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MSE 431Stochastic Models and Methods

Units
0.50
Faculty
Engineering
Subject
Management Science and Engineering

When it runs

  1. F24
  2. W25
  3. S25
  4. F25
  5. W26
  6. S26
  7. F26
  8. W27
  9. S27

Ran in 3 of the last 7 terms. Winter 2027: scheduled, 2 lecture sections. Spring 2027: schedule not out yet.

Introduction to operations research models and methods for problems with random, stochastic, and probabilistic components. Topics include birth and death processes, branching processes, waiting line models, and Markov decision processes. Applications include the design, modelling, and analysis of service and manufacturing systems, with emphasis on important functions such as queueing, inventory, reliability, equipment replacement, and maintenance.

Prerequisites

  • Complete 1 of the following
    • Must have completed at least 1 of the following:
      • AE224 - Probability and Statistics (0.50)
      • BME213 - Statistics and Experimental Design (0.50)
      • CHE220 - Probability and Statistics (0.50)
      • CIVE224 - Probability and Statistics (0.50)
      • ECE203 - Probability Theory and Statistics 1 (0.50)
      • ENVE224 - Probability and Statistics (0.50)
      • ME202 - Statistics for Engineers (0.50)
      • MSE253 - Probability and Statistics 2 (0.50)
      • MTE201 - Experimental Measurement and Statistical Analysis (0.50)
      • NE215 - Probability and Statistics (0.50)
      • STAT206 - Statistics for Software Engineering (0.50)
      • STAT211 - Introductory Statistics and Sampling for Accounting (0.50)
      • STAT231 - Statistics (0.50)
      • STAT241 - Statistics (Advanced Level) (0.50)
      • SYDE212 - Probability, Statistics, and Data Science (0.50)
    • Must have completed at least 1 of the following:

Antirequisites

  • Complete all of the following
    • Not completed nor concurrently enrolled in any of the following:
      • STAT333 - Stochastic Processes 1 (0.50)
    • Not open to students enrolled in Bachelor of Computer Science or Bachelor of Mathematics programs

Leads to

Winter 2027 sections

Enrolment from UW Open Data, which can trail Quest by up to two days. Instructors and rooms: Schedule of Classes.
SectionClassEnrolledMeets
LEC 00150490 / 105TTh 13:00–14:20
LEC 7012042103 / 9999Online or by arrangement
TUT 10150500 / 105F 12:30–13:20

Reviewed on UW Flow

72% liked it30% easy90% useful

From 25 ratings and 4 comments on UW Flow. The most helpful comments, quoted as written, without names. Read them all on UW Flow.

  • Very interesting course!

    Apr 2026 · liked itOn UW FlowRemove this

  • Pretty interesting concepts. Once you understand the formulation of Markov Chain, the second half of the course is pretty easy. Also, the first half is just review of probability theory and some statistics.

    Apr 2025 · liked itOn UW FlowRemove this

  • Classes felt messy but the content is somewhat applicable. Was worth taking despite the high difficulty

    Mar 2023 · liked itOn UW FlowRemove this

  • Idk if it was the prof or the content but it was hard to understand. Didn't really like it at all

    Sep 2022 · didn’t like itOn UW FlowRemove this

Discussed on r/uwaterloo

One post or comment in 1 thread mentions MSE 431, April 2024 to December 2024. Quoted word for word, newest first; each reply sits under the post and the comment that started its branch. Search r/uwaterloo for newer posts.

Winter 2024

Questions for Management Engineering students: this program or UTSG CS? 1 point, 11 comments

u/KINGBLUE2739046: “- It’s an Engineering workload, it’s a lot better than ECE, much more time to do side projects, almost a joke honestly, other programs will be making fun of you for not being real engineers, no big …”

u/nyephe: “… paste from the MSE 251/253 tutorials but it's never tested I remember Excel being used in MSE 100/131/251/253/331/263/334/431/332/333/343, and this is only up to 3B and excluding TEs”

View on RedditRemove this

Check it elsewhere for Fall 2026

Calendar versions

Undergraduate Calendar