A Minor Program in Operations Research is available for Ph.D. students in graduate programs who find it advantageous to include advanced quantitative methods of systems analysis in their program of study and have been approved to do so by their doctoral committee. To qualify for a Minor in Operations Research, students must satisfy the requirements of their Graduate Major Programs, meet the same prerequisites as the Ph.D. dual-title degree, and meet the coursework requirements. Any student wishing to pursue a Minor in OR must fill out the application form found in the Admissions section of the Operations Research website and submit it to the Chair of the Operations Research Program.

Coursework Requirements
The minimum requirements for the Ph.D. with a minor in Operations Research are:

• 6 credits in stochastic processes/statistical methods including a minimum of 3 credits in each of the areas of statistical methods and stochastic processes.
• 6 credits in optimization.
• 3 credits in computational methods.
• 1 credit in the OR 590 Colloquium for each year on campus (up to a maximum of 4).

Check the approved OR classes.

Note: a minimum of 6 credits must be taken at the 500 level. All credit requirements must be taken in addition to the requirements for the graduate major. If the student received a Master’s Minor in OR, the 15 credits taken must be above and beyond those used for the Master’s Minor. However, credits earned in the Master’s program over and above those applied to either the Master’s Minor or Major may be applied to a Minor in the Ph.D. program.

Doctoral Committee
The doctoral committee for a student seeking a Ph.D. with a minor in Operations Research must have at least one member who is a member of the Operations Research faculty (see OR Faculty).