University of Southern California Systems Architecting and Engineering The USC Andrew and Erna Viterbi School of Engineering USC
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What is Systems Architecting?
Systems architecting is an interdisciplinary, integrative approach and means to specifying the structure and behavior of an envisioned system. According to the late Dr. Eberhart Rechtin, the father of systems architecting, sytems arctitecting is both art and science. It requires a new way of thinking that capitalizes on associations, exemplars, patterns and metaphors to make the architecting problem tractable.
 
What is Systems Engineering?
Systems Engineering is an interdisciplinary approach and means to enable the realization of successful systems. It focuses on defining customer needs and required functionality early in the development cycle, documenting requirements, then proceeding with design synthesis and system validation while considering the complete problem. It integrates all the disciplines and specialty groups into a team effort forming a structured development process that proceeds from concept to production to operation. Systems Engineering considers both the business and the technical needs of all customers with the goal of providing a quality product that meets the user needs. ~ as defined by the International Council on Systems Engineering (INCOSE)
 
Systems Architecting and Engineering at USC
Recognized worldwide as one of the most out­standing programs available today, USC’s Systems Architecting and Engineering (SAE) program was initiated in 1988 by the late Professor Eberhardt Rechtin, who authored three of the founding texts in the field.
 
USC is an established leader in system architecting and engineering graduate education and research. Currently more than 25 companies are participating in our SAE pro­grams. Six of the active instructors in the SAE curriculum have a combined industrial experience of 190 years. All were senior managers, including 4 vice presidents of major corporations.
 
The Dean of the Viterbi School of Engineering has hailed the graduate program in Systems Architecting and Engineering as a strategic initiative in the school, which is expected to create a formal PhD program in SAE, and possibly, an undergraduate minor. In 2007, the Center for Software Engineering became the Center for Systems and Software Engineering – an organized research unit to provide a mechanism to enhance research and involve related disciplines outside the Viterbi School. This development further strengthens the systems capabilities of SAE.
 
USC is a principal collaborator in the Systems Engineering Research Center (SERC) funded by the Department of Defense.
 
Six of the INCOSE (International Council of Systems Engineering) Fellows are on the faculty of USC, as well as one of the INCOSE Pioneer Awardees – more than any other institution. The Viterbi School’s extraordinary progress has produced a long list of distinguished alumni, including astronaut Neil Armstrong and General Norman Schwarzkopf. Numerous execu­tives of U.S. and foreign technology companies – such as Apple computer co-founder A.C. Markkula; Andrew J. Viterbi, co-­founder and chief technology officer for Qualcomm Inc. in San Diego; and Lily Chiang of Hong Kong based Chen Hsong Holding Co., a multinational producer of specialized machinery – are also alumni
 
The USC Viterbi School’s Systems Architecting and Engineering program is designed to provide graduate engineers and engineering managers with the advanced knowledge and skills necessary for conceptualizing, designing and implementatng complex systems. The emphasis is both on the processes by which complex systems are conceived, planned, designed, built, tested and certified as well as the system itself. The experience gained from he SAE program can be applied to defense, space, aircraft, homeland security, healthcare, and energy grid, transportation and other commercial industries.