Completion Guidelines for Master's Non-Thesis  

The Completion Guidelines offer general information on the program, semester tasks, plan of study/degree requirements, registration, and graduation for your reference. Please consult the handbook or the Grad office if you have any questions.

Index

Program Overview 

The Master of Science in Industrial Engineering (MSIE) – Non-Thesis program allows students to create a customized plan of study that focuses on their area of interest, such as Human Factors, Optimization. Production or Manufacturing.  

A master's degree is often a prerequisite for pursuing a Doctor of Philosophy degree and may be necessary for admission to certain doctoral programs. Students aiming for a doctoral degree should opt for the master's thesis option. Please consult your graduate advisor for more details. 

Course Load & Timeline to Completion  

Students generally enroll in 9-12 credit hours, or about 3-4 classes, each semester, with each credit hour representing about 3 hours of combined class and study time per week. International students must register for a minimum of 8 credit hours during each fall and spring semester to maintain full-time status; summer registration is optional unless the student holds an assistantship. Additionally, students can register for up to 18 credit hours per fall and spring semester at a flat tuition rate, allowing them to tailor their course load to their academic goals and capabilities.  

Residential students complete the non-thesis master's degree in 1 to 2.5 years, with an average completion time of around two years. For online (distance) students, who often balance their studies with full-time work, the degree typically takes about 3.5 years to complete. 

Graduate Advisor 

All MSIE non-thesis students are assigned a graduate advisor as opposed to a major professor or faculty advisor. When processes refer to your “advisor”, contact your Graduate Advisor. 

 

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Semester-by-Semester Checklist 

 

Semester-by Semester Checklist
Task Due
Familiarize yourself with your degree requirements (see MSNT Handbook.
International Students Only. Familiarize yourself with F-1: Maintaining Legal Status.		 Semester 1 
Register for Classes    Every Fall/Spring,Summer optional  
Complete your Responsible Conduct of Research training: RCR Workshop Registration within 60 days of 1st term 
Draft Plan of Study (draft plans are not reviewed)  by end of 1st term 
Submit Plan of Study as Final by end of 2nd term, but no later than end of year 1by end of 2nd term, but no later than end of year 1
Register for Candidacy (CAND99100) Term before last
Submit Change to Plan of Study  Term before last
Register for Commencement & Complete Commencement Tasks  Term before last
International Students Only: Program Extension, Change of Education Level (COEL), Reduced Course Load (RCL), Optional Practical Training (OPT) Requests  Early in Expected Graduation Semester (Final Semester) or no later than 14 business days before I-20 Program End Date

 

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Degree Requirements for Plan of Study & Graduation

Courses chosen for the non-thesis option are designed to offer an in-depth exploration of a specific area of interest. The curriculum allows students considerable flexibility in selecting their coursework.  

Credit Requirements  

Total 30 credit hours (min.)
IE Courses 21 credit hours (min.)
Related Courses 9 credit hours (max.)

Coursework Requirements  

Minimum of (30) credit hours of graduate-level (500 or 600) coursework  

  • At least (21) credit hours from Industrial Engineering  
  • A maximum of (9) credit hours of related courses, with at least (6) credit hours recommended from a related area. However, all 30 credit hours can be fulfilled through IE courses.  

Pre-approved areas include: 

  • other engineering disciplines 
  • mathematics, statistics, computer sciences,  biology 
  • psychology, sociology  
  • economics, management 

Course Selection 

Master's Non-Thesis students are encouraged to reach out to their course instructors with specific questions and are expected to take an active role in their planning. Since the non-thesis option is an applied track, students will receive general support from their graduate advisor when choosing courses. 

IE Courses

IE Courses are offered in the following topic areas: 

Pre-Approved Courses 

Related courses  can be graduate level courses in the following: 

  • Other engineering disciplines*: AAE – Aeronautics & Astronautics. ABE – Agricultural & Biological Engineering, BME – Biomedical Engineering, CE – Civil Engineering, CHE – Chemical Engineering, ECE – Electrical & Computer Engineering, EEE – Environmental & Ecological Engineering, ENE – Engineering Education, ME – Mechanical Engineering, MSE – Materials Engineering, NE – Nuclear Engineering, SYS – Systems Engineering) 
  • MA - Mathematics,  STAT - Statistics,  CS - Computer Science,  BIO – Biology 
  • MGMT – Management.  ECON – Economics 
  • PSY - Psychology,  SOC - Sociology 

Courses Not Allowed 

  • P/NP or S grade courses (P/NP and S courses within Industrial Engineering will be allowed only if that is the only grade mode offered 
  • for the course, if a graded mode is offered, it must be taken). 
  • Audited courses; or 
  • Zero credit courses; or 
  • Independent Study Courses; or 
  • STAT 50100, 50200, 50300, 51100, 51300; or 
  • Polytechnic courses * (AVTH, CNIT, CGT, BCM, ECET, ENGT, MET, TLI, TECH, etc.); or 
  • Seminar courses **; or 
  • Courses irrelevant to the degree; or 
  • Professional Master’s (PMP) Industry Capstone Project courses (applies to non-thesis track, not PMP)

* While Polytechnic courses are not traditionally allowed on a plan of study, see appendix B section 11 of the handbook for information on waiving that policy. 

