Industrial and Systems Engineering

Industrial engineering programmes teach the design and improvement of systems that combine people, machines, materials and information — production lines, supply chains, hospitals, airports and theme parks. It is the engineering discipline least tied to one industry, and the one whose graduates most often end up running operations.

The degrees this program covers

A Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering — often titled Industrial and Systems Engineering — with master’s and doctoral degrees above it. ⚠ Four Florida public institutions award the bachelor’s, so the undergraduate footprint is small; systems engineering is filed under its own code and is largely a master’s and certificate offering for people already working. The degree should come from a programme accredited by ABET’s ENGINEERING commission if a Professional Engineer licence is ever the goal, though industrial engineers are licensed less often than civil engineers because most of the work falls under the industry exemption.

Careers this program leads to

Each one sets out the courses along the way, the licence or certification at the end, and the sources behind it.

Industrial Engineer

Industrial engineers design the systems that produce things — people, machines, materials, information and money working together. They lay out factories, set quality standards, schedule production, measure and improve work, and cut cost and waste out of processes. ⚠ It is the engineering discipline that most often leads into operations management, and the one least confined to manufacturing.

Logistics and Supply Chain Analyst

Logisticians decide where goods sit, how they move and what it costs — purchasing, inventory, transportation and network design. ⚠ It is the fastest-growing and best-paid occupation in this cluster (a median of $82,320, growth of 18% on the latest federal projection), and there is no single required major: 75% hold a bachelor's, and business, supply chain and engineering all lead here. So does the military.

Careers that name this program, but not as a route

Industrial Engineering Technician

⚠ Read this one properly rather than in passing: over half of employers in this occupation ask for a bachelor's, so the four-year degree is an alternative route to the same work.

Manufacturing Production Supervisor

⚠ Not a route into first-line supervision — an industrial engineering degree leads to engineering work. It appears here because the subjects overlap almost completely (quality, lean, production control), and because it is where a supervisor who wants plant management eventually goes.

Programs similar to this one

Neighbouring fields that share much of the same coursework, and often the same employers. ⚠ Read these before you commit to a major — which doors a neighbouring degree keeps open is the part no catalog tells you, and it is far cheaper to change now than later.

Mechanical Engineering 11 Florida schools

⚠ The realistic alternative where no industrial degree is nearby — it is awarded at eleven institutions against four — and manufacturing, ergonomics and operations work is open to both. Mechanical designs the machine; industrial designs the system around it.

Engineering Technology 76 Florida schools

The adjacent route, and relevant here because a sizeable share of people enter this occupation from the floor rather than from a degree. Engineering technology programmes are how many of them formalise what they already do.

Logistics and Supply Chain Management 23 Florida schools

⚠ The same problems from the mathematics side — inventory policy, facility location, queueing, network design are core industrial engineering subjects, and the federal handbook names systems engineering as one of the degrees logisticians hold. Four Florida institutions award it, against nine for the supply chain bachelor's.

Industrial Production Technology 19 Florida schools

⚠ The four-year degree, and in this field it matters more than usual — over half of employers in the technician occupation ask for a bachelor's. Four Florida institutions award it.

Florida public institutions offering this program

6 institutions awarded a credential in this field in 2023, at these levels: Bachelor's, Certificate (<12 weeks), Certificate (1-2 years), Certificate (12 weeks-1 year), Doctorate (research/scholarship), Master's, Post-master's certificate, Postbaccalaureate certificate. A school appears here if it awards anything in the field, however limited its offering — a technical college teaching only practical nursing has a nursing program. Listed alphabetically, not ranked.

Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University

Bachelor's · Doctorate (research/scholarship) · Master's

Florida International University

Master's

Florida State University

Bachelor's · Doctorate (research/scholarship) · Master's

University of Central Florida

Bachelor's · Doctorate (research/scholarship) · Master's · Postbaccalaureate certificate

University of Florida

Bachelor's · Certificate (<12 weeks) · Certificate (1-2 years) · Certificate (12 weeks-1 year) · Doctorate (research/scholarship) · Master's · Post-master's certificate · Postbaccalaureate certificate

University of South Florida

Bachelor's · Doctorate (research/scholarship) · Master's

Source: federal IPEDS completions data for 2023, first majors only — the most recent year published. ⚠ It records what was awarded, which is strong evidence of what is offered, but a program launched since 2023 will not appear here. Check the institution’s own catalog before applying.

Updated 21 September 2026. ⚠ Program pages describe a field of study, not one school’s degree — always read the catalog of the institution you are applying to.