Strategic Thinking for Technical Contexts
- Connect technical specifications with business impact
- Integrate innovation and operational excellence
- Navigate the intersection of technology and strategy
- Think systemically about complex problems
Engineering Management Minor
Where Technical Excellence Meets Human-Centered Leadership
The Engineering Management (EM) Minor develops your ability to lead in technical and engineering contexts. You’ll build the strategies and skills to guide teams, manage complex projects, and drive innovation—preparing you to lead where engineering challenges demand both technical understanding and human insight.
- Develop leadership strategies specifically for technical and engineering environments
- Master communication that translates complexity for diverse audiences
- Learn from practitioner faculty who’ve led engineering teams through complex challenges
- Graduate ready to lead where technical excellence and human dynamics intersect
Engineering Leadership for a Complex World
Today's engineering challenges bring together technical complexity and human dynamics. They need leaders who can navigate both dimensions with equal skill while maintaining the highest ethical standards.
The EM Minor develops your ability to lead in technical and engineering environments. You'll learn how successful engineering organizations operate, how to communicate complex ideas with clarity, and how to guide teams through the ambiguity and iteration that define modern engineering work.
This is leadership designed specifically for technical contexts—where precision matters, where safety is paramount, where innovation must be balanced with reliability, where ethical considerations guide decisions, and where the best solution emerges through collaborative problem-solving.
What You'll Develop
Through team projects, case studies, and learning from practitioner faculty who’ve led engineering teams through real challenges:
Leadership in Technical and Engineering Environments
- Build and inspire high-performing teams
- Make ethical decisions in complex contexts
- Navigate cultural differences in global teams
- Develop your authentic leadership voice
Communication That Connects
- Translate technical complexity for diverse audiences
- Design presentations that drive decisions
- Write with clarity and impact
- Lead effective meetings across technical and business contexts
Your Engineering Leadership Journey
The Engineering Management minor requires 15 credits designed to complement your studies in engineering or other fields. Develop your core competencies, cultivate the mindset of an engineering leader, and explore your individual interests through electives that span a wide variety of topics.
Core Courses (12 credits)
Complete your core courses in any order to develop the core competencies and mindset required for engineering management and leadership.
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Location: On-Campus
Description:
This course will cover:
- Organization of companies and engineering groups.
- Financial fluency, including time value of money, return on investment, income, and cash flow statements, and balance sheets.
- Management of people and organizations.
- Project and program management techniques and tools.
- Management of research, development, and design.
- Operations management, including manufacturing operations and supply chains.
Restrictions on Enrollment: Must have at least Sophomore standing
Note: This course is required for the Engineering Management minor.
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Location: On-Campus
Description:
This course will cover:
- Written and oral communications in the business setting.
- Written communications including technical reports and papers, memoranda, and electronic communications.
- Design and delivery of effective presentations.
- Informal communication styles and techniques.
- Communication across cultures.
Restrictions on Enrollment: None.
Note: This course is required for the Engineering Management minor.
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Location: On-Campus
Description:
This course will cover:
- Development of knowledge, skills, and mindset essential for leading programs and teams in a business organization.
- Creating high-performance teams and shared visions
- Cultural differences in leadership style
- Ethical considerations
- Fostering creativity and communicating to inspire
- Influencing without authority
- Managing conflict and organizational change
- Understanding personalities of self & others and emotional intelligence
Restrictions on Enrollment: Must have at least Sophomore standing
Note: This course is required for the Engineering Management minor.
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Location: On-Campus
Description:
This course will cover:
- Knowledge and skill development for students who aspire to lead and manage innovation initiatives in technology-based companies.
- Technology strategy and its role in the overall business strategy of commercial firms.
- Role of innovation in entrepreneurial ventures and established firms.
- Skills to present new product development proposals to senior management and/or prospective investors.
Restrictions on Enrollment: Must have at least Sophomore standing
Note: This course is required for the Engineering Management minor.
Elective Courses (3+ credits)
Choose from electives that connect to your specific interests and complement your major.
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- EC3 – Principles of Accounting
- EC5 - Principles of Economics
- CEE53 - Engineering Economics
- CEE156 - Biostatistics
- CEE185 - Legal Issues in Engineering
- CBE110 - Introduction to Optimization
- CS171 - Human-Computer Interaction
- CS121 - Software Engineering
- ENP161- Human Factor Product Design
- ES56 - Probability and Statistics
- ES152 - Engineering Systems: Stochastic Models
- ME140 - Inventive Design
- ME102 - Modern Quality Control
- PSY0006 – Psychology of Leadership
- PSY53 – Engineering Psychology
- PSY17 – Industrial and Organizational Psychology
- PS104 – Public Administration
- TPS 58 – Public Speaking
- UEP 130 | CVS 183 – Negotiation, Mediation, & Conflict Resolution
- UEP 230 | DEIJ 254 – Negotiation, Mediation, & Conflict Resolution
- TGI's Courses for Undergraduates
Where EM Graduates Lead
EM alumni are shaping the future of engineering leadership:
- Product Development Leaders guiding teams from concept to launch.
- Technical Project Managers delivering complex systems on time and on budget.
- Innovation Managers building cultures where creativity thrives.
- Engineering Consultants helping organizations navigate technical transformations.
- Startup CTOs building companies from the ground up.
- R&D Directors pushing the boundaries of what’s possible.
The common thread? They lead with both technical knowledge and human understanding.
Real Questions from Students Like You
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EM specifically prepares you to lead where engineering and human dynamics meet, developing strategies for leading in established and emerging technical contexts. While BML integrates personal discovery with professional development, ENT transforms ideas into action through entrepreneurial thinking, and ESI combines civic engagement with social solutions.
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Absolutely. Technical expertise and leadership skills work together to advance your career. Your technical knowledge is a foundation and leadership skills increase your impact. Employers consistently tell us they need engineers who can lead teams, manage projects, and communicate effectively. That’s exactly what EM develops.
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Students can begin at any time and take courses in any order that fits their schedule. EM 52 is open to first-year students, and many students start sophomore or junior year. The skills are immediately useful in team projects and job interviews.
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EM 52: Technical and Managerial Communications counts for Civil and Environmental Engineering. EM 54: Engineering Leadership counts for Computer Science and Data Science. Check with your advisor about your specific program.
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Only fill out additional courses if you haven't yet reached 15 credits with the courses listed before this question. You do not need to put every course you have taken that could apply to the minor. Just include enough to fulfill all requirements.
Minor Declaration and Certification
Students must declare the minor with the Registrar’s office. Please visit the Major and Minor Declaration page below to learn more about this process. You can complete this process at any point during your experience with the EM Minor.
After declaring the minor with Student Services, complete the Minor Certification Form below—this can be done before finishing all courses or receiving final grades. We'll email you a signed copy to bring to Student Services by your graduation deadline.
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