BS in Industrial Engineering
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Advising
Frequently Asked Questions
What changes are occurring in the
curriculum in 2008-09?
Who do I see for advising?
Do I need to see a faculty advisor?
Can I ask my faculty advisor about other things, like job searches, career options & graduate
school?
Can I change advisors?
What is Senior Checkout?
Is it important to set / regularly update my expected graduation date in PAWS?
I can't register for a class because of a prerequisite problem.
What is a Degree Audit, and where can I get a copy?
What is the Flowchart, and where can I find
it?
I'm on an older catalog. Do I follow that
catalog's flowchart, or the latest flowchart? Do I need to meet
the latest prerequisites?
Which General Education classes can I take?
What happens to my Gen Ed classes if I change catalogs?
Why would I change my catalog? How do I
change my catalog year?
I'm confused about IE4785 (Independent Study / Special Topics in IE)? What is it used for, and how do I register?
What is a minor? How do I get a minor?
What minors are of interest to IE's? Where do I find information on minor requirements?
Should I do an internship or COOP? How do I get one?
When should I sign up with Career Services?
How important is participation in student clubs?
Are there any IE-related Student Clubs?
I'm not
receiving department emails
Submit questions concerning
IE undergraduate advising to Dr.
Gerry Knapp (gknapp@lsu.edu).
.................
What
changes are occurring in the curriculum in 2008-09?
There are three
relatively minor changes in the IE curriculum this year:
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CM2141 Project
Management & Econ 2030 have swapped places in the flowchart.
CM2141 is now recommended for the 4th semester, and ECON2030
for 3rd semester. CM2141 requires a student be in the
College of Engineering; by the time this occurs at the end
of the Freshman year, the courses are typically full and
students are not able to secure a spot. Moving CM2141 to the
4th semester avoids this problem.
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ENGL 2000 is moving
to the 4th semester in the flowchart. ENGL 2000 has a new
prerequisite that will go into effect in Spring 2009, that
will require a student to have completed 39 credit hours in
order to register. This generally will mean the course
cannot be taken until the 4th semester or later. Note that
you can Sophomores can still take the course this Fall ('08)
without meeting the requirement, as it will not be enforced
till Spring '09.
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The 2007-08 flowchart
contained an error. It showed IE3302 as a co-requisite
to IE3520. In fact, it should have been shown as a
prerequisite. This has been corrected in the 2008-09
flowchart. The prerequisite will not be enforced until
Spring '09, however, so if you were planning to take IE3302
and IE3520 together in Fall '08, you may still do so.
Who do I see for advising?
For regular course advising related to the IE program, see your assigned faculty advisor. At registration time, advisor assignments are posted on the bulletin boards
outside the CMIE office (3128 Patrick F. Taylor Hall). You can always ask at the
CMIE office to find out who your advisor is.
Students just entering the IE programs (whether by transfer or from within LSU) need to stop by the
CMIE office to get a faculty advisor assigned.
For questions about humanities, please see one of the College of Engineering counselors
(in 3304 PFT Hall). They stay up to date on the latest approved courses and the rules concerning humanities.
For questions on course transfers, course substitutions,
prerequisite waivers, and for Senior Checkout, you will need to see the
IE Undergraduate Coordinator (Dr. Gerry Knapp).
Do I need to see a faculty advisor?
A flag is placed on all engineering students prior to the start of registration. You will not be able to register until the flag is lifted. The flag is only lifted after you have met with your advisor and reached an agreement on coursework for the following semester.
Students who have declared IE but are still in UCFY or UCAC are
not required to see an IE advisor, but are strongly encouraged
to see Dr. Knapp for scheduling advice.
During Fall advising, you will need to meet with your faculty advisor to plan your Spring
semester
and Winter Intersession coursework. You may also wish to
discuss your Summer and Intersession plans.
During Spring advising, you will need to meet with your faculty advisor to plan
Spring Intersession, Summer Session, Summer Intersession, and Fall coursework.
Can I ask my faculty advisor about other things, like job searches, career options & graduate school?
Yes!! In addition to course advising, your faculty advisor is there to provide mentoring and career planning for you. Please feel free to discuss career
options and goals, graduate school, and other academic related questions with your advisor.
Can I change advisors?
Initial assignment of students to faculty advisors is done randomly and with an effort to keep the number of students assigned to each faculty fairly equal. You can ask for a new advisor if you would prefer to work with another faculty advisor due to sharing similar interests with another faculty or a personality conflict with your current advisor. However, we may decline your request or assign you to someone other than your first choice if it would cause a significant imbalance in advising loads.
What is Senior Checkout?
The purpose of Senior
Checkout is to make sure that a student graduating in the next
semester is taking all the necessary courses, and to uncover &
resolve any potential problems that may prevent graduation.
For students graduating in Spring or Summer, Senior Checkout is performed in the Fall semester prior to graduation. For Fall graduates, Senior Checkout is usually done the prior Spring semester. You will receive a email from the College of Engineering Dean's Office when it is time to do Senior Checkout. You will also see notices in the IE hallway listing those that need to do Senior Checkout.
