MSc Information and Business Systems Engineering
The programme provides high-quality education with substantial intellectual challenges, commensurate with the financial rewards and job satisfaction when venturing into the real world. It also make you aware of current technologies and trends based on rigorous training in matters relating to the fundamentals of the subject.
The programme is organised and delivered by the Faculty’s own staff as well as specialists from industry, research and business organisations. You will be able to choose from a rich and varied selection of technology, information systems, business and management subjects.
Entry standards
Candidates should be graduates with at least a Second class honours degree (or equivalent) in an engineering, science or related subject. Practitioners with suitable qualifications and relevant experience in engineering, science or technology are also welcome to apply.
English language requirements
Non-native speakers of English will normally be required to have IELTS 6.5 or above, with a minimum of 6.0 in each component (or equivalent).
Please note that the University of Surrey offers English language programmes and is also an IELTS Test Centre.
MSc Information and Business Systems Engineering - structure and modules
Module Titles
Compulsory modules:
- Optimisation and Decision Making
- Knowledge-based Systems and Artificial Intelligence
- Research Methods and Principles
- Business and Research Seminars
- Supply Chain Management
- E-commerce and Emerging Technologies on the Internet
- Dissertation
Optional modules include:
• Software Development
• Process and Energy Integration
• Process Systems Design
• Process Modelling and Simulation
• Intelligent Information Systems
• Project Management and Business Strategy
• Information Security Management
Compulsory Modules
Optimisation and Decision Making
This module will develop your understanding of the technology available to optimise process systems, business models and operations. You are provided with state-of-the-art versions of modelling and optimisation approaches in order to understand both the potential and the limitations of available techniques.
Knowledge-based Systems and Artificial Intelligence
This module presents the current understanding of the development of decision support systems and knowledge management systems. It uses a common thread and examples from the design of chemical processes, focusing on the use of artificial intelligence techniques such as knowledge representation, knowledge-based decision support and agents technology.
Research Methods and Principles
This module aims to provide an introduction to the general principles and practices associated with planning, undertaking and reporting research in engineering or physical sciences. At the end of the module you should be in a position to apply the taught material to your own project, in order to produce a strategy for a literature search and an outline experimental plan.
Business and Research Seminars
This module consists of a series of seminars delivered by academics and industrial experts from diverse hi-tech industries (including pharmaceuticals, chemicals, oil and gas, and information systems). It will present you with valuable insights into today’s challenges faced by technology-intensive industries in terms of their business and information systems activities. It also covers general business aspects that will explain how to start up a technology-based company.
Supply Chain Management
This module provides knowledge about the latest trends in the management of product supply chains and enterprise resource planning. You will learn the basic constituents of supply chains followed by the systems engineering aspects of supply chain monitoring, simulation and optimisation.
E-commerce and Emerging Technologies on the Internet
This module will give you an understanding of the role and importance of information management in organisations through the critical analysis of specific case studies. You will learn about the future role of information bases in organisations and gain practical experience in using these prototype technologies to solve business problems.
Dissertation
The project provides an opportunity for you to pursue a single topic in depth and to demonstrate evidence of research potential for the Masters award. You will be encouraged to either research a new concept or apply existing technology in a new field. A number of dissertations are carried out in collaboration with industry. Upon successful completion of the module, you will be able to approach an open-ended topic to research new ideas and experiment with new technologies.
Optional Modules Include:
- Software Development
- Process and Energy Integration
- Process Systems Design
- Process Modelling and Simulation
- Intelligent Information Systems
- Project Management and Business Strategy
- Information Security Management
Programme Structure
We offer a set of optional modules that will allow you to tailor the programmes to suit your individual needs, whilst the compulsory modules provide the fundamental knowledge and skills needed in industry today.
Graduate students will find the programmes of substantial benefit in developing the knowledge and skills acquired in their undergraduate programmes. For practising process engineers with professional business experience, the programmes are an opportunity to update their knowledge of current design practice and also to familiarise themselves with developments in codes and methods of analysis.
Successful completion of four modules is required to gain a Postgraduate Certificate and eight modules for a Postgraduate Diploma. To be awarded the MSc, you will need to take eight modules and successfully complete a dissertation.
Each module is worth 15 credits. The majority of modules are provided by University academic staff. In addition, the business and research seminars and renewable technologies and business modules are coordinated and supervised by University academic staff but delivered by experts from industry, research institutions and business organisations. The majority of modules run for ten weeks and comprise approximately 30 hours of class time (three hours per week) and 120 hours of self-study and assignments.
There is a wide selection of modules on offer within the programmes covering the most relevant areas in the sector of business and technology in the process industry. At the end of the programme, you will have an opportunity to pursue a single topic in depth and to demonstrate evidence of research potential through the project dissertation.
Academic support in the form of consultations is constantly available to enable further knowledge and skill comprehension.
MSc Information and Business Systems Engineering - entry standards
Entry standards
Candidates should be graduates with at least a Second class honours degree (or equivalent) in an engineering, science or related subject. Practitioners with suitable qualifications and relevant experience in engineering, science or technology are also welcome to apply.
English language requirements
Non-native speakers of English will normally be required to have IELTS 6.5 or above, with a minimum of 6.0 in each component (or equivalent).
Please note that the University of Surrey offers English language programmes and is also an IELTS Test Centre.
