Educational Opportunities

Education and Research Training

Educating future professionals in the field of transportation is a vital part of UMTRI's mission. UMTRI is not a degree-granting academic unit, but offers ample transportation-related opportunities to undergraduate and graduate students who are pursuing degrees in a University of Michigan school or college. UMTRI's multidisciplinary research faculty welcomes students interested in becoming transportation practitioners or researchers. Many of UMTRI's faculty members have joint appointments in academic units and/or collaborate on research projects with academic units. UMTRI's faculty also welcomes opportunities to guest lecture in existing courses. The different ways students can interact with and benefit from UMTRI faculty are listed below.

Opportunities for Students

• Class project with an UMTRI faculty member
• Graduate Student Research Assistantship (GSRA)
• Independent study with an UMTRI faculty member
• Internship (summer or otherwise) supervised by an UMTRI faculty member
• Part-time temporary employment
• Research mentoring
• Summer Research Opportunity Program
• UMTRI faculty member on a dissertation committee
• UMTRI faculty member on a Master's thesis committee
• Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program
• Work Study Program

To identify an UMTRI faculty member whose expertise is compatible with your area of study, you can start with the list of researchers with joint academic appointments at the right. You can also click on "Transportation Expertise" from the menu at the left to see which UMTRI researchers are associated with each expertise area.
Contact Dr. Jean T. Shope for further information.

Doctoral Studies Program at UMTRI

In 2006, U-M's Office of the Vice President for Research, in cooperation with UMTRI, initiated a competition for funds to support doctoral students in the conduct of their dissertation research at UMTRI in a transportation-related research discipline involving collaboration of school/college faculty and UMTRI faculty.

The purpose of the Doctoral Studies Program at UMTRI (DSP-UMTRI) has been to increase the opportunity for doctoral students to perform their dissertation research in UMTRI's diverse and dynamic research environment. Additional, but equally important objectives, have been to increase research collaborations between UMTRI faculty and school/college faculty throughout the University of Michigan and to stimulate new research and funding initiatives involving doctoral students and faculty.

Although funds are no longer being awarded (as of early 2008), the work of the most recent awardees continues. Click here for a full list of DSP awards and awardees.

Academic Courses Taught by UMTRI Faculty

• Special Topics in Mechanical Engineering, Automotive Engineering 599
  Thomas Gillespie, Ph.D.
• Automotive Engineering, Mechanical Engineering 458
  Thomas Gillespie, Ph.D.
• Automotive Controls, Mechanical Engineering 461
  Timothy Gordon, Ph.D.
• Ergonomics Laboratory, Industrial and Operations Engineering 334
  Paul A. Green, Ph.D.
• Human Factors in Computer Systems, Industrial and Operations Engineering 436
  Paul A. Green, Ph.D.
• Automotive Human Factors, Industrial and Operations Engineering 491
  Paul A. Green, Ph.D.
• Probability and Statistics for Engineers, Industrial and Operations Engineering 265
  Luis G. Guzman, Ph.D.
• Design and Analysis of Industrial Experiments, Industrial and Operations Engineering 495
  Luis G. Guzman, Ph.D.
• Simulation, Industrial and Operations Engineering 474
  Omer Tsimhoni, Ph.D.

Short Courses Taught by UMTRI Faculty

• Mechanics of Heavy Duty Trucks - Summer Short Course, College of Engineering
  Robert Ervin, M.S., B.M.E.
  Paul Fancher, M.S.E., Instm.E.
  Thomas Gillespie, Ph.D.
  Christopher Winkler, M.S., M.E.
• Six Sigma Training, College of Engineering
  Luis G. Guzman, Ph.D.
  Pat Hammett, Ph.D.
• Human Factors Engineering - Summer Short Course, College of Engineering
  Paul A. Green Ph.D.