To checkout, you must
first meet with the IE Undergraduate Coordinator to plan out all remaining coursework and insure its possible to graduate. The Undergraduate Coordinator then signs off on your checkout audit.
You then complete an ABET exit survey. Once that is completed, bring the signed audit to
the counselors in the Engineering Dean's office. At that time, your Senior Checkout flag is lifted (allowing you to register) and you are put on the graduation list.
Is it important to set / regularly update my expected graduation date in PAWS?
Yes. If you have not set your graduation date yet, a flag is set on your account that will prevent you from registering. Also, if you set a graduation date a while back that is now gone by or is coming up and you have not done senior checkout, the date will be cleared and a
registration flag set until you update it or go through senior checkout.
I can't register for a class because of
a prerequisite problem.
You will no longer be able to register for any of the core IE courses if you have not already completed the necessary prerequisites, or completed / enrolled in required co-requisites.
There presently is a problem for students who have course substitutions in classes that are pre or co-requisites to other classes. For some reason, the
prerequisite checking program does not look at substitutions. We are working with the University Registrars office to resolve this
issue. In the mean time, students having this problem will
need to see Dr. Knapp to have the prerequisite check overridden
in this case. Please bring your degree audit.
What is a Degree Audit, and where can I get a copy?
The Degree Audit shows what coursework you have completed and not completed towards your degree requirements, as well as any minors you are registered for. It shows officially what you've been given credit for, what substitutions / transfers have been accepted, and what minors you are registered for.
You can get a copy of your degree audit in PAWS, under "Student Services".
The PAWS copy includes most but not all audit information, however. Before going for advising, you may want to stop at the desk in the Engineering Dean's office to pick up a copy of your complete Degree Audit.
What
is the Flowchart, and where can I get it?
The flowchart is a visual
representation of the curriculum requirements for each Catalog
year. It shows what courses you need to take, the
prerequisite/co-requisite constraints between classes, and
approximately when in your program you should take each course.
If a student follows the flowchart exactly, they can complete
the curriculum in four years. If, however, the student takes
fewer credit hours (because of a job or other issues), or must
repeat courses, or does not place into the preliminary courses
in Math and Physics, or does an academic year internship/COOP,
then summer courses and/or additional semesters may be required
to complete the degree. In fact, few engineering students
finish in 4 years.
The IE flowcharts can be
found by clicking on the "Flowcharts" link at the top of this
page.
I'm on
an older catalog. Do I follow that catalog's flowchart, or the
latest flowchart? Do I need to meet the latest prerequisites?
The catalog/flowchart for
your catalog year defines what courses you need to take,
and any minimum grade requirements for specific courses and the
program overall (such as the C or better requirement for MATH
1550 and PHYS 2101 for all engineering students)
HOWEVER, course
pre/co-requisites requirements - including minimum grade
requirements on prerequisite courses - are always governed by
the LATEST catalog. So, for instance if you are on the
2005-06 catalog and have not yet taken IE3302, you will need to
have a C or better in PHYS2102 to meet the current prerequisite,
which went into effect in 2006-07. If you already completed
IE3302 prior to the prerequisite change, the change does not
impact you.
Sometime courses on older
catalogs are dropped or renumbered in more recent catalogs. When
these changes occur, the IE Undergraduate Coordinator and your
faculty advisors will provide you with information on which new
courses are considered equivalent to the old courses.
Contact the IE Undergraduate Coordinator if you have any
questions.
Which
General Education classes can I take? What happens to my Gen Ed
classes if I change catalogs?
You must always use the
General Education list for your catalog year. The list
for each year can be found on the Flowchart page (link at top of
this page) or from the LSU A-Z page.
If you use the wrong
year's list, you could potentially take courses for which you
will NOT receive credit towards your General Education
requirements.
When you change catalog
years, the catalog year list also changes for your General
Education requirements. Occasionally courses fall off the Gen Ed
list, which means a course that was a Gen Ed on your old catalog
may not be one on your new catalog. Always have a college
counselor review the Gen Ed courses you have taken before
changing catalogs, to make sure there will not be any problems.
Why
would I change my catalog? How do I change my catalog year?
You can change to a newer
catalog year at any time up to graduation. Students who have
left LSU for 2 or more semesters and are re-entering must change
to the latest catalog year at the time of their re-entry.
Changing to a new catalog
may be beneficial. For instance, recent changes in the IE
curriculum have reduced the number of courses / credit hours
required to get the IE degree. Moving from an older catalog to a
newer one may reduce the number of courses you need to take.
Your degree audit will also more closely align with the current
flowchart, making course planning easier.
To change your catalog
year, see the college counselors (3304 PFT Hall) - they will
make the change (and review your Gen Ed courses first for any
potential problems). It is also recommended that you speak
with the IE Undergraduate Coordinator first to see if the change
will work in your favor.
I'm confused about IE4785 (Independent Study / Special Topics in IE)? What is it used for, and how do I register?
