M.Eng. Project

A student crouches on a model of a town in a lab setup that is studying self-driving cars.

Information About How To Set Up Your Project

Key to the success of developing systems engineers who are well prepared to make a significant difference in the world is the M.Eng. project experience. These two-semester projects go beyond our diverse coursework and provide a more in-depth, hands on, and real-world opportunity to gain valuable experience in the application of systems engineering. The M.Eng. program requires an engineering project of 6-9 credits completed over two semesters. With the guidance of a faculty advisor, students will work with a team to solve a real-world problem. The projects vary considerably in structure, length and topic. Students will have an opportunity to select from an array of cutting edge project topics including both existing projects that are continuations year after year or from the list of new projects created every year.

We encourage you to look at some of our on-going projects listed in the M.Eng. Project Portal. You may also want to view our faculty websites to learn more about some of their latest research project

 

  • How do I find a project?

    For on-campus students, a list of all currently advertised M.Eng. projects can be found at the M.Eng. project portal.

    You can search the project list by projects looking for “Systems Engineers” or project topics that are of most interest to you and/or your career goals.

    You can also sometimes find projects that are listed on faculty websites. If there is a faculty member whose work inspires you, please email them to inquire about project opportunities, and include your resume.

  • How do I select a project? Do I apply for one?

    On-campus and distance-learning students must complete a project as part of their M.Eng. degree. You will not be assigned a project, instead you must apply to be part of one. The application process for a project is usually included in the project’s advertisement, such as in the M.Eng. project portal’s project description or the project’s website. If you are still uncertain on how to apply, you can contact a faculty member for the project directly.

    Some common ways to apply to project are to

    • Send a cover letter and resume to the project’s advisor
    • Complete a written application form
    • Attend an information session and signing up for an interview
    • Any combination of the above.

    For distance-learning students, a description of all projects that will work well for distance-learning students are sent out to students prior to the start of the semester via an email from the graduate field advisor. That email also contains a project interest form and the time, date, and Zoom link for a special distance-learning M.Eng. project info session which all distance-learning students starting their M.Eng. project in the coming semester must attend or view the recording afterwards.

    After reading the descriptions and seeing the distance-learning M.Eng. info session, distance-learning students should complete the M.Eng. project form for their top three choices and include an updated copy of resume. Distance-learning students may also use the M.Eng. project form to propose a project related to work at their company. For more on this, please see, “How do I propose a project related to work at my company?” below.

    These documents will then be sent to the graduate field advisor for the project faculty advisors to review. Students may occasionally be contacted by the faculty advisors of the projects they applied to via the M.Eng. project form.

  • How do I propose a project related to work at my company? (Distance-learning only)

    As part of the M.Eng. project proposal form, distance-learning students may propose a project based upon the work done at their company. Note that legal restrictions require M.Eng. project work to be outside of the student’s normal job responsibilities.

    These proposals must also include and/or meet the following requirements:

    • A note of approval from the student’s employer
    • A clear description of the Systems Engineering aspects and educational value of the project
    • A detailed timeline identifying the major deliverables for the project
    • A list of the resources needed to complete the project
    • A note from the student’s employer stating a guarantee of the resources needed to complete the project, which can include but not be limited to:
      • Any needed materials, or funding for needed materials
      • Equipment usage
      • Data and other needed documents
      • Subject matter experts’ time
      • Other employees’ time
    • Request to the Systems Engineering faculty who the student believes would be well suited to help advice this project.

    The guarantee of resources is particularly important as otherwise a student may find the “promised” resources needed to complete the project are no longer available, making it very difficult, if not impossible, for the student to complete their project.

    Students considering proposing an M.Eng. project of this type should contact the Systems Engineering faculty they would like to work with as soon as possible as it may take several discussions and iterations on the proposal before it may be accepted.