**IE seminar courses, IE69000 – Graduate Professional Practice, are mandatory; however, they will not count toward your degree requirements and should not be listed on your plan of study. 

Other Degree Requirements 

  • A grade of C or better on every course listed in the plan of study 
  • An overall GPA of 3.0 or better on all courses listed in the plan of study 
  • Two advisory committee co-chairs consisting of the IE Graduate Chair, Dr. Susan Hunter, and Assistant Head, Dr. Patrick Brunese.  
  • Pre-approval is required for non-IE (1) credit courses and courses from areas not in the pre-approved list. Please obtain a syllabus for the course and send it to the IE Graduate Office to request approval. 
  • All courses must be 500 or 600 level graduate courses with the exception of up to one 400-level course from pre-approved areas. 

Transfer Courses 

  • Up to 12 credit hours of transfer courses may be considered for review. These courses must be graduate-level, engineering courses; have grades of “B” or higher, not be used toward a degree, and be no older than 5 years. For each course, please provide the institution name, course name/number, credit hours, term taken, transcript, syllabus, course URL from the school's website, and the instructor’s name/email. Submit all supporting documentation to the IE Graduate Office for review. 
  • Graduate level courses taken in undergraduate status must be in excess to the undergraduate degree requirements for consideration. A letter from the Registrar’s Office is required confirming this. 

 

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Plan of Study Requirements 

What is a Plan of Study? A Plan of Study is an academic contract between a student, the faculty members of the advisory committee, and the Office of Graduate Students and Postdoctoral Students (OGSPS). All departmental and OGSPS policies related to the filing of a Plan of Study must be adhered to explicitly. Each graduate student admitted to a degree program must file a Plan of Study (POS). A formal Plan of Study should be created as early as possible in the student's career because it guides a student's academic degree progress.  

Every POS varies based on student interest, time, and course load. 

Graduate School Policy and Procedures Manual (refer to section VII)

Plan of Study Deadlines 

Your Plan of Study should be submitted as final as early as possible, and no later than at the end of your second semester. We recommend drafting your Plan of Study (POS) late in your first semester and submitting as final  no later than your second semester (please note, you will not be able to file your POS until ~2 months into your first active semester, e.g. if you began in August, the system should be available in October, while if you began in January it will be available in March).

Final Deadlines. It must be fully approved before you begin the semester you intend to graduate; otherwise, a late fee will be accessed by the OGSPS. (e.g., if you intend to graduate in May, you should submit it at the beginning of the prior December).  See the Calendar of Events, Dates and Deadlines for actual dates.

Full approval necessitates signatures from your graduate advisor, advisory committee, and department head, followed by final processing with OGSPS. This process can take up to two weeks before you receive confirmation of approval. 

Submitting your Plan of Study 

Students will file their plan of study electronically. The Plan of Study Generator (POSG) does not open until ~2 months into your first semester, e.g. if you began in August, the system should be available in October, while if you began in January it will be available in March.  

Use the Plan of Study instructions to help you complete your plan of study more efficiently. 

  1. Access  Plan of Study Generator in myPurdue.  Access to the electronic Plan of Study Generator (POSG) is via the MyPurdue portal. MyPurdue can be found at http://www.mypurdue.purdue.edu.  
  1. Navigate to the Academic link. The link for the Plan of Study Generator (POSG) is located under the Academic link. The Office of Graduate Students and Postdoctoral Students (OGSPS) provides access to the POSG. 
  1. Navigate to the POSG link. Once you are in the Academic tab, click on the POSG link. A new browser window will open with the Graduate School links available to you.  
  1. Create New Plan of Study link. To begin your plan of study, click on the Plan of Study Generator link, and then click on "Create new plan of study" link. Once in the POSG, refer to the Help buttons located on each page to assist you in using the electronic POSG. You do not need to complete the entire form in one sitting; you may save your plan of study and return to it later. You may not bookmark any pages within the Graduate School link. To return to the POSG, you must login to MyPurdue. 
  1. Submit as Final. When you have completed your plan of study and feel it is ready for review, submit your plan as a Final. Draft plans are not reviewed.  
  1. Signature Approval Routing. The plan of study form will be electronically routed, reviewed and, if approved, signed by your departmental coordinator, your advisory committee, and the OGSPS.  
  1. Check the Status. You may check the status of your plan at any time by returning to the POSG and clicking on the Display Submitted Plan of Study link. 
  1. Monitor your Plan of Study. Once the OGSPS has approved your plan of study, you should check it every semester to monitor your academic degree progress. 

