Master of Science in Information Technology (STEM)

at Kaplan Group - Arizona State University - Polytechnic Campus USA

The MS program in human systems engineering in the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering provides students with a deep understanding of the science of human performance and experience.

Students learn to use methods and tools that enable them to apply this understanding, to design and problem solve in a wide variety of domains such as product usability, learning design, sports performance, cyber security, human-robot teaming and workplace and patient safety.

A broad range of professions need experts in human factors to work on problems that involve an understanding of human performance. Students gain real-world experience by tackling projects that examine cutting-edge issues such as cell phones as a source of driver distraction, detection of improvised explosive devices, process optimization in health care and even control of unmanned vehicles.

Interest areas include user experience, aviation human factors, cognitive performance, consumer psychology, transportation human factors, patient safety, effective teamwork, human-robot teaming, health psychology, learning optimization, social cognition, threat detection and sports psychology.

Students learn to integrate and apply STEM-supported skills that are increasingly in demand in the 21st century.

Students of the BS program in applied quantitative science acquire six habits of mind, a mental practice that becomes increasingly automatic with progress through the curriculum and after, extending into career development. Graduates are able to:

• Apply and project quantitative reasoning to unfamiliar contexts
• Communicate well within and without the expert domain
• Critically and adaptably think about complex problems
• Effectively search through and evaluate information
• Experiment creatively and in an informed manner in search of new insights
• Use sophisticated insight involving statistical inference and quantitative reasoning

This program is offered as a stand-alone degree on the Polytechnic campus. Students pursuing degrees on all four metropolitan campuses can add this degree as a concurrent degree.

The MSTech program with a concentration in management of technology is open to individuals with a technical undergraduate degree who wish to develop their leadership and management skills to complement their technical expertise. The curriculum is tailored to the needs of the student, ensuring each student obtains basic leadership and management skills.

The MS program in organizational leadership offers a theoretically and methodologically rigorous approach to studying and creating use-inspired research needed to impact organizational leadership.

Students explore areas such as organizational dynamics, institutional evolution, strategic change, leading diverse teams, collaborative governance, conflict mediation, critical problem-solving and leadership assessment, and they learn advanced methodological and statistical skills.

The program places special emphasis on learning best practices and other applied aspects of leading organizations. Students tailor their degree to their interests through a vast array of leadership elective courses. In consultation with a faculty advisor, students choose from many different elective courses, such as not-for-profit leadership and intercultural leadership.

The MS program in graphic information technology provides students the opportunity to study within the various areas of graphics and cross-media design. Courses offered provide students with a working knowledge of the technology and management required of the diverse graphic industries.

This program prepares students to be industry leaders who develop and manage content through numerous communication and distribution modes. Creative and comfortable with complex digital technology, graduates are innovative problem-solvers prepared for leading roles in the rapidly evolving graphics industry.

In the MS program in engineering, students develop applied analytical expertise across disciplinary boundaries, with direct applications of advanced design principles to system design, management and control.

The student's expertise, developed through the core curriculum, is reinforced with the flexibility of focus area options that include alternative energy, mechanical engineering and manufacturing engineering.

The culminating experience options are also flexible, allowing students to tailor the program to support their unique career goals while also becoming problem-solvers who create and shape the future.

Manufacturing engineering draws upon two distinct bodies of knowledge: manufacturing processes (i.e., how materials are altered in either shape or properties) and the processes of manufacturing (i.e., manufacturing systems and management). This combination of topics is embedded in the MS program in manufacturing engineering, and students can follow their interests by developing deeper expertise in either manufacturing processes or the processes of manufacturing.

The program provides advanced technical content to help students prepare for career transitions and improve company competitiveness. It consists of a core set of courses designed to provide all students with advanced knowledge of manufacturing fundamentals and an introduction to systems engineering. The expertise developed in the core curriculum supports student focus areas building on existing unit faculty strengths, including automation, additive and subtractive manufacturing processes including computer numerical control machining, modeling and simulation, electronics manufacturing and manufacturing management.

Thesis, applied project and portfolio options are offered for the culminating experience.

Counseling and applied psychological science is a specialty in promoting psychological well-being. Counselors and applied psychologists provide the tools and resources necessary for individuals, families and organizations to cope with everyday problems.

The BS program in counseling and applied psychological science provides foundational training in counseling theories, addictions, trauma, lifespan development, group counseling and professional ethics. A unique aspect of the program is its attention to cultural diversity, which focuses on age, gender, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, religion and socioeconomic status.

The ABET-accredited BSE program in engineering prepares graduates to collaborate across disciplines to design and build solutions to real-world problems. In the program, students apply fundamental engineering knowledge and design thinking to real projects every semester.

Students in the mechanical engineering systems concentration of the Bachelor of Science in engineering build a broad engineering foundation to which they add the skills and knowledge necessary to contribute mechanical subject matter expertise in transdisciplinary engineering teams. This expertise includes theory and application of materials, machine design, thermal fluid systems, and energy and power from a systems perspective. The mechanical systems curriculum also provides significant hands-on experience designing and implementing mechanical systems to meet the needs of users.

The MS program in environmental and resource management provides students who have a background in the sciences, engineering, management, natural resources management, environmental health and safety, or other affiliated areas with the regulatory and technical background they need to mitigate the environmental impact of industrial sources of pollution, ensure compliance with environmental regulations, and manage and preserve engineered and natural ecosystems.

The concentration in water management focuses on issues of water quality, supply, treatment, reclamation, conservation and augmentation strategies. This program is applicable especially to people who work in municipal, state, federal and tribal water and environmental agencies; water providers to urban and agricultural users; people who work in manufacturing and mining industries; as well as those interested in sustainable development in this country and around the world.

Graduate courses are available in a traditional face-to-face format as well as web-based, asynchronous distance learning. It is possible to complete the program within two years, including summers. Many students are working professionals and are able to finish the degree while working full time.