Operations Research Concentration
While classical applied mathematics uses mathematical techniques to solve physical science problems, the areas of applications of operations research are diverse, ranging from business and industry to federal and military operations. Operations research is the mathematical discipline devoted to the study of complex systems through the creation and analysis of mathematical models. By developing and exploring the properties of such models, operations research analysts increase our understanding of both the actual behavior of the system of interest under present conditions and how this behavior could change when circumstances are altered. The goal of operations research is more than the academic study of problems in areas like logistics, scheduling, and decision processes -- usually in an industrial or management context. Most users of operations research methodology are instead committed to improving the system they are investigating: making a transportation network more efficient or increasing the profitability of a manufacturing process, for example.
Because of the interdisciplinary character of the problems operations research addresses, people working in operations research come from diverse educational backgrounds. Decision theorists, economists, management scientists, systems analysts, and systems engineers are frequently found in operations research. The focus of operations research is the mathematical model and the mathematical analysis of its properties and solutions. The student in operations research will find that the demands of modeling and analysis are broad. In addition to the mathematical skills and insight necessary to pose a problem and formulate a model, a student in operations research must possess the computational and statistical knowledge required to test and validate the mathematical model and any solutions derived from it. Such techniques include linear and nonlinear mathematical programming, dynamic methods, numerical and statistical simulation, stochastic processes, queuing theory, and statistical inference. Hence, in the operations research concentration in the Department of Statistical Sciences and Operations Research, you will find yourself taking courses in mathematics, computer science, and statistics as well as in operations research. The specific course requirements appear below. Because of this wide exposure to the different mathematical sciences, you will be prepared for a variety of occupations or for graduate work in the many masters and doctoral programs in operations research.
Historically, jobs in operations research have been closely linked to the defense establishment. Operations research had its formal beginnings during World War II in Great Britain with the development and use of radar in the United States and with the location and detection of enemy submarines. After the war, the methods of operations research spread to defense industries and later to corporations, large and small, involved in nonmilitary activities. Today, jobs in operations research can be found in academic, government, commercial, industrial, and management settings.