Graduate School Policy and Procedures Manual (refer to section VII)

Submitting a Change Plan of Study 

  • Change to Plan of Study Instructions. To make changes to the Plan of Study, follow the instructions in the Plan of Study Generator (POSG). Change to the Plan of Study can be filed as many as times as necessary to update the information such as courses. Even if you have an approved plan of study, you can make changes. There is no late fee associated with a making plan of study change. 
  • Final Plan of Study Review. Review your plan early in your final semester to reconcile courses taken versus courses not taken and submit a change to update any inaccurate information. This process can take up to two weeks before you receive confirmation of approval. 

 

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Registration 

Pre-Registration Steps 

Time Periods for Adding/Dropping a Course* For a typical 16 Weeks/ Full Term in Fall & Spring, See Registration Calendars. 

  • Students may add courses via the Scheduling Assistant (Week 1) 
  • Add with and Instructor Approval by submitting a request in the Scheduling Assistant. (Weeks 2-9) 
  • Students may drop courses via the Scheduling Assistant, Course not recorded. (Week 1 & 2) 
  • Drop with advisor approval via the Scheduling Assistant, Course recorded with a grade of "W" (Weeks 3 - 13) 

How to Register 

  • Log into myPurdue and click on the Registration tab. 
  • Under Register for Classes, click on the Scheduling Assistant. A new window will open. 
  • Enter Registration PIN 999999 
  • Enter the courses in which you wish to register. All of your planned classes will appear in your Course Requests list of the Scheduling Assistant. 
  • Register in IE Seminar Course, IE69000 - Graduate Professional Development
    • For MSIE Non-Thesis Students Only (including PMP). 
    • Graduate Co-Ops, Interns, Research In-Absentia, online students and students in their final semester do not register.  
  • Request enrollment through scheduling assistant.  
  • Click on Build Schedule. 
  • To look up another class, go back to the Course Requests grid by clicking Add/Drop Courses. 
  • Click Submit Schedule. The schedule is validated through myPurdue. 
  • If a Registration Error box pops up, click Request Approvals, Enter Request Note, check Disclaimer box, click Request Approvals. 
  • Once the student has requested an approval, the student can see the status of the Approval Request within the Scheduling Assistant. 
  • Please allow a minimum of 24-48 hours for registration requests to be reviewed by the graduate office. 
  • Once the final approval is granted the system the student will receive a notification email from the Office of the Registrar. 

How to Register (video) 
Scheduling Assistant Registration FAQs

Registration Tips 

  • Student Responsibility. At the graduate level, it is the student’s responsibility to ensure they are properly prepared to be successful for a course. To do this, we recommend the following: 
  • Course Preparedness. If you are uncertain about your preparedness for a course, we recommend reaching out to the instructor. 
  • Lookup Classes. Use Lookup Classes in myPurdue when deciding what courses you will take to fulfill your degree requirements and completing your plan of study. 
  • Course Delivery. Some courses are offered in multiple modalities, please ensure you have the correct CRN for your program type (e.g. online vs in person). 
  • Detailed Course Info. Click on the course name for detailed course information such as registration availability, restrictions, and recommended prerequisite courses (please note, if you have taken a similar course to the prerequisite at another institution, this should suffice). 
  • Textbooks. Textbook information is listed in the Schedule of Classes. Textbook information is subject to be changed at any time at the discretion of the faculty member. If you have questions or concerns, please contact the academic department.

Audited Courses 

  • What is an audit course? Audited courses are non-credit bearing and are listed as AU on the transcript grade column. An auditor is an observer in a course and is entitled to hear lectures, recitations, and oral quizzes. An auditor shall not participate in classroom exercises nor shall they submit papers, write tests or examinations when given nor take part in laboratory work.  
  • Audit Mode Deadline. The last day to change from grade mode to audit mode is approximately the second week of classes (see the Registrar’s add/drop calendar for actual dates). 
  • A course may not be audited and then later taken for a grade.  
  • Audited courses will not meet degree requirements nor satisfy any pre-requisites.  
  • Audited courses do not count towards the full-time credit hours requirement for international students.  

