Course Prefixes
How Course Prefixes are Used at WPI
Course prefixes are useful because they indicate the subject of a course. Certain distribution requirements may say that you need a class from a certain discipline. For example, any course that begins with the prefix SS, can count towards the Social Sciences requirement.
How Course Prefixes are Written
Course prefixes are usually only written by themselves when discussing distribution requirements. When used in part with course numbers, they are written of the form "CE 3050" or "OBC 2300". There is always a space between the course prefix and course number.
| Course Prefixes | ||
|---|---|---|
| ACC | Accounting | |
| other notes: | formerly MG | |
| AR | Art History | |
| AS | Air Science | |
| other notes: | Air Force ROTC | |
| BB | Biology | |
| BME | Biomedical Engineering | |
| other notes: | formerly BE | |
| BUS | Business | |
| other notes: | proposed as BBL, Business and Business Law | |
| CE | Civil and Environmental Engineering | |
| CH | Chemistry | |
| CHE | Chemical Engineering | |
| other notes: | formerly CM | |
| CP | Cooperative Education | |
| CS | Computer Science | |
| ECE | Electrical and Computer Engineering | |
| other notes: | formerly EE | |
| ECON | Economics | |
| EN | English | |
| ENT | Entrepreneurship | |
| ES | Engineering Science | |
| EX | Exchange Program | |
| FIN | Finance | |
| other notes: | proposed as FEC, Finance and Economics | |
| FP | Fire Protection Engineering | |
| other notes: | graduate level course | |
| FS | Freshman Seminar | |
| other notes: | not restricted to freshmen | |
| GN | German | |
| GOV | Political Science, Government and Law | |
| HI | History | |
| HU | Humanities | |
| ID | Interdisciplinary | |
| IDG | Interdisciplinary (Graduate) | |
| other notes: | graduate | |
| IMGD | Interactive Media and Game Development | |
| IS | International Studies | |
| MA | Math | |
| ME | Mechanical Engineering | |
| MFE | Manufacturing Engineering | |
| other notes: | graduate level course | |
| MIS | Management Information Systems | |
| other notes: | formerly MG | |
| MKT | Marketing | |
| other notes: | formerly MG | |
| ML | Military Leadership | |
| other notes: | ROTC | |
| MME | Mathematics for Educators | |
| other notes: | graduate level course | |
| MTE | Materials Science and Engineering | |
| other notes: | graduate level course | |
| MU | Music | |
| OBC | Organizational Behavior and Change | |
| other notes: | formerly MG | |
| OIE | Operations and Industrial Engineering | |
| other notes: | formerly MG and IE | |
| PE | Physical Education | |
| PH | Physics | |
| PSY | Psychology | |
| PY | Philosophy | |
| RBE | Robotics Engineering | |
| RE | Religion | |
| RH | Rhetoric | |
| SD | System Dynamics | |
| other notes: | Prior to AY2007, SD was exclusively for graduate courses. | |
| SECE | Electrical and Computer Engineering (SIM) | |
| other notes: | courses offered by the School of Industrial Management | |
| SMIS | Management Information Systems (SIM) | |
| other notes: | courses offered by the School of Industrial Management | |
| SOC | Sociology | |
| SOIE | Operations and Industrial Engineering (SIM) | |
| other notes: | courses offered by the School of Industrial Management | |
| SP | Spanish | |
| SS | General Social Sciences | |
| STS | Society/Technology Studies | |
| TH | Theatre | |
| WR | Writing | |
| Historic Course Prefixes | ||
|---|---|---|
| BE | Bio-Medical Engineering | |
| other notes: | now BME | |
| CM | Chemical Engineering | |
| other notes: | now CME | |
| EE | Electrical Engineering | |
| other notes: | now ECE | |
| IE | Industrial Engineering | |
| other notes: | now OIE | |
| MG | Management | |
| other notes: | replaced with ACC, FIN, ENT, MIS, MKT, OBC, OIE | |
| SS | Social Sciences | |
| other notes: | Replaced with ECON, GOV, PSY, SD, SOC, SS, STS | |