IE4785 is counted as an IE Technical Elective. It is used for "learning experiences" outside the regular IE courses. Before registering for IE4785 you must find a professor willing to guide your work. The work is agreed upon between you and the professor before the start of the semester, and may be self-study on a particular topic, participating in a research project, or conducting a project (similar to senior project). Projects are often done in teams. To register for IE4785, there is a "IE4785" approval form in the office that you will need to fill out and have signed by the professor overseeing your work. You need to register for the section corresponding to that professor. Joann in the IE office can help with determining the right section number, and will then take care of registering you into the course.
IE4785 also counts towards the Occupational Health & Safety (OHS) and Quality & Reliability (QRE) minors. If you are using it for this purpose, the work that you do MUST be related to the minor. It is sometimes possible to find a single project that will meet both these areas if you are pursuing both minors.
For the OHS minor, independent studies should be arranged with Dr. Aghazadeh,
Dr. Ikuma, or Dr. Harvey.
For the QRE minor, independent studies will normally be arranged with Dr. Jiang,
Dr. Liao, or Dr. Knapp.
What is a minor? How do I get a minor?
A minor is a sequence of courses that are taken in addition to or in conjunction with your degree requirements to develop expertise in a particular subarea. Course requirements vary but most minors require between 18 to 36 credit hours of coursework. In addition to further building your expertise in areas of interest to you, minors can be useful in making you more "marketable" when it comes time to graduate and get a job.
A minor is noted on your official LSU transcript.
You must register that you are pursuing a minor with the Engineering Counselors. They will enter into the computer that you are pursuing the minor. It is not enough just to take the courses!! To check your minors, get a copy of your degree audit - it will indicate at the top any minors that have been registered for, and will also have a section for each minor showing the minor requirements. If it isn't on the degree audit, you are not registered.
See the following
question and the "Minors" link at the top of this page for
information on minors commonly pursued by IEs.
What minors are of interest to IE's? Where do I find information on minor requirements?
The IE department offers two minors, Occupational Health and Safety (OHS and Quality and Reliability Engineering (QRE). Other minors frequently taken by IE students include Business, Computer Science, Mechanical Engineering, Technical Sales, and Internal Auditing (note: Internal Auditing is not an official minor - it will not appear on your transcript, but you can refer to it on your resume if you've taken the coursework).
As a starting point for information, see the
"Minors" link at the top of this page. For additional information on the OHS minor, see Dr. Aghazadeh. For more information on the QRE minor, see Dr. Knapp.
For more information on other minors, as well as a complete of list of minors on campus, see one of the Engineering counselors.
Make sure to indicate to your faculty advisor what minors you are pursuing, so that those requirements are factored into your scheduling.
Should I do an internship or COOP? How do I get one?
Having some non-academic engineering experience has become practically a requirement for getting a job with many companies. It is strongly advised that you get some practical engineering experience outside the university
prior to graduating. This experience can come from part time work at a local engineering firm, or from internships or COOP's. Internships are typically done over the Summer. COOPs generally are multi-semester, and generally require the student to take off one or more semesters from school. COOP
and internships arranged through Career Services are formerly noted on a students transcript.
Most internship hiring is done between November and March for the following Summer, so get started early. Register with Career Services and get familiar with their listings for internship and COOP opportunities. Career Services also has a COOP office which you can contact. Attend the LSU Job Fair and talk to the company representatives about internship opportunities. You may also consider interviewing with companies even if you are not yet graduating - if they are impressed they may be able to find an internship position for you.
The IE Undergraduate Coordinator will also send out notices on
internship opportunities from time to time, so make sure to
check your email for messages from the department.
Networking is another - and effective - means of getting an internship. Contact alumni, family friends, etc., who are working at companies you are interested in.
When should I sign up with Career Services?
Its never too soon. You can sign up with career services at any point in your program, including as a freshman. Registering early will allow you to participate in
short courses they offer on resume writing, job searches, finding internships & COOPS, as well as so you can get familiar with how to use their job search resources. Career Services is located in the Patrick F. Taylor Hall and their website is http://appl003.lsu.edu/slas/career/careerweb.nsf/index .
How important is participation in student
organizations?
Companies want to hire students who are leaders, self-starters (motivated), and have good people skills. Participation
in student organizations - particularly as an officer - is an excellent way to demonstrate you have these characteristics.
It also shows you have done more than just academics while at LSU. Be aware that many recruiters look at school as a part time
20-30 hour a week job (even though we know in reality its closer
to 40-50 hours a week). The obvious question is what did you do with yourself the other
10-20 hours of the work week? Showing initiative and self-improvement will give you an edge in the job hunt.
Are there any IE-related Student Clubs?
Yes - the Institute of Industrial Engineers (IIE) is open to all IE students. The Alpha Pi Mu (APM) honor society is open to the top 20% of IE students by GPA. Their web pages can be found under "Student
Orgs"
on the main menu above.
I'm not receiving department emails
All IE and IE-declared
students should be on our IE email list. We occasionally sent
out information on job/internship opportunities, student
organization meetings, and advising/registration information,
and curriculum changes.
We try to keep this list
up to date, but the email list is only loosely tied to the
campus registration systems and sometime students don't get put
on our list (particularly recently entering / reentering or
transferring students). If you believe you are not receiving
these emails, please contact Dr. Gerry Knapp to make sure your
name is on the list. |
