Many of the challenges facing modern society require not only new technological solutions, but also efficient, effective, and equitable implementations of these technologies to ensure the betterment of society. Venturing beyond the confines of traditional engineering coursework, the Bachelor of Science degree in Systems Engineering is trans-disciplinary and collaborative, connecting mathematics, engineering, social and physical sciences, and medicine.
The program provides students with knowledge of theory, computational methods, and research in the fundamental frameworks of optimization, network theory and uncertainty quantification, providing the tools required to envision solutions to big-picture problems in a range of applications. Examples include monitoring and modeling the COVID-19 outbreak, optimizing hospital resource allocation, optimizing equitable access to food, and designing infrastructure, energy systems, and smart cities that are interconnected, resilient to hazards, and cybersecure.
Students will gain significant experience in collaborative problem solving that will serve them well in a broad range of careers, including those related to future energy infrastructure, smart cities, decision-making in healthcare, data mining and decision making, and cybersecurity of infrastructure.
Financial Aid
Student Financial Support will help to navigate the financial aid application process and explore the resources available to help your family pay for college now and throughout your time here. In addition, some undergraduate students are employed by departmental faculty to provide assistance on research projects.
Departmental Honors
The Whiting School of Engineering and the Department of Civil Engineering recognize students with exemplary academic records. For graduating students, these awards include General Honors and Departmental Honors:
- General Honors are awarded to students with a cumulative GPA of 3.5 or higher.
- Departmental Honors are awarded to students with a 3.75 GPA or higher in their major-specific courses.
Combined Bachelor’s/Master’s Programs
The Department of Civil and Systems Engineering offers two options for earning a combined bachelor’s/master’s degree.
One option combines a B.S. in Systems Engineering with a Master of Science in Engineering (M.S.E.) in Civil or Systems Engineering*. For students who are admitted to this program, the two degrees typically require five years total to complete. Students who enroll in the combined Bachelor’s/Master’s program or pursue a master’s degree after having earned a the B.S. in Civil Engineering at Hopkins may double-count one advanced course (400-level or higher) towards both the bachelor’s and master’s degrees with the permission of the master’s faculty advisor. More detail on double-counting courses can be found here.
The other option combines a B.S. in Systems Engineering with a Master of Science in Engineering Management (M.S.E.M.). Students are required to submit a formal application through the M.S.E.M. Program.
Students enrolled in either the B.S./M.S.E. or B.S./M.S.E.M program are awarded a Dean's Master's Fellowship, covering half their tuition, after they have completed eight semesters of undergraduate study. More information about these programs can be found at http://engineering.jhu.edu/academics/combined-bachelors-masters/.
**Effective Spring 2024, due to accreditation compliance requirements, the residential MSE (Master of Science in Engineering) in Systems Engineering has been renamed as Master of Science (MS) in Systems Engineering. Please visit Systems Engineering for additional information.
Requirements
The B.S. degree in Systems Engineering requires 127 credits in Mathematics, Basic Sciences, Humanities, Social Sciences, and Engineering courses.
Code | Title | Credits |
---|---|---|
BASIC SCIENCES | ||
AS.171.101 | General Physics: Physical Science Major I | 4 |
or AS.171.107 | General Physics for Physical Sciences Majors (AL) | |
AS.173.111 | General Physics Laboratory I 1 | 1 |
EN.560.112 | Electromagnetism & Sensors Lab | 1 |
AS.030.101 | Introductory Chemistry I | 3 |
AS.030.105 | Introductory Chemistry Laboratory I | 1 |
AS.270.103 | Introduction to Global Environmental Change | 3 |
MATHEMATICS | ||
AS.110.108 | Calculus I (Physical Sciences & Engineering) | 4 |
AS.110.109 | Calculus II (For Physical Sciences and Engineering) | 4 |
AS.110.202 | Calculus III | 4 |
EN.553.291 | Linear Algebra and Differential Equations | 4 |
HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES 2 | ||
Select 15 credits of H or S electives | 15 | |
SYSTEMS ENGINEERING FUNDAMENTALS | ||
EN.500.113 | Gateway Computing: Python | 3 |
