Fall 2025 ISE and OR Graduate Visitation Program
Fall 2025 ISE / OR Graduate Visitation Program
The Event
This event is a coordinated visit of students from nation-wide universities converging on NC State’s campus for a 2.5 day series of meetings with faculty and current students, campus and lab tours to learn about current research, and to experience the quality of our ISE graduate program.
The Dates
Thursday, October 23rd
- 6 – 9 pm
Friday, October 24thn
- 8:30 am – 7:30 pm
Saturday, October 25th
- 8:30 am – 11:30 am
The Expectations
By making the wise choice to attend this event, you should expect to:
- Meet students from the Industrial and Systems Engineering (ISE) and Operations Research (OR) Programs.
- Learn the application process for NC State ISE.
- Receive information about fellowship opportunities.
- See the world-class home of ISE and OR, Fitts-Woolard Hall.
- Tour the campus and see all that NC State has to offer.
- Explore other science or engineering research programs at NC State.
- Visit lab spaces, including manufacturing and human factors.
- Get to know all the research opportunities/areas of interest that the ISE Department has to offer the students.
- Explore the perks of living in the Raleigh area.
- Enjoy social activities with NC State students.
- Meet and interact with fellow prospective ISE and OR students.
The Benefits
By attending this event, you will:
- Meet, network and interact with current NC State graduate students.
- Talk with the professors and faculty who would teach and advise you.
- Ask all the questions you want to ensure you make the right choice by entering graduate school and/or becoming part of the Wolfpack.
- Experience the NC State campus and see firsthand everything that the university has to offer the students.
Criteria and Application Process
- Have a minimum GPA of 3.25
- Provide: unofficial transcripts, resume, and a brief personal statement
Code of Conduct
- All students are expected to participate in all scheduled visitation activities on the agenda (unless communicated prior to the event).
- All students are expected to communicate with the professors regarding any changes in plans (e.g., they can no longer attend the graduate visitation program).
- Please communicate with the Professors regarding any accommodations in writing, including but not limited to travel arrangements (e.g., has an evening exam and cannot get into Raleigh until late Thursday) and any unexpected events (e.g., must leave early Saturday morning).
The Events
| Event | Description |
|---|---|
| Meet ISE / OR | You will meet ISE department head Julie Swann, ISE Director of Graduate Program Russell King, and Director of the OR program Maria Mayorga. We will introduce the programs to you and you will gain further insights about ISE and OR. |
| Tour Fitts-Woolard Hall | You will be introduced to faculty in our department and get a look into the facilities in which they conduct their research. |
| Research Meet and Greet | You will be able to personally interact with faculty in different focus areas to learn more about their research, as well as with our current graduate students. |
| Application Strategies | You will hear from our graduate program to get the upper hand on how to apply to graduate school and what our graduate school looks like. |
| Interact with the Pack | You may meet various alumni to really see how unique ISE / OR truly is as well as meet our student ambassadors to get a peek into what it's like to be a student at NC State University. |
| Get to Know Raleigh | You will attend a fun outing and learn what Raleigh has to offer! |
Frequently Asked Questions
Absolutely not! The purpose of the event is to learn more about graduate school and the job opportunities that can arise.
Definitely not—we will have other programs represented at various times during the series including Operations Research, manufacturing, and others. You will also learn that Industrial and Systems Engineering is a broad major focused on making or doing things better; graduate students can have backgrounds in engineering, computer science, math, statistics, or other backgrounds. This link provides a complete description of research thrusts, they can be grouped into the areas of Advanced Manufacturing, Health Systems Engineering, Human-Systems Engineering, Supply Chain and Logistics and Systems Analytics and Optimization.
Not at all. You will learn something about applications and admissions to graduate school, which can help you no matter where you go. We think some people may find a good match in our program while we will have helped others decide whether graduate school is right for them.
Students can contact Dr. Karen Chen (kbchen2@ncsu.edu) for questions specific to the ISE Graduate Visitation Program. For general questions relating to ISE’s graduate program, students may contact ise-gradoffice@ncsu.edu.
