I’m taking calculus 1 now. I like it, but I’ll finish with a B. I’ve heard Calculus 2 is waaay more difficult. The teacher I want to take it with the average class grade is a C. He’s the only decent person at my CC.
So how much calculus knowledge is actually needed for IE? I know every engineering major requires three semesters of calculus and I know other engineering majors use it a ton, but do IE majors use it a ton during school?
I’m trying to figure out if I should take it online with a better teacher to maintain my high GPA. But I’ve heard with online courses (and experienced it…) that you don’t learn it as well. Could someone please help me out? 
There are a wide variety of IE programs. I’ve seen IE programs where calculus seems to be important, and others where it doesn’t. I have a Masters in IE, and don’t remember needing to use any calculus. We did make heavy use of linear algebra and statistics.
@simba9 Thanks for your response! The university I’m applying to doesn’t appear to have statistics as a class requirement. It has cal 1,2,3 and differential equations. Do you think that means it uses more calculus?
Calc 2 is the important class if you need to use calculus at any point in your career. Since IE jobs, not just college programs vary widely in how technical the work is, the better option is to kick up your game and start getting better grades in Calc 1 (study for that final) and in Calc 2 (regardless of the average, there are As and Bs). Yes your university seems to require 4 semesters of Calc and even DiffEQ requires Calc 1. Utilize resources such as study sessions, TA and professor office hours, on-line videos and courses, etc and do lots of problems, maybe more than just the assigned homework.
I don’t hear that you dislike math or have some real difficulties … so this is my advice.
And … engineering courses are much harder than Calc 1 so you need to up your game here anyway … even IE will involve a lot of physics and computational work.
That’s hard to know without seeing all the classes you’re required to take. IE programs differ a lot from school to school, and even within the same school there can be different specialties or tracks within the IE program.
Many science and engineering programs (not just IE) require two or three semesters of calculus, and then never make use of it in any other class. That’s how it worked when I got my undergrad CS degree in 1983. I had to take three semesters of calculus and analytic geometry, yet I’ve never had to write an algorithm that directly implemented a derivative or integral in my professional career. I’ve talked to lots of retired engineers and CS people who have had the same experience.
It is rather likely that the IE curriculum includes IE courses that are calculus-based probability and statistics.
A lot of stuff engineers do already has the calculus baked-in. Even something simple like stress in a beam = Mc/Iy looks like algebra, but the ‘I’, has a basis that requires calculus. Or the time based relationships between distance/velocity/acceleration are really calculus. Just because you don’t use something does not mean you don’t need to understand it.
@simba9 I’m thinking either University of Arkansas or University of Texas at Arlington.
The UTA curriculum doesn’t really say: http://www.uta.edu/engineering/_downloads/degree_plans/2015-ie-f.pdf
Or maybe I just don’t know. Thanks for the help!
I think you’re right @ucbalumnus. The UTA website says engineering probability. Thanks for chiming in!
@DecideSomeHow You’re right! Thanks for the help!
At Purdue grad IE degree there was no calculus per se, but probability / discrete math / optimization / statistics was pretty much in every class. The undergrad program goes thru the calc sequence and they have some calc-based discrete math classes that are not for the faint at heart.
In terms of using it… Some areas of IE are very math heavy so maybe there (optimization and the like). Manufacturing or Human Factors, probably less. Other engineering disciplines do get their money’s worth from Calculus. In Civil Engineering there’s a good number of classes we had to use Calculus (plates & shells, metal structures…) and my EE friends at work use Calculus like it’s going out of style (areas like RF design, DSP…).
Arkansas’ IE program is shown at http://catalog.uark.edu/undergraduatecatalog/collegesandschools/collegeofengineering/industrialengineeringineg/#eightsemesterplantext .
Note the following courses that depend on calculus:
INEG 2313 Applied Probability and Statistics for Engineers I (prereq: Calculus II)
INEG 2333 Applied Probability and Statistics for Engineers II
INEG 2413 Engineering Economic Analysis (prereq: Calculus I)
INEG 3713 Methods and Standards (prereq: INEG 2313)
INEG 3613 Introduction to Operations Research (prereq: Calculus III)
INEG 3623 Simulation (prereq: INEG 2333, INEG 2413)
INEG 4723 Ergonomics (prereq: INEG 2333)
I suspect calculus is required for the above listed classes simply to ensure students have a certain level of mathematical sophistication, rather than calculus concepts being required to understand the material. I’ve had coursework in pretty much everything ucbalumnus listed. While calculus may occasionally be brought up in those classes to make a concept a little clearer (e.g., integration may help a student understand what the area under a probability curve means,) those classes can certainly be taught in a way that doesn’t require calculus.
simba9 - I think you really underestimate what statistics can be and are focused on what you do as a CS person rather than an engineering field like IE … and I don’t think you are writing algorithms or working with hardware … that is likely really different.
