You are starting your undergraduate studies at Ben-Gurion University (BGU) of the Negev in the IEM department, with a long-standing tradition of excellence in both teaching and research. You can find information (mostly in Hebrew) about IEM curriculum and procedures at the IEM Department's web site (http://www.ie.bgu.ac.il/iem), the Engineering Faculty's web site (www.eng.bgu.ac.il) and the BGU Information Kiosk (http://cmsprod.bgu.ac.il/units/kiosk). In addition, let me emphasize at the beginning of your studies few critical success factors.
Academics, Ethics, and Community Involvement
You are beginning a challenging and fascinating chapter in your life which you will mold your professional career. However, professionalism in any field is far above and beyond mere knowledge and qualifications; no less important are ethical conduct and interpersonal behavioral, all of which will emerge in several ways.
First, during your studies at BGU you will find yourself under constant pressure of formal and informal tests. Formal examinations will require disciplined study habits and high academic competency, while informal 'tests' - on the part of your fellow students as well as yourself - will challenge and mold your personality.
Second, success in your studies is a personal matter that is greatly affected by the study environment. This environment is comprised not only of the staff and everything else at BGU, but also of your classmates. Thus, the attitude of your and them toward studying will contribute to the quality of learning.
Third, BGU offers a broad variety of community-reach programs, which will allow you to engage in social action and community involvement.
We thus expect you to treat others with honesty and respect under all circumstances, cultivate personal ethics of professional integrity, invest your best efforts in studying, and participate in community reach programs.
Prerequisite Knowledge and Preparation
1. Knowledge work tools. You are required to be competent in the following basic skills: word processing, presentations and spreadsheets. In the first year of studies at IEM, you will deepen your knowledge of these tools.
2. Programming. A programming in the C language course is taught in the first year. Therefore if you who lack sufficient programming background, you are advised to take in the summer prior to entering BGU a programming course (offered, with no credit, at IEM or through the "Mechina" Preparatory Unit of the University).
3. Physics. If you lack proficiency in physics (high school "Bagrut" matriculation), you are required to study in the summer prior to entering BGU or during the first year the courses: Introduction to Physics -1 and Introduction to Physics -2 (offered, with no credit, in the "Mechina" Preparatory Units of the University, preferably during the summer or the first year) Equivalent courses in physics taken in other universities will be recognized.
Structure of the Curriculum
1. Credit Accumulation (Shitat Tzvirah). To enable students at the Faculty of Engineering to study at their own pace, most of the mandatory courses in the curriculum of the IEM Department are offered twice a year, in the Fall Semester (A) and in the Spring Semester (B), facilitating accumulation of credit points.
2. Prerequisites (Drishot Kedem): The logical progression of the curriculum is outlined in the Curriculum according to prerequisite courses. You are permitted to enroll in a course only if you received a passing grade in each and every prerequisite course and it is your responsibility to ensure prior to registering into a course that you meet all prerequisite requirements. If you are not careful and prerequisite requirements are not met, your enrollment will be cancelled retroactively even after you have invested much time, effort and money in the course.
3. Study Pattern (Tavnit Limudim). In order to make it easier for you and allow for flexibility, you will enroll in one of two study patterns which delineate the curriculum from beginning to end. These (Tavnit A and Tavnit B) are posted separately at the Engineering Faculty web site (under the Curriculum page). While identical in terms of course content and prerequisites, the two patterns differ in the order of the courses, timetable and examination dates (posted at the Information Kiosk).
4. Pattern Deviations. All students enroll in one of the two study patterns (A or B) and in most cases adhere to it. Deviations generally occur when students must repeat a course, or desire to study at an accelerated pace (on the basis of vacancies in the desired courses). Please note that any such deviation may cause complications (e.g., inability to meet prerequisite requirements or conflict in examination dates). Upon deviating from your pattern, whether A or B, it is your responsibility to ensure fulfillment of prerequisite requirements and avoidance of clashes in examination dates (for which there might be only imperfect solutions).
Specialization and Tracks
1. Specialization (Hitmachut). At the IEM Department, you can elect one of two specializations: (1) Information Systems and (2) Production Management, or study without any specialization at all. Since courses in each specialization are offered in the third and fourth years, you will have plenty of time to make up your mind.
2. Dual Degree (Toar Kaful). The IEM Department runs a joint program with the Mathematics Department leading to a B.Sc. degree in mathematics in addition to a B.Sc. degree in Industrial Engineering and Management. You have to sign up for both departments. A separate curriculum for this dual degree is posted under the Curriculum page at the Engineering Faculty web site.
3. Excellence Program (Tochnit Mitztainim). The IEM Department encourages outstanding students to join accelerated study tracks towards their Master and Doctoral degrees and conduct research in addition to studying courses.
Academic studies require you to personally assume full responsibility for meeting course requirements, planning in advance, carrying out all assignments on time, and working in an orderly manner. When in need, you will be able to turn to staff members whose job it is to assist you. Please be sure to initiate requests for help as early as possible and cooperate fully with the assisting staff member
I wish you success and enjoyment at the IEM Department!
Professor Gad Rabinowitz - Chair
Department of Industrial Engineering and Management