Master of Science in Product Development Program (MPD)

MPD Program Background Information

Joint program of Engineering and Business schools comprising:
Local version of MIT's System Design & Management
Best ideas of academia and industry
Focused on the auto industry
Automative case studies
Challenging and rigorous cirriculum
Capstone/thesis project
MPD Association

The Master of Science Product Development (MPD) is a joint program of the College of Business Administration and the College of Engineering & Science at University of Detroit Mercy.  This program was developed in collaboration with three academic institutions: the University of Detroit Mercy, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and the Rochester Institute of Technology; and six industrial partners: Ford, General Motors, IBM, ITT, Polaroid, and Xerox; along with the U.S. Navy and the National Science Foundation.  Naval Postgraduate School, Monterrey, California has now also started offering the MPD program to Navy personnel and Navy contractors.  The principal objective of the MPD program is to enhance the global competitiveness of US industries.  The program is beneficial for both product and manufacturing personnel.

The UDM  Product Development Program, a local version of MIT's System Design and Management Program - Product Development Track, focused specifically on the automobile industry, was launched in Detroit in January 1999.  This program is consistent with the design and management terms, tools, processes and strategies that have evolved through the Center for Innovation Product Development (a National Science Foundation Engineering Research Center at MIT).  At the same time, the UDM program is focused on and responsive to the needs of the automotive industry. Students learn the methods developed at CIPD through their application to cases and projects related to the development of the automobile and major automotive product and manufacturing systems.