Envisioning Change and Revitalization for a University Engineering Management Program* TERRY R. COLLINS and ALISHA D. YOUNGBLOOD Department of Industrial Engineering, University of Arkansas, 4207 Bell Engineering Center, Fayetteville, Arkansas 72701, USA. E-Mail: Collins@uark.edu. Currently at Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX 79409. E-mail: terry.collins@coe.ttu.edu The University of Arkansas is restructuring the Master's of Science degree in Engineering Management offered within the Industrial Engineering department. A comparison study and market survey are used to identify critical characteristics of an Engineering Management (EM) program. The comparison study analyzes 17 graduate EM programs from across the United States to discern consistencies in core courses, degree hour requirements, program course content, and availability of degree program to off-campus students. The market study survey is administered to determine the critical mass for an EM program, and recognizes potentially significant sources of student populations based on local, regional and national markets. INTRODUCTION IN TODAY'S engineering education environment there is a substantial need for continued growth, delivery, and promotion of the Engineering Management (EM) program across the country [1]. Regardless of whether the program mission is to reach local, regional, or national audiences, engineering professionals across multiple disci- plines and industries are expressing an increased interest for further education in the area of EM [2]. While most are seeking EM graduate degrees to compliment existing engineering education and experience, some are seeking certification in speci- fic areas of engineering management for pro- fessional developmental hour (PDH) training towards engineering registration renewal. Whether it's PDH training or traditional graduate programs, the EM discipline has the opportunity to meet the changing instructional needs of the engineering professional. The Department of Industrial Engineering (IE) at the University of Arkansas (U-A) realizes the need for change. The IE department is in the process of restructuring an existing Master's of Science in Engineering degree with emphasis in Engineering Management (MSE-EM) to form a new Master's of Science in Engineering Management (EMGT) graduate program. Evaluation is currently under way to integrate the MSE-EM program with the existing Master's of Science in Operations Manage- ment (OMGT) program. The merge of these two programs will form a new EMGT program allowing the delivery to be offered both on campus in the traditional classroom environment and off campus as part of the College of Engineering distance education program. The existing OMGT program is largely an off- campus distance education program primarily meeting the needs of military personnel stationed in areas where graduate education is not available. The OMGT program is open to candidates regard- less of undergraduate major. In contrast, the EMGT degree will be aimed at individuals holding a Bachelor's of Science (BS) degree in any discip- line of engineering or sciences. The EMGT degree will allow engineers and scientists to develop skills in the management discipline, a subject area that usually isn't incorporated into the BS in engineer- ing or science degrees [3±5]. By having the EMGT degree offered in conjunction with the OMGT degree, well-established resources from the OMGT program can be more fully utilized. Many of the courses that exist in the current OMGT program can be included in the EMGT program without the need to convert new courses to multimedia. PREVIOUS RESEARCH The next logical step in the development of the EMGT program would be to review the literature to see if information is available on EM program content and structure. Research literature over the past decade yields limited information on how to identify specific characteristics of an EM program. One recent article provides a detailed study on how * Accepted 5 September 2003. 277 Int. J. Engng Ed. Vol. 20, No. 2, pp. 277±285, 2004 0949-149X/91 $3.00+0.00 Printed in Great Britain. # 2004 TEMPUS Publications.