THE DANIEL J. EPSTEIN DEPARTMENT OF INDUSTRIAL & SYSTEMS ENGINEERING
Industrial & Systems Engineering
Learn more about the classes you will take in your degree program
Check out the research our faculty and students are doing on and off campus
Hear how you can apply your degree in industry through internships, co-ops, and more
Find out what our current students are up to in clubs and student organizations
Industrial & Systems Engineering (ISE)
Industrial and systems engineers work to improve processes, systems, and organizations. An industrial and systems engineering education provides the skills and foundations to design, analyze, and optimize complex systems. They are productivity catalysts, managing the combination of physical, capital, and human resources needed to produce and deliver valuable goods and services.
Industrial and systems engineers are consummate economic competitors who focus on developing and controlling manufacturing, production, inventory, distribution, service, and management information systems to ensure their companies’ success in the global marketplace. On the job, these engineering professionals optimize the use of scarce resources by integrating people and technology to maximize productivity, minimize cost, improve processes, and maintain high standards of quality.
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Entrepreneurship Podcast Playlist
Check out all of our podcast episodes related to Entrepreneurship. Whether it’s the members of LavaLab discussing product design and development in their incubator or Code the Change talking using tech for social impact, this playlist was made for you.
Viterbi Voices: The Podcast is your chance to hear stories about research, classes, student life, and more directly from our faculty, students, and other members of our engineering community. Click the link below to see the rest of our episodes!
Curriculum
Industrial & Systems Engineers engineer better businesses. They optimize processes and look into the people side of engineering. Check out the curriculum here:
Industrial & Systems Engineering
USC’s undergraduate ISE curricula prepare students for careers in a wide-range of industries, consulting, or professional engineering practice, and are also an excellent intellectual foundation for advanced degrees in fields as diverse as Engineering, Logistics, Business Administration, Finance, Medicine, Law, or Public Policy.
Course PlanResearch
Industrial and Systems Engineering focuses on creating more efficient processes that will improve overall business and engineering processes. Researchers within the ISE department at USC focus on a variety of different topics. These include: agile, flexible manufacturing and production systems, green logistics and industrial ecology, health systems improvement, human-computer interaction, management of technology, optimization and logistics,
port operations and supply chain management, renewable energy systems, transportation and logistics, collaborative engineering design, rapid prototyping, and automated construction.
We have a balance of programs - theoretical, computational, and experimental – which exemplify the Viterbi School’s approach to intensive and collaborative research.
Recent Projects
Check out some recent developments from our Industrial & Systems Engineering Department.
Faculty
Faculty will be teaching all of your classes and leading research projects as well. Your opportunities to build relationships with your faculty will begin immediately in your first year, both in the classroom and the lab. Check out a few highlighted professors with whom you may work in the future:
Don't stop here.
Learn more about the cool faculty and amazing research being done at the Industrial & Systems Engineering Department at their website:
Careers
Your engineering undergraduate degree will prepare you for many career and academic opportunities. Whether you have always known “what you want to do when you grow up” or are hoping to find out, we are here to help you plan for your future beyond USC. We provide dedicated career services starting in your first year to help you find internships, co-ops, and full-time positions post graduation.
When you graduate with a degree in Industrial & Systems Engineering, here are just a few of the future career paths that might lay before you.
- Implement enterprise resource planning systems
- Consult on business practices
- Design efficient manufacturing and service systems
- Optimize assembly and distribution systems
- Develop ergonomically correct systems and interfaces
- Improve hospital operations and schedules
- Make systems safe by reducing errors and accidents
- Manage business operations
- Develop quality control and assurance systems
Don't take our word for it. Ask some Viterbi alumni:
“I was involved as an officer for the Institute of Industrial and Systems Engineers and other students orgs that gave me valuable experience. I am completing my M.S. in Supply Chain Engineering from Georgia Tech this year.”
Nicholas MunozB.S. Industrial & Systems Engineering '17
“Upon graduation, I was primarily interested in data analysis and architecture. After graduation, I joined BlackRock as an analysis within its Aladdin Client Services. Day-to-day I'm solving critical issues for internal and external clients of our investment platform.”
Elena Yushan LiB.S. Industrial & Systems Engineering '17
“At USC I conducted research in the Interactions Lab where we used robots to assess pre-K students in understanding number concepts. In my 4 years at USC, I was able to get both my Bachelor's AND Master's degrees!”
Alana ArcherB.S. Industrial & Systems Engineering '18; M.S. Engineering Management '18
Student Life
We want students who like to work hard – both in and out of the classroom. Our students know that going to college is more than attending class and completing assignments. College is about making connections and joining a community of dedicated students, faculty, staff, and alumni. Our students want to work and play with people as interesting as they are, and we have a number of ways for you to do the same.
Your life can be designed how you like it. Join a professional organization like IISE. Continue your passion for volunteering with the Society of Women Engineers. Keep making art with Corpus Callosum. On this page, we have a few student organizations we think you might be interested in, but there are so many more you can get involved in!
Imagine yourself on campus.
Learn more about life at USC as an engineering student at Viterbi Voices:
More Engineering Disciplines
You just learned so much about Industrial & Systems Engineering, but that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Beyond this department, Viterbi has ten academic disciplines spread across eight departments to make up more than thirty major combinations. Take some time to explore all of your interests.