Course Restrictions 

  • Department-based Restrictions. The offering department may impose restrictions on certain courses, and while IE may approve them in principle, it does not have the authority to override another department's final decision regarding registration in those courses. Restrictions are listed in the Schedule of Classes. No exceptions. 
  • Most online courses offered by IE are limited to graduate co-op students and interns only. Display the notes when registering. No exceptions.  Occasionally, IE provides unrestricted online courses that are available to all on-campus students. If there is no note, you may register.  
  • Course at Capacity. If a course is full and you cannot add it to the waitlist in the Scheduling Assistant, you may want to check back frequently for any available seats. Students usually finalize their course schedules just before the term begins, but there is no guarantee that a seat will become available. You may consider taking the course in a future term. No exceptions.  
  • Waitlisting a Course. The Scheduling Assistant’s waitlist feature opens at a later time during registration; check the registration calendars for the actual date. There is no external waitlist process. No exceptions.   

 

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Graduation: Candidacy 

Graduation involves two stages across two terms: first, registering for candidacy, and second, registering for commencement.

Candidacy registration is mandatory to confer your degree and is required to participate in the commencement ceremony. These registrations are not actual courses but serve as placeholders for university offices to prepare for commencement and degree conferral processes.  

Candidacy Deadline  

Timely registration for candidacy is essential; otherwise, a late fee will be imposed, along with a memo from your graduate advisor explaining the reason for missing the deadline and acknowledging the associated fee.

It is recommended to register for candidacy as soon as registration opens for your final semester, ideally at the same time you register for courses, or at the latest, by the first week of your last semester. See the Calendar of Events, Dates, and Deadlines for actual dates.  

Register for Candidacy 

  1. Plan of Study. Before registering for candidacy, an approved plan of study is required. The final deadline to submit the plan of study without incurring a fee is one day before your final semester.  
  1. Register for Candidacy. Graduation candidates will register for CAND99100 in the Scheduling Assistant along with their remaining classes, if they haven’t done so, as soon as registration opens, or early in their final term. CAND 99100 details: 
  1. Assistantship? Students with an assistantship must enroll in a minimum number of credit hours. 
  1. No Assistantship? Students without an assistantship must register for at least one credit hour. (International students may need to initiate a Reduced Course Load (RCL) through ISS if registering for fewer than full-time hours in their final term.) 
  1. Final Approval. The Office of Graduate Students and Postdoctoral Students (OGSPS) grant final approval. 
  1. Not Meeting Degree Requirements. If candidates do not meet their degree requirements, they may need to register for a subsequent semester to complete them. Please contact the IE Graduate Office for more information. 
  1. Communications. Candidates should expect to receive various communications from the Commencement team in the Office of the Registrar. 

 

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Graduation: Commencement  

The Office of the Registrar manages the commencement process. For questions, contact Commencement by calling 765-496-GRAD (496-4723), emailing with your PUID to commencement@purdue.edu, or please submit the contact form. 

Commencement Deadlines 

Visit the Commencement  page during your final graduation term for important Key Dates, the Commencement Schedule, and information can be found on the Commencement website. 

Commencement Process 

  1. Candidacy. After registering for candidacy, a student will receive notice from the registrar when the Commencement tab opens in their final term. 
  1. Degree Eligibility. To be eligible to receive a degree at the end of the current academic session, students should be enrolled in a candidate course (CAND). 
  1. If you are not registered in a CAND course for the semester you plan to graduate, consult your Graduate Advisor.  
  1. Communications. Candidates for degree should expect to receive the following communications from the Commencement team. 
  1. Complete Commencement Task List. Once the Commencement tab is available in myPurdue during your final term, complete the Commencement Task List. Students cannot complete this step before the Commencement tab opens in myPurdue. -  

Further required of candidates include: 

  • CCO Survey. Completing Purdue's Center for Career Opportunities survey or contacting CCO at askcco@purdue.edu or in Young 132. 
  • Applied to All Programs. Ensuring they have applied to graduate with any necessary certificates or dual degree programs. 
  • Change of Intentions. If the intention to graduate changes for any reason, students must inform both the IE Graduate Office and commencement@purdue.edu. 
  • Clear Holds. Clearing any holds that may prevent the application for graduation. 
  • Exit Survey. Completing the graduate school exit survey in the candidate's Plan of Study portal during the semester they intend to graduate. 
  • Did Not Meet Degree Requirements. If candidates do not fulfill their degree requirements, they may need to register for a subsequent semester to complete them. Students may register for candidacy for up to three consecutive semesters before incurring a late fee. 

 

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