturing System Engineering program. Dr. Ding serves as the Associate Dean at the College of Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics, and Management at UW-Stout. Furthermore, he also holds the position of Director of the School of Engineering at the University of Wisconsin – Stout.
Boasting over three decades of expertise spanning both industry and higher education, Dr. Ding has excelled in various roles, including regional division leader at multiple Fortune 500 organizations. His illustrious career is fortified by a profound understanding of digital transformation, manufacturing automation, artificial intelligence, and data analytics, underscored by certifications earned from esteemed institutions such as MIT, Oxford University, the Wharton School, and Harvard University.
Dr. Ding’s research portfolio encompasses diverse domains, including manufacturing system design, digital transformation, Industry 4.0, IoT, and Cyber manufacturing systems. His pioneering work consistently advances the boundaries of knowledge and innovation in these critical fields.
Educationally, Dr. Ding holds a PhD and Master’s degree in Industry and System Engineering from the University of Nebraska – Lincoln. His academic journey also includes a BS degree in Economics from the Tsinghua University in China.
