Academics

  /  

Master's Program

Transportation Systems Analysis & Planning Master's Specialization

Enabling the transportation revolution

Technologies are triggering an unprecedented wave of innovations in transportation. Automation, electrification, and sharing economy are expected to completely reshape the landscape of the industry. At the helm of this revolution, transportation systems engineers must learn and develop new ways to plan, design, operate, and regulate the transportation systems in the new era. The MS curriculum in Transportation Systems Analysis and Planning at Northwestern provides you with the tools, methods, and preparation to meet the challenges of this renaissance.

The transportation systems analysis and planning specialization for the civil and environmental engineering master's degree at Northwestern prepares our graduates with sound fundamentals, creating transportation systems analysts who can address the needs that stem from the development of transportation systems in the new era.

The program builds on the strengths of the world-renowned transportation systems faculty and leading firms in the industry. Students will have the opportunity to interact with a large network of faculty members, industry partners, and alumni through Northwestern University's Transportation Center, a prominent research and education hub of transportation in the US.

• Join a new generation of transportation systems engineers
• Experience a broad curriculum in theory and practice
• Interact with leading firms in the transportation industry
• Develop cutting-edge analytical skills through faculty-guided research
• Lead the unfolding revolution in transportation

Curriculum Overview

Coursework and activities in the specialization include:

Transportation Fundamentals: A series of seven courses designed to provide students with the core knowledge and analytical skills in transportation systems. Coursework includes: transportation engineering, transportation systems analysis, transportation policy and planning, travel demand modeling, traffic flow theory, and infrastructure management.

Elective Tracks: Students can supplement their core knowledge with five elective courses that can focus on one of four tracks:

• Transportation Science and Systems
• Operations Research and Logistics
• Travel Demand Analysis
• Urban Planning and Policy

Seminars & Career Fair: Bi-weekly Transportation Center Seminars are organized for MS and PhD students. The Transportation Center also hosts a range of activities that are open to students, including bi-annual Business Advisory Council meetings and the Patterson Lectures. In addition, our department organizes two career fairs annually to connect students to employers. 

View the curriculum

Learn more about research in this department

 

Alumni Network

Alumni who have specialized in transportation systems analysis and planning hold positions in transportation consultant firms, government agencies, and tech firms in Chicago and across the US: McMaster Carr, Ricondo & Associates, Argonne National Lab, Royal Thai Government, New York City Transit, Citilabs, Airbiz, Atkins, Conductor de Travaux, HTNB, and Jacobs.

 

Eligibility and Admission

While our approach is rigorous and quantitative, it is not oriented exclusively toward students with engineering backgrounds. Transportation affects and is affected by major social and economic trends, and its problems are best addressed by professionals with broad backgrounds. Thus, we invite applications from quantitatively oriented students with backgrounds in economics, management, industrial engineering, mathematics, political science, and related fields in addition to students in Civil Engineering.

Students studying transportation systems analysis and planning earn a master of science in civil engineering through Northwestern University's Graduate School. Building each student's ability to integrate quantitative skills and transportation knowledge is a fundamental goal of the master of science program. To be admitted to the MS program in transportation systems analysis and planning, the student must meet one of the following requirements: 

1. A BS degree in engineering or

2. A non-engineering degree emphasizing quantitative coursework in mathematics, operations research, computer science, statistics, or econometrics.

In addition, each applicant must meet the usual requirements of The Graduate School and the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering.

Apply now

Questions?

Contact us with questions about this specialization at y-nie@northwestern.edu.