PROGRAM BACKGROUND
Year human factors/ergonomics program was established:
Contact person for more information, including applications:
Michael Granaas, University of South Dakota,
414 E. Clark St., Vermillion, SD 57069-2390;
605/658-3700; Michael.Granaas@usd.edu
Catalog (free):
Graduate School, University of South Dakota, Vermillion, SD 57069-2390
Human factors/ergonomics graduate degrees offered:
Goals, objectives, and emphasis of the program:
- The Ph.D. program is designed to provide a strong theoretical base that can be readily applied to various working environments and to prepare students for careers in business, industry, and government. Apprenticeship-style training combines classroom instruction in core areas of human factors with individualized development of competency in research and problem-solving.
- The MA program combines classroom training with a required internship preparing students to work in industry or the military as UX specialists.
Number of degrees granted during last 3 years:
Can students attend part-time?
Are required courses offered through distance learning?
Does the university have an HFES student chapter?
APPLICATION PROCESS
Application deadline:
Priority Deadline: December 31; Final Deadline: On a space available basis, four weeks before semester begins.
ADMISSION REQUIREMENTS
Minimum requirements:
- GPA: 3.00
- GRE: Waived for Fall 2023 admissions
- Recommended: Introductory Psychology, Experimental Psychology, Statistics, Calculus, Computer Programming
Importance of other criteria as admission factors
- Research: medium
- Work experience: not required, high if it exists
- Letters: high
- Interview: medium
Tuition and Fees:
- Resident & WRGP: $3,559.05
- MN Resident: $4,896.45
- Non-Resident: $6,384.15
- Assistantship includes reduced tuition, see: https://www.usd.edu/Academics/Graduate-Programs/~/link.aspx?_id=98F327F6D593465197F6F45F2C6823DA&_z=z
ADMISSIONS
Number of students applying to the human factors/ergonomics program last year:
Number of students accepted into the program last year:
Number of students entering the program last year:
Anticipated number of openings per year for the next two years:
FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE
Percentage of students in program receiving financial assistance:
Amount received per year:
Types of assistance available:
Teaching Assistanship (tuition reduced), research assistanship (tuition reduced)
When should students apply for financial assistance?
All admitted Ph.D. track students are considered for assistantships at time of admission.
DEGREE REQUIREMENTS
Graduate degrees offered:
Number of units required:
- PhD: 84 units
- MA: 36 units
Exams required:
- MA: Oral defense thesis
- PhD: 12 hours written exam, oral defense dissertation
Research required:
Ph.D. track requires MA thesis and Ph.D. dissertation
Practical experience required:
MA track requires 1-semester internship/practicum
Typical number of years required to obtain degree:
Is there a non-thesis option?
CURRICULUM
Required Courses (PhD):
Research Methods and Statistics I and II 6cr, Sensation and Perception 3cr, Learning, Memory, and Cognition 3cr, Human Performance 3cr, Human Engineering 3r, Seminar in Human Factors Psychology 1cr (3cr required), Experimental Methods and Instrumentation 3cr, Multivariate Statistics 3cr, Masters Thesis 6cr, Masters Thesis 6cr, Dissertation 15cr minimum
Required Courses (MA Track, all 3cr unless stated otherwise):
Research Methods and Statistics I and II 6cr, Sensation and Perception 3cr, Learning, Memory, and Cognition 3cr, Human Performance 3cr, Human Engineering 3r, Seminar in Human Factors Psychology 1cr (3cr required), Experimental Methods and Instrumentation 3cr, Multivariate Statistics 3cr, Masters Thesis 6cr, Masters Thesis 6cr, Dissertation 15cr minimum
Number of courses outside department that are required:
Number of courses outside department that are recommended:
Average or typical class size in a required course:
RESEARCH/TEACHING OPPORTUNITIES:
Research and support facilities available to students in the program:
Facilities are being renovated, available January of 2024. Six dedicated laboratory spaces and one maker space supporting multiple research areas and projects.
Teaching opportunities available to students in the program:
Opportunities are available both as lab and lecture instructors.
Current research activities and projects being carried out by program faculty and/or students:
Information maintenance across time and in the face of interfering tasks, processes involved in creating stable working memory representations, virtual environments for education, expert performance and deliberate practice, training activities for older adults, neuro-correlates of mental workload, acoustic warning signals.
STUDENT STATISTICS
Current number of active students in program, by gender:
Current number of first-year students in program:
Based on current graduate students in the program, the mean score on admission tests and undergraduate GPA by degree being sought are:
- GRE: N/A
- GPA: 3.52 (PhD)
- 3.78 MA
Of the number of those graduating in the past year, what percentage gained employment in...:
Industry: 100% |
FACULTY
Jan Berkhout, HFES Emeritus Member. Specializations: vision, safety, psychomotor performance
Michael Granaas, HFES Member. Specializations: Virtual Environments, Quantitative Methods.
Doug Peterson, HFES Member. Specializations: Usability and User Experience, Aviation Psychology, Neuro-Ergonomics
Timothy Ricker, HFES Member. Specializations: Working Memory, Attention & Multitasking, Vision
JongSung Yoon, Specializations: Development and Neural Mechanism of Expertise, Cognitive Aging, Human Factors and Older Adults
[Updated June 2022]