EN.500.132 | Bootcamp: Java (or other advanced programming course) | 1 |
EN.560.100 | Civilization Engineered | 3 |
EN.560.201 | Statics & Mechanics of Materials | 3 |
EN.560.211 | Statics and Mechanics of Materials Laboratory | 1 |
EN.560.240 | Uncertainty, Reliability and Decision-making | 3 |
EN.560.250 | Intro to Mathematical Decision Making | 3 |
EN.560.255 | Dynamical Systems | 3 |
EN.560.458 | Natural Disaster Risk Modeling | 3 |
Systems Engineering Elective (e.g. Thermodynamics or Circuits or Fluid Mechanics or Control Theory) | 3 | |
ANALYTICS AND OPTIMIZATION ELECTIVES | ||
Analytics Elective 1 (e.g. Data Structures) | 3 | |
Analytics Elective 2 (e.g. Machine Learning) | 3 | |
Optimization Elective 1 (e.g. Intro to Optimization I) | 3 | |
Optimization Elective 2 (e.g. Intro to Network Modeling) | 3 | |
Analytics or Optimization Elective 3 | 3 | |
CaSE EXPERIENCES | ||
EN.560.191 | CaSE Collaborative | 0.5 |
EN.560.192 | CaSE Design | 0.5 |
EN.560.291 | CaSE Coding | 0.5 |
EN.560.292 | CaSE Research | 0.5 |
EN.560.391 | CaSE Careers I | 0.5 |
EN.560.392 | CaSE Careers II | 0.5 |
CaSE PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE | ||
EN.560.401 | Design Theory and Practice | 3 |
EN.560.402 | Integrated Design Project | 3 |
EN.660.463 | Engineering Management & Leadership | 3 |
EN.661.110 | Professional Writing and Communication | 3 |
CaSE TECHNICAL ELECTIVES | ||
Technical electives are designed to provide students with opportunities to explore systems engineering in greater depth. To that end, these courses must have E distribution and be at or above the 300-level. 300-level courses with N or Q distribution may be allowed with the faculty advisor's permission. | 9 | |
FREE ELECTIVES | ||
Select 18 credits of free electives | 18 | |
Total Credits | 127 |
- 1
If a student earns AP credit for Physics I, they MUST still take either General Physics Lab I (173.111) or another 1 credit N laboratory course.
- 2
This Whiting School requirement recognizes that human-centered engineering design relies not only on strong technical skills, but on an understanding of the humanities and social sciences as well. Any five 3-credit H or S elective courses may be used to fulfill this requirement. See the Distribution tab in the Requirements for a Bachelor's Degree section for two exceptions to the rule that each H/S distribution course is at least 3 credits. (Note that because Professional Writing & Communication has an S distribution credit, only 15 credits are required here, as opposed to the reported 18 required by the Whiting School).
Additional Notes:
- No required courses may be taken as Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory (S/U)
- A maximum of 3 credits from the Humanities and Social Science (H/S) requirements may be taken S/U
- Technical electives may be taken S/U only with the approval of the advisor.
- No more than two grades of D in the required engineering and technical electives may be counted
Sample Program
Please visit Civil and Systems Engineering website - https://engineering.jhu.edu/case/
First Year | |||
---|---|---|---|
Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
AS.030.101 | 3 | AS.171.101 | 4 |
AS.030.105 | 1 | AS.173.111 | 1 |
AS.110.108 | 4 | AS.110.109 | 4 |
EN.560.100 | 3 | EN.500.113 | 3 |
EN.560.191 | 0.5 | EN.560.112 | 1 |
Free Elective | 3 | EN.560.192 | 0.5 |
Optional HEART course or First Year Seminar | 0-3 | EN.661.110 | 3 |
14.5-17.5 | 16.5 | ||
Second Year | |||
Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
EN.553.291 | 4 | EN.500.132 (or other advanced programming course) | 1 |
EN.560.201 | 3 | EN.560.250 | 3 |
EN.560.211 | 1 | EN.560.255 | 3 |
EN.560.240 | 3 | EN.560.292 | 0.5 |
EN.560.291 | 0.5 | Systems Engineering Elective (e.g. Thermodynamics, Circuits, Fluid Mechanics, or Control Thry) | 3 |
H/S Elective | 3 | H/S Elective | 3 |
Free Elective | 3 | Free Elective | 3 |
17.5 | 16.5 | ||
Third Year | |||
Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
AS.110.202 | 4 | EN.560.392 | 0.5 |
AS.270.103 | 3 | Analytics or Optimization Elective | 3 |
EN.560.391 | 0.5 | Analytics or Optimization Elective | 3 |
Analytics or Optimization Elective | 3 | CaSE Technical Elective | 3 |
H/S Elective | 3 | H/S Elective | 3 |
Free Elective | 3 | Free Elective | 3 |
16.5 | 15.5 | ||
Fourth Year | |||
Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
EN.560.401 | 3 | EN.560.402 | 3 |
EN.660.463 | 3 | EN.560.458 | 3 |
CaSE Technical Elective | 3 | CaSE Technical Elective | 3 |
Analytics or Optimization Elective | 3 | Free Elective | 3 |
Analytics or Optimization Elective | 3 | Free Elective | 3 |
15 | 15 | ||
Total Credits 127-130 |