Carnegie Mellon University

Department Vision & Goals

To be recognized as the leading science and engineering-based university affiliated program focused on addressing technology-based policy problems in the world.

To provide a friendly, cheerful, intellectually rich and stimulating work environment for our students, our faculty and our staff.

Objectives in Undergraduate Education

To provide undergraduates with an extra dimension to their education in the areas where technology, society, and policy intersect. The objective is not to produce graduates who will pursue significantly different careers than others in their traditional programs, but rather, to produce graduates who will carry with them a set of insights and skills on the broader, systems-wide issues in technology, society, and policy, and who can better exercise their ethical and social obligations as practicing professionals.

Objectives in Professional Graduate Education: Master's in EPP

Provide interdisciplinary education in science, engineering, technology, economics, and social analysis, to tackle the complex problems of today's society.

Provide flexibility to allow students to focus on varied areas in engineering and policy including: Energy Systems, Climate and Environment, Technology Innovation Policy, Risk Analysis, and Information and Communication Technology.

Equip students with the background for careers in government, business, consulting, academia, and non-profits around the world.

Offer frameworks and resources to inspire lifelong learning.

Objectives in Professional Graduate Education: Engineering & Technology Innovation Management (E&TIM) MS 

Provide interdisciplinary education across engineering, science and business, emphasizing fundamentals of innovation management.

Provide students with opportunities to explore and be part of an innovation ecosystem.

Offer frameworks and resources to inspire lifelong learning.

Encourage students to cultivate professional perspectives that will serve them throughout their careers.

Objectives in Research and Doctoral Graduate Education

Concentrate on the sub-set of policy problems that require adequate treatment of the science and engineering for appropriate policy insights and solutions.

Adopt an interdisciplinary approach to problems, drawing upon, combining, and extending insights and tools from a variety of disciplines. At the same time, assure that the insights, perspectives and skills of science and engineering exert a major influence in graduate education and in most programs of faculty research.

Focus on problems of general and fairly long-term importance. Minimize involvement in policy analysis of the "fire fighting" or "staff work" variety except as such involvement is essential for access to important resources and problems.

Encourage a high level of professional involvement, including publication in refereed professional journals by faculty and graduate students.

Concentrate efforts on a research-focused Ph.D. program designed to train students with substantive backgrounds in science engineering for careers in research and other activities related to technology-focused policy problems. In doing this, adopt the following strategies and philosophies:

View research - the process of identifying, structuring and solving intellectually and socially significant problems - as the central element of this program. Treat course work as an important but secondary element; as one of several means of developing the insights and skills that are required for research.

Insist that graduate students have adequately mastered both the science and engineering skills and the social analysis skills that are necessary for success in their chosen area of research.

Encourage independence and initiative on the part of graduate students.

Encourage close, supportive, collegial ties between faculty advisors and graduate students.

Apply strict standards of excellence in both graduate admission and advancement. 

Faculty Development

Build and maintain an outstanding faculty that is dedicated to teaching and research, highly motivated and hardworking, friendly, caring, and guided by the highest standards of professional and personal conduct

Support and encourage activities which will promote faculty professional growth and recognition.