Engineering Management Master’s Degree Celebrates 25th Anniversary with New Program Features
While the Fall of 1999 is notably remembered as the Y2K countdown, it also marked the launch of a new engineering graduate program at The University of Texas at Austin (UT). Twenty-five years ago this semester, the Cockrell School of Engineering introduced a Master of Science in Engineering Management (MEM), the first part-time graduate degree offered by the engineering school.
Diversifying its curriculum formats, the Cockrell School recognized the need to provide working engineers a path to career advancement without having to take a leave of absence from work. A core point of distinction for the Engineering Management degree is that it brings together tenured faculty from two world-class schools: the Cockrell School and the UT McCombs School of Business, blending key courses in engineering and business.
The MEM degree and other Cockrell School part time engineering master’s degrees and graduate certificates are administered by Texas Engineering Executive Education (TxEEE).
Since its inception, the MEM degree has maintained certain core features regarding when courses are scheduled (Friday/Saturday) and blending technical topics with business, finance, marketing, organizational behavior and risk analysis. In response to a growing need to serve international students, a full-time/fast track option was added for the MEM degree early on.
The value of the MEM degree continues to show its worth and impact. Read more about recent trends published in Forbes magazine.
“The Cockrell School recognizes the importance of offering engineers and technology professionals options when it comes to advancing their knowledge, leadership training and career opportunities,” said J. Eric Bickel, program director for the Engineering Management master’s degree program and professor, Walker Department of Mechanical Engineering, Cockrell School of Engineering. “The Engineering Management master’s program is our longest-running and most popular part-time degree program, drawing students from a wide range of industries. It is a rich learning environment for the students and the faculty.”
Recent Enhancements to MEM Degree
A major boost to the MEM program was the hiring of Woodrow W. Winchester, III as TxEEE executive director in 2022. Winchester has held multiple leadership positions with the American Society for Engineering Management (ASEM) and was recently selected to be a ASEM fellow.
His leadership and insights have resulted in various valuable enhancements now accessible to MEM students – most notably ASEM Formal Certification. UT MEM graduates have a direct path to professional certification. Read more here. The process to achieve the ASEM certification was aided by Bickel and Konavis Smith, MBA, TxEEE director of Strategic Partnerships and Programs, who together championed a refresh of the MEM curriculum several years prior.
Another enhancement to the MEM degree is the recent addition of a new elective (ENM W390) Systems Engineering. Systems Engineering emphasizes a holistic approach to the design, development and management of complex systems. Students learn to integrate interdisciplinary knowledge and apply systems thinking to real-world problems.
The course explicitly addresses the role of AI and machine learning in modern systems design, equipping students to manage technical risk, validate system requirements and optimize performance in AI-integrated environments.
By successfully completing the Systems Engineering course (scoring 80 percent or higher on aligned quizzes), MEM students become eligible for Associate System Engineering Professional (ASEP) certification. The official certification is made possible through the International Council on Systems Engineering (INCOSE) and demonstrates an engineer’s knowledge and experience in the practice of Systems Engineering.
And for MEM full-time students, TxEEE recently began offering an internship course option that can facilitate strategic networking, professional experience and leads to full-time employment. Many MEM students have taken advantage of this option, which can be substituted for a summer Projects course. Read more about students’ internship experiences.
Are you ready to learn more about the MEM degree? Sign up for an Info Session as a next step.