Planned intake
Up to 25
Start date
September
Programme Director
MSc Information and Business Systems Engineering - fees and funding
Fees
Information and Business Systems Engineering (full time):
UK/EU - £5,740
Overseas - £14,830
Information and Business Systems Engineering (part time per 15 credits):
UK/EU - £480
Overseas - £1,235
MSc Information and Business Systems Engineering - professional context
Careers
Engineers and scientists are increasingly expected to have skills in information systems engineering and decision support systems alongside their main technical and/or scientific expertise.
Graduates of these programmes will be well prepared to help technology-intensive organisations make important decisions in view of vast amounts of information by adopting, combining, implementing and executing the right technologies.
MSc Information and Business Systems Engineering - teaching
Teaching
Our programmes utilise our research-active staff in conjunction with state-of-the-art facilities to provide a range of learning experiences – lectures, seminars, directed study, practical laboratories and project work.
Lectures are delivered by specialised, expert academic staff. Further in-depth knowledge and skills are gained through seminars delivered and guided by experienced professionals from industry, business and research organisations with the focus on the latest trends and problem-solving methods. You will also work on a number of projects, individually and in groups, supervised by academic staff and focusing on real-life problems.
Modules are generally assessed by a combination of examinations and continuous assessment. The latter will be based on solutions to tutorial questions, reports covering practical sessions and fieldwork, and essays on a number of suitable topics. Each module is examined separately. There is a written final examination for most modules at the end of each semester, although some modules are examined by continuous assessment only. The modules and the dissertation project have a minimum pass mark of 50 per cent.
Staff perspective
Dr Franjo Cecelja
I graduated with a DiplEng in Applied Electronics and Control in 1978, an MSc in Aerospace Control from Cranfield Institute of Technology in 1989 and a PhD in Optical Sensors from Brunel University in 1996.
At Surrey, I am teaching several MSc modules in the area of decision-making systems, applied information systems and process optimisation. My teaching is closely related to the research activities in the area of the application of knowledge systems and optimisation in business and research, with the focus on ontologies and the semantic web.
My work has been documented in over eighty journal and conference publications and more than forty MSc dissertation projects and six PhD projects. My teaching and research activities have always been driven by the final application useful for wider society and especially business and industry.
Unreservedly supported by the University of Surrey, this approach enables me to provide our students with the cutting-edge skills and knowledge needed to face ever-increasing business and academic challenges.
MSc Information and Business Systems Engineering - learning
Facilities, Equipment and Academic Support
Modules related to the different groups are taught by a total of six full-time members of staff and a number of visiting lecturers.
An extensive library is available for individual study. It stocks more than 85,000 printed books and e-books and more than 1400 (1100 online) journal titles, all in the broad area of engineering. The library support can be extended further through inter-library loans.
As part of their learning experience, students have at their disposal a wide range of relevant software needed to support the programme material dissertation projects. In recent years this work included the design of various knowledge-based and business systems on the Internet, the application of optimisation algorithms, and semantic web applications.
Numerous laboratory facilities across the Faculty and the University are also available for those opting for technology-based projects, such as the process engineering facility, a control and robotics facility and signal processing labs.
The work related to the MSc dissertation can often be carried out in parallel with, and in support of, ongoing research. In the past, several graduates have carried on their MSc research onto a PhD programme.
MSc Information and Business Systems Engineering - graduate profile
MSc Information and Business Systems Engineering - more
Centre for Process and Information Systems Engineering
Process integration and systems analysis for sustainability of resources and energy efficiency are carried out within the well-established Centre for Process and Information Systems Engineering (PRISE). PRISE, supported through industrial membership, fosters interactions with R&D centres around the world. The most notable of the successes in this area include design technology for chemical reactors and chemical process flow sheets, optimisation solvers, the knowledge management h-TechSight and a long array of synthesis tools.
Major research interests in PRISE include:
- Chemical reactor design, addressing specific industrial reactors or reaction/separation and reactive separation processes
- Process operations, including graph-based methods, mathematical programming, stochastic optimisation
- Computer-aided molecular design (CAMD): integrated synthesis of optimal process designs and optimal solvents, novel solvent options and retrofit decision making
- Bioprocess systems: the research targets optimal biocatalytic process design problems focusing on membrane and solvent-based reactive and non-reactive separations, and solid/liquid separations
- Knowledge management and grid applications inviting real-life problems to be used as pilot studies
- Oil exploration: research investigates the effective production and exploration of oil and the optimum design capacity of production facilities
- Sustainable systems engineering: with strong links with the Centre for Environmental Strategy (CES)
Other Programmes You May Be Interested In
- Petroleum Refining Systems Engineering
- Renewable Energy Systems Engineering
MSc Information and Business Systems Engineering - apply
You can apply for this programme online using the link(s) below. We recommend making an application as soon as you can, even if you do not have all the necessary supporting information ready at that time.
As part of the application process, you will be asked to enter a username and password. If you've used our application system before, please enter your details or click the forgotten password link.
If you are a new user, you will need to create a username and password by clicking the New User button.
Start date
September
Planned intake
Up to 25
Programme length
12 months full-time; up to 60 months part-time
Programme Director
For general enquiries
T: 0800 980 3200 or
+44 (0)1483 681681
E: pg-enquiries@surrey.ac.uk
For admissions enquiries
T: +44 (0)1483 682357
E: feps-pg@surrey.ac.uk
Related courses
- Petroleum Refining Systems Engineering
- Renewable Energy Systems Engineering