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What are some good certificates that IE majors should try to get? Any that specifically look good for getting a job in the future? Any that people find unique and exciting? Any that have similar classes to the IE courses that make it easier to get? Any feedback to these questions, or other certificate information would be great to hear.
I think that pursuing a CS certificate is a great pairing with IE, especially if you are interested in OR or data analytics. I think it’s important for everyone going into business or engineering fields to have some knowledge of CS, since so many things are automated and that’s the direction of our future. It also overlaps nicely with the IE curriculum (new and old), since you have to take CS electives anyway, and a few CS courses are cross listed with IE like CS524 (Intro to Linear Programming). Also, a few ECE classes are a part of the certificate and those could be engineering science credits.
The Entrepreneurship certificate has been really easy to add on to the IE degree. AIS 300 and ISYE 313 count toward the certificate. In addition, I have taken ISYE 662 and GEN BUS 311 (both fulfill degree & certificate requirements), and found both of these classes to be interesting. The only class you have to take that doesn’t count toward the IE degree is MHR 322.
I personally found CS 300 to be too difficult, so my plans for pursuing the CS certificate fell through, but that was in my original plans as well.
You might also want to check out this older thread on certificates for more suggestions.
I would have to agree with Kylie’s point that an Entrepreneurship certificate would be an excellent complement to the Industrial Engineering program. Courses including MHR 305 and MHR 434 can definitely help students understand the blend between technology and business. Moreover, several of my Industrial Engineering courses including 315 and 662 counted as Entrepreneurship elective credits which made receiving the certificate timeless. In addition, the University of Wisconsin is introducing a Data Science major and will likely supplement the subject with a certificate program. This is an area I would likely be interested in exploring more and relates quite directly to ISYE 412 as well.
I think there are plenty of great certificate opportunities that pair nicely with the industrial engineering major. The two that I really like are computer science and entrepreneurship, though, because there is a lot of overlap with requirements. For example, the CS certificate includes classes like ISyE 425, 524, & 525, which overlap with IE. Also, the engineering school requires at least 1 CS elective, too, which can be used for the certificate. For entrepreneurship, the overlap that I found was ISyE 313 and Accounting 100/300. I think the additional classes you would have to take in both of these are great classes, too.
The CS or Mathematics certificate pair nicely with IE and are both feasible to do. I know the mathematics requires 2 mathematics courses in addition to the required courses.
I’m currently planning on doing the CS certificate. There’s overlap between the current curriculum (ISYE 425, 524, and 525 can all count towards the certificate) and one CS elective is required anyway. There’s also a handful of CS courses that can satisfy the requirements for the certificate while also meeting IE graduation requirements. I think having the certificate definitely shows a technical skillset as well.
I am working on a Certificate in Business. It is six classes, four introduction classes for accounting, finance, management/hr, and marketing and two elective classes in any of these subjects. Accounting 300 is required for ISYE anyways and some of the others could be applied to other elective credits. Personally, I am just interested in these subjects and think it is a good way to diversify yourself in a wide range of topics.
I decided to pair my IE degree with Certificates in Business, Entrepreneurship, and Technical Communication. With the old curriculum (I’m not sure with new changes), I only had to take a handful of extra courses to get all three and I feel like I am getting a well-rounded academic background. The Business and Entrepreneurship certificates overlap with each other and the (old) IE required courses a lot. I added the TC certificate recently, because I only had to take a 1-credit EPD class to get the official certificate.
I am currently not pursuing a certificate. However, I am interested in business and I have noticed that a lot of the IE curriculum intertwines with some business certificates. I would probably recommend a certificate in finance.
If you are looking for something that is a little less strenuous the university offers a Six Sigma green belt certification. If you layout your schedule correctly you can complete the certification under an IE degree without any additional classes. I don’t know if it is necessarily considered a certificate but it is something that helps build your resume nonetheless.
I am currently a junior in the ISYE program and am on track to getting my six sigma green belt certification. I am unsure if the university is still offering the option to get this certification as an undergrad. I think this certification will be something great to have on my resume. However, I am really enjoying the classes that are ‘required’ to get it.
The manufacturing certificate can be completed with only a few additional course from the standard ISYE class lineup.
I think the Certificate in Manufacturing Engineering is a great route (if you’re looking into the manufacturing field of course). It doesn’t add any extra time to the curriculum, and honestly the classes that they expect you to take are so helpful. But you should note that you need to have a green pass and CNC upgrade as well, but don’t let that steer you away from it. I struggled a lot with getting my green pass (took me 3 tries lol) and almost cried but the people in TEAMLab are super sweet, nice and always helpful. 🙂
There are plenty of certificates that will be relatively easy to get while still graduating in four years – My only advice (as a senior in ISYE) is that you shouldn’t get a certificate because it “looks good” to employers…get one because it’s something you’re interested in! It turned out that I didn’t have space in my schedule to get a certificate but that didn’t stop me from taking classes like Environmental Economics (343) that I would’ve taken if I pursued a Sustainability Certificate. Employers really don’t care about your certificates. Do it for yourself, not them.
