Program Overview

Introduction to the Master of Engineering Management & Leadership Program

The Master of Engineering Management & Leadership (MEML) program at Rice University's George R. Brown School of Engineering is designed to equip engineering professionals with the technical leadership, project management, and communication skills necessary to succeed in a wide range of technical and scientific industries.

Program Highlights

• The MEML program is one of the top graduate engineering programs in the country, offering a dedicated program in engineering leadership.
• Students can expect a challenging and engaging curriculum taught by world-class faculty who bring both real-world experience and academic research expertise into the classroom.
• The program offers online and in-person learning options, ideal for both full-time and part-time students.
• The curriculum provides a holistic approach, focusing on technical leadership, project management, and communication skills.

Curriculum

The MEML@Rice students will complete a combination of required coursework (18 credit hours), elective courses (9 credits), and a Capstone project. The required engineering management courses equip future engineering leaders with academic and management skills to succeed in a wide range of professional industries.

Required Courses

• RCEL 501: Engineering Management & Leadership Theory and Application [3 credits]: This course outlines a framework for engineering professionals to progress from engineering manager to engineering executive.
• RCEL 502: Engineering Project Management [3 credits]: This course provides instruction on the tools, techniques, and leadership characteristics required to successfully execute a project.
• RCEL 503: Engineering Product Management in Industry 4.0 [3 credits]: This course focuses on guiding engineering teams to create products that can leverage and evolve based on data from the supply chain to customer usage.
• RCEL 504: Ethical-Technical Leadership [3 credits]: This course helps students understand the impact of ethics on engineering and technology to apply ethics concepts to decision-making.
• RCEL 505: Engineering Economics for Leaders [3 credits]: This course explores economic analysis of capital expenditure decisions, financial mathematics, microeconomics, and decision-making under risk and uncertainty.
• RCEL 506: Applied Statistics and Data Science for Engineering Leaders [3 credits]: This course provides a foundation in statistics and data science, preparing engineering leaders to engage and direct teams in data-based solutions to engineering problems.

Required Engineering Management Capstone Project

• RCEL 507: Master's in Engineering Management and Leadership Capstone [3 credits]: This project-based and discussion-based course develops economically sustainable, technological solutions to society's most complex grand challenges using the methods and competencies taught in the MEML program.

Elective Courses

Students can enhance their skill set by selecting one nine-credit specialization in either Computer Science or Data Science.

Computer Science Specialization

• COMP 614: Computer Programming for Data Science [3 credit hours]
• COMP 643: Big Data [3 credit hours]
• COMP 665: Data Visualization [3 credit hours]
• Any other COMP course where prerequisites are met

Data Science Specialization

• COMP 614: Computer Programming for Data Science [3 credit hours]
• COMP 680: Statistics for Computing and Data Science [3 credit hours]
• Select one additional course from:
  • COMP 643: Big Data [3 credit hours]
  • COMP 665: Data Visualization [3 credit hours]
  • COMP 642: Machine Learning [3 credit hours]

Example Curriculum for Part-Time MEML Students

Typical part-time MEML students follow the core engineering management and leadership curriculum of six courses in their first year, and in their second year, they complete their focus area specialization and the MEML capstone project.

Year 1

Year 2 (Assuming a specialization in Data Science)

Program Outcomes & Experience

The Master of Engineering Management & Leadership curriculum provides several benefits for program participants, including:

• Leadership skill attainment
• Advanced technical and organizational understanding
• Relevant administrative preparation

The MEML@Rice program is designed to prepare graduates for leadership roles in technical and scientific industries, equipping them with the skills necessary to succeed in a rapidly changing world.