Master of Applied Science (MASc) in Systems Design Engineering

The program information below was valid for the winter 2023 term (January 1, 2023 - April 30, 2023). This is the archived version; the most up-to-date program information is available through the current Graduate Studies Academic Calendar.

The Graduate Studies Academic Calendar is updated 3 times per year, at the start of each academic term (January 1, May 1, September 1). Graduate Studies Academic Calendars from previous terms can be found in the archives.

• Admit term(s) 
  • Fall
  • Winter
  • Spring
• Delivery mode 
  • On-campus
• Length of program 
  • The normal duration of this program is 16 months.
• Program type 
  • Master's
  • Research
• Registration option(s) 
  • Full-time
  • Part-time
• Study option(s) 
  • Thesis

• Minimum requirements 
  • An Honours Bachelor's degree (or equivalent) with at least an overall 75% standing from a recognized university.
• Application materials 
  • Résumé
  • Supplementary information form
  • Transcript(s)
• References 
  • Number of references:  2
  • Type of references: 

    Academic. Applicants who completed their degree five or more years before the application date may submit 1 academic and 1 professional reference.

• English language proficiency (ELP) (if applicable)

Thesis option:

Graduate Academic Integrity Module (Graduate AIM)

Courses 

• Students must complete 4 Engineering graduate courses (0.50 unit weight per course) counting towards degree credit from the University of Waterloo satisfying the following criteria:
  • At least 2 courses from Systems Design Engineering at the 500, 600 or 700 level.
  • At most 1 course at the 500 level.
  • At least 1 course at the 600 level.
• All course selections are arranged by the supervisor(s) in consultation with the student and are subject to the approval of the Associate Chair for Graduate Studies. Students pursuing one the program's Graduate Research Fields, should inform their supervisor(s) of their chosen field(s) to ensure appropriate course selection.
• Note: these requirements are in addition to satisfactory completion of any transitional courses that may be specified at the time of admission.
• Note: the Faculty of Engineering requires that no more than one-half of the courses used for credit toward a graduate degree may be taught by a candidate's supervisor(s). In the case of co-supervision in small research groups, it may be necessary to relax this rule; however, the student's file must contain a statement of formal approval from the Department and endorsement from the Associate Dean for Graduate Studies and Research in the Faculty of Engineering.

Link(s) to courses

• Systems Design Engineering (SYDE) courses

Master's Seminar

• Students are required to present a research seminar based on their thesis at the Systems Design Engineering Graduate Colloquium. The Department will contact seminar candidates with scheduling information. 

Seminar Attendance

• Students are required to attend an average of four University of Waterloo research seminars per full-time term. It is the student's responsibility to submit their "Seminar Attendance Certificates" attached to their activity report.
• To earn the seminar attendance milestone, the Department records should show that the number of seminars a student has attended is, at least, four times the number of terms the student has been registered as a full-time student in the Department.

Master’s Thesis

• Students must submit a thesis embodying the results of independent research work to the satisfaction of an Examining Committee. The composition of the Examining Committee must be consistent with the committee composition outlined in the Faculty of Engineering minimum requirements section of the Graduate Studies Academic Calendar. The topic of the thesis is arranged by the supervisor(s) and the student.
• Students may choose to pursue up to 2 of the following Graduate Research Fields:
  • Biomedical Engineering
  • Human Factors and Ergonomics
  • Machine Learning and Intelligence
  • Mechatronic and Physical Systems
  • Modelling, Simulation and Systems Theory
  • Optimization and Decision Making
  • Societal and Environmental Systems
  • Vision, Image and Signal Processing
• A Graduate Research Field is a University credential that is recognized on the student’s transcript and is intended to reflect that a student has successfully completed research concentrated in the area of the Graduate Research Field. The Department, represented by the student’s supervisor and thesis readers, must assess whether a student’s completed research warrants the field designation at the time of degree completion. To obtain the Graduate Research Field designation, a student must also complete the requirements associated with the MASc degree. Students can choose to pursue a maximum of 2 Graduate Research Field designations (1 methodology field and 1 application field) for their degree.