Agreed modern software does a lot of the heavy lifting of algorithm solutions … and if you are writing software that is not purely technical … not sure why or how you would use calculus regularly.
Google search results :
https://www.quora.com/How-is-calculus-used-in-statistics
http://www.cengage.com/resource_uploads/downloads/1439049254_242719.pdf
I am sure there are IEs who are on factory floors that do very little calculus based work … but if you are truly into optimization , process engineering (not ChemE but similar resources in product out analysis), and statistical analysis of complex processes and data … yup, you better have some math skills. My graduate statistics for experimenters class did not have tons of integrals … but wow, there was a lot of complex math oriented information to at least be able to understand enough to remember what a p-test vs t-test vs chi whatever …
To clarify - while you could teach all those classes in a way that doesn’t require calculus, a program where 100% of the people taking the class have taken 3 or more semesters of calc and higher math … will likely use calculus or complex math for some parts of the discussion.
Besides - if you are an IE working with other disciplines, it sure is helpful if you can understand basic parts of other engineering disciplines and speak the language of math …
I’ve written lots of algorithms that directly implemented derivatives and integrals … guess we just have different jobs out of the vast number of types of jobs that engineers do in the real world. No employer would ever want to train someone in calc or physics or basic sciences, so therefore college is the time to stock up on skills that you may need. The best approach is to stock up on the skills that match your interests and abilities and then follow that muse in your career, trying to find jobs that push you in the directions you are interested in.
@PickOne1 - Oh, there are definitely IE jobs that use calculus. I just didn’t want people thinking that all IE jobs, or even a majority from what I can tell, make practical use of it. Doesn’t hurt to know it, but it’s not really required for many things. I once worked in a group whose primary task was operations research and computer simulations, and nobody ever did anything requiring calculus.
I’m doing a lot of data science now (my IE degree is actually helping a lot with that,) and have been going back through lots of statistics books. Occasionally they’ll have derivations of formulas in terms of calculus, but not typically. And if I gloss over them, I don’t feel like I’m missing much.
It is pretty typical to shift between more and less technical jobs in any engineering career, even cycle back and forth as opportunities and employer needs change or even to relieve boredom with 10 years of doing the same thing). So I would vote for calculus background just in case you career moves into areas where you need it (either more data science theory or maybe more detailed involvement in say what is being manufactured in a plant). The pallet paper someone sent out does have math in it.
Then again I am a math-oriented person so calculus is a tool I can personally use to understand things. If you were less math-oriented, there are work-arounds and many times there are experts around with way more math backgrounds than I have.
Both the schools you are considering require 3 semesters of calc plus diff eq plus more math, like probability and statistics. Simulation classes at both schools will likely include some differential and integral concepts.
Also, engineering physics, freshman physics 1 and 2 require a good grasp of the calculus in at least calc 1 and 2. Acceleration is the second derivative of position … etc. Many schools are actually pushing off physics 1 until students take calc 1 … or even 2, unless you are an ME or EE.
both schools look really interesting for IE … UTA department includes system engineering as well … I think both would be good places to go … and I think we decided you have math capabilities. Use free tutoring, study groups, do all the homework, take calc in high school or do some self study …
Best wishes for admissions and in your education !
ABET does not require calculus for IE I think beyond 2 semesters … but again, you are limited your skills and also there is always a possibility that you will decide to major in a different kind of engineering.
However, ABET accreditation for any engineering degree program does require at least 1/4 of the course work to be in math and natural science. Two semesters of single variable calculus and two semesters of physics would only be about 1/8 of the total course work, so additional math and/or natural science would have to be added.
I took a two class sequence in Simulation at Purdue - a calculus happy school if there ever was one - and don’t recall we used integration or differentiation, I do not believe we did.The first class was mostly coding simulation algorithms and some theoretical queuing model stuff. The second class was theory, but mostly statistics, probability, and everything random numbers related. Again, no integration or differentiation. Very fun classes - esp the theory class where you learn to evaluate random number algorithms and the like.
ABET requires one year of math and science, which seems to match the common freshman year schedule for all ABET degrees. For ME, they specifically call out multivariate calc and diff EQ, for IE and systems, they do not.
Lots of discussion here, but are there any IE UG programs that do not require more than 2 semesters of calculus or is this mythological ?
If anyone has a lot of time for dull reading, here are the guidelines:
http://www.abet.org/accreditation/accreditation-criteria/criteria-for-accrediting-engineering-programs-2016-2017/#general