The ISEEM Department offers programs leading to a Ph.D. in Industrial Engineering with specializations in engineering management, industrial engineering, or systems engineering.

Students pursuing the Ph.D. in Industrial Engineering must complete 48 semester hours of approved graduate coursework beyond the bachelor’s degree. Within those 48 credit hours, a maximum of 6 credit hours of master’s thesis work may be included. The student should also submit a program of study to their supervisory committee for review and approval.

The Ph.D. program also has a preliminary examination requirement; students must take the preliminary exam within the first academic year or prior to completing 12 hours of graduate work beyond the Master's degree, whichever comes first. Students must pass all sections to pass the exam; a total of two attempts is allowed.

After completing their coursework, students must complete a comprehensive exam that contains both written and oral portions, or, at the option of the student’s supervisory committee, is based on writing a journal article.

After passing the comprehensive exam, students must prepare a dissertation proposal to satisfy the qualifying examination requirement. Upon completion of the qualifying examination, students have five years to complete and defend a research dissertation, which is then approved by their supervisory committee, the College Dean, and the Graduate Dean.