The System specialization in product development (PDS) is best suited for students with a B.S. degree and/or work experience from an engineering system-related field, such as industrial engineering or engineering management. A student who holds an undergraduate degree in business who has extensive work experience in new product development within an engineering organization may also be qualified for this area of specialty (AOS) upon faculty consent.

The PDS curriculum offers more courses that relate to the management of product development activities, systems, projects, and teams. It is mainly based on the engineering management and engineering economy curriculum from the Daniel J. Epstein Industrial and Systems Engineering Department, supplemented by relevant courses from the Marshall School of Business, if necessary.

Students in the System specialization can choose those required courses and technical electives from the Technology specialization area as their general elective courses, giving them the opportunities to broaden their knowledge. Limited course credits from other institutions can be accepted as general electives upon faculty consent.

A specialization in System in MSPDE should prepare students who are interested in developing a career as a product development manager or a team leader in a new product development team.