Master of Science in Operations Research
Department:
Industrial Engineering and Operations Research
Transcript Designation:
Master of Science in Operations Research
Program Advisor:
Academic Questions: e-mail advisor@cvn.columbia.edu
Administrative Questions: e-mail cvn@cvn.columbia.edu
Program Description:
Operations Research is an applied science and is concerned with quantitative decision problems, generally
involving the allocation and control of limited resources. Such problems arise, for example, in the
operations of industrial firms, financial institutions, health care organizations, transportation
systems, energy and resources, and government. The operations research analyst develops and uses
mathematical and statistical models to help solve these decision problems. Like engineers, they are
problem formulators and solvers. Their work requires the formation of a mathematical model of a
system and the analysis and prediction of the consequences of alternate modes of operating the system.
The analysis may involve mathematical optimization techniques, probabilistic and statistical methods,
experiments, and computer simulations. Operations Research courses have been offered at Columbia
University since 1952.
Admission Requirements:
Degree required for admission: Students admitted to the program must possess a bachelor's degree
in engineering, science, mathematics, computer science, economics, statistics, or other related field
from an accredited academic institution. Students should posess a strong mathematics background
(three terms calculus, one term ordinary differential equations required; one
term linear algebra recommended). Applicants should have a
strong undergraduate record to be competitive for admission.
GPA required: Minimum of 3.0
GRE requirements: General test required
Other application requirements: Two recommendation letters, transcripts, resume, and a personal-professional
statement are required. TOEFL test scores are required of all students who received their bachelor's degree
in a country where English is not the official and spoken language. All application requirements in the Graduate
Application must be completed as specified in the application.
Breadth requirement: Any high-level programming course (such as Fortran, Pascal, or C, the latter of which is
highly recommended)
Degree Requirements:
Students must complete all required courses for a total of
30 graduate points of academic work with an academic average of 2.5 or better. At least 18 of these credits
must be Industrial Engineering and Operations Research courses.
All degree requirements must be
completed within 5 years of the beginning of the first course credited toward the degree. This includes courses
taken in the non-degree program.
Note that not all 4000 level courses are acceptable for graduate credit toward this degree.
Each student must file an advisor-approved study program before completing 15 points of credit. Changes may be
made at any time with the CVN program advisor's approval.
Required Courses:
The following core courses must be included unless they or their equivalents have been completed prior
to admission to the program:
SIEO W4150 Introduction to Probability and Statistics
IEOR E4004 Introduction to Operations Research: Deterministic Models
IEOR E4106 Introduction to Operations Research: Stochastic Models
IEOR E4404 Simulation
And six elective courses chosen in consultation with the IEOR Faculty advisor.
Transfer of credit:
Up to 6 credit hours (points) of acceptable graduate-level academic work from an accredited academic institution
earned prior to enrolling at Columbia may be transferred to Columbia, subject to departmental approval. Students
must request the transfer of credit while applying to the MS program. Credit will only be
considered for transfer if the grades earned were at least 3.0 on the 4.0 scale. An official college transcript
and copy of the class syllabus and/or course description from the school's bulletin must accompany the "Transfer
of Credit Request" form. Please note that courses already used towards completion of another degree program can
not be re-used for transfer credit.