I started my journey at USC as a computer science major, but I switched to industrial and systems engineering (ISE) my first semester here, for many reasons!
First off, ISE is like the swiss army knife of engineering. It’s super versatile, which means I can explore a ton of different career paths without being boxed into just one thing (like coding). From optimizing supply chains to improving healthcare systems, the possibilities are endless. This was really appealing to me as a freshman, and I made the decision to switch after talking with many ISE seniors who had nothing but good things to say about majoring in ISE. I asked them about their internship experiences, and they were vast, including work with Porsche manufacturing, SpaceX rockets, Boeing, consulting, and cybersecurity! Many of these internships sounded more appealing to me than CS ones, and as someone who loves exploring different things, it was a perfect match. I loved the idea of options.
In ISE, we dive into a mix of engineering, math, business, and even some economic topics. We learn all about how humans interact with systems, and how to make these systems more efficient and effective. So, although we might be learning how to make a line in an amusement park go faster in class, the concepts we learn can be applied to things like assembly lines in a factory or even an internet network system. There’s an emphasis on data analysis and statistics to make smart and informed decisions. Being an industrial engineer is kind of like being the brain behind the scenes, making sure that everything runs smoothly and fast.
Before coming to USC, I didn’t even know ISE was a thing. But now, I think that’s because there’s not a lot of jobs that are simply labeled as “industrial engineer” – industrial engineers’ job titles look a little more like this: “data scientist”, “operations analyst”, “project manager”, and “quality assurance engineer”. I’ve gotten a chance to explore some of these already! Last summer, I was a quality assurance engineer intern with a Hollywood tech startup, and this upcoming summer, I have an internship as a cybersecurity consultant. I’m so happy to get the chance to try different realms that industrial engineers work in, and I’m confident that majoring in industrial engineering at Viterbi was the right choice for me.
