Industrial Engineering Bachelor of Science Degree

Industrial engineering is an exciting and dynamic field that blends engineering principles with innovative problem-solving skills to improve systems and processes in a variety of industries. This field focuses on streamlining complex systems and ensuring that they work smoothly and cost-effectively, whether they are designed for manufacturing, healthcare, logistics, or service industries. As an industrial engineer, you'll address real-world challenges, and leverage data-driven insights to make impactful decisions that drive progress and efficiency. Industrial engineering is ideal for those who enjoy mathematics, science and working with people.

Industrial Engineering Curriculum

Because of the flexible nature of RIT’s industrial engineering degree, you will gain a breadth of knowledge in many different areas of industrial engineering, including advanced manufacturing, distribution/logistics, ergonomics/human factors, modeling/simulation, and sustainable design and development. Professional electives allow students to dive deeper into specific areas of interest.

The curriculum for RIT’s BS in industrial engineering covers the principal concepts of engineering economics and project management, facilities planning, human performance, mathematical and simulation modeling, production control, applied statistics and quality, data analytics and predictive modeling, and contemporary manufacturing production processes. Courses in industrial engineering focus on the application of contemporary tools and techniques in solving engineering problems.

Learn more about Student Learning Outcomes and Program Educational Objectives for the bachelors in industrial engineering.

Industrial Engineering Careers

In order to use their skills in optimizing processes and systems, industrial engineers often pursue careers in industrial engineering across manufacturing, healthcare and service industries.  Upon graduation, our students have landed industrial engineering jobs at a wide array of companies including Boeing, IBM, Toyota, Xerox, Intel, General Electric, Hershey, Walt Disney World, Tesla, Ortho-McNeil Pharmaceutical, Lockheed Martin, and Wegmans.

In the manufacturing industry, industrial engineers are vital to keeping products affordable, environmentally friendly, and safe for consumers. Imagine tackling the following projects for a manufacturer of your favorite product:

• Play the role of detective to investigate sources of defects. Once the issue is discovered, you’ll error-proof the process to improve quality.
• Improve the health, safety, and morale of employees by designing and redesigning work and workstations to improve safety.   
• Solve problems before they start by working with design engineers to ensure products are made efficiently with manufacturing, maintenance and recycling in mind.
• Reduce customer wait times by developing efficient supply chains. You’ll make sure the right part is available in the right location at the right time so companies can respond to customer demands quickly.

In healthcare, industrial engineers play a supporting role in ensuring healthcare is delivered more effectively and safely.  As an industrial engineer, you will support medical practitioners so they can focus on providing quality healthcare. Imagine yourself in a healthcare-focused career where you might:

• Save lives by making emergency departments run more efficiently.
• Ensure critical supplies are properly stocked while balancing the need to keep inventory low.
• Help improve the morale of physicians, nurses, and residents by creating work schedules that provide adequate coverage and adequate rest.
• Improve the quality of patient care by using data to predict potential complications, allowing medical staff to provide extra care that could prevent adverse health outcomes.
• Simulate the effects of organ donation policies and suggest changes to ensure equitable access to life-saving transplants while limiting wasted organs.

Industrial engineers are champions of providing excellent customer service by working behind the scenes in industries from airlines to logistics companies to theme parks. Imagine yourself as an industrial engineer in a service industry where you might:

• Keep airline flights on time by creating and monitoring aircraft maintenance schedules.
• Maintain high levels of customer service at amusement parks by using data analytics to predict wait times at popular rides. Using your wait time predictions, determine optimal staffing and ride vehicle levels to prevent excessive waiting for guests.
• Create greener power systems by accurately forecasting energy demand so that utility companies can more efficiently operate their fleet of power plants.
• Create systems to optimally distribute donated food to a network of food pantries.
• Optimize bus routes in order to transport children to school with less emissions.

Engineering vs. Engineering Technology

Two dynamic areas of study, both with outstanding outcomes rates. Which do you choose?

What’s the difference between engineering and engineering technology? It’s a question we’re asked all the time. While there are subtle differences in the course work between the two, choosing a major in engineering vs. engineering technology is more about identifying what you like to do and how you like to do it.

Furthering Your Education in Industrial Engineering

Combined Accelerated Bachelor’s/Master’s Degrees

Today’s careers require advanced degrees grounded in real-world experience. RIT’s Combined Accelerated Bachelor’s/Master’s Degrees enable you to earn both a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in as little as five years of study, all while gaining the valuable hands-on experience that comes from co-ops, internships, research, study abroad, and more.

• Industrial Engineering BS/Engineering Management MS: In the combined accelerated dual degree pathway, you'll earn your BS in industrial engineering and youe master's in engineering management. You'll develop the skills to design and oversee the operational and manufacturing processes needed to efficiently and effectively produce and deliver goods and services. You'll also blend engineering problem-solving skills with business acumen to successfully manage and coordinate the implementation of intricate engineering and technology projects.
• Industrial Engineering BS/Industrial and Systems Engineering MS: In the combined accelerated dual degree pathway, you'll earn your BS in industrial engineering and your MS in industrial and systems engineering. You'll acquire the skills to optimize, design, manage, and innovate the operational, manufacturing, and decision-making processes necessary to produce and distribute goods and services effectively and efficiently. You'll also gain a comprehensive understanding of modern solutions to challenges in services, manufacturing, product development, and systems design. The course work places a strong emphasis on data-driven decision-making solutions, combining engineering, business insights, mathematics, data analytics, and systems perspective to design solutions for complex problems.
• Industrial Engineering BS/Science, Technology, and Public Policy MS: The dual degree pathway in industrial engineering BS/science, technology and public policy MS allows you to build a foundation in industrial engineering and develop expertise in policy analysis and management. Its cross-disciplinary approach fosters collaborative problem solving, critical and analytical thinking, and communication, equipping you to drive progress in policy areas such as technology and infrastructural, workplace safety and fair labor practices, supply chain and trade regulations, environmental sustainability, health care, and more.
• Industrial Engineering BS/Sustainable Systems MS: By pursuing the combined accelerated dual degree pathway, where you will earn a BS in industrial engineering and an MS sustainable systems, you will continue to study the big picture, exploring the environmental, political, social, technological, and business considerations that will help you understand and solve complex sustainability issues. Adding the MS degree to your studies will prepare you for advanced investigation of sustainability and related fields, and improve your employment prospects.
• +1 MBA: Students who enroll in a qualifying undergraduate degree have the opportunity to add an MBA to their bachelor’s degree after their first year of study, depending on their program. Learn how the +1 MBA can accelerate your learning and position you for success.