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MSE 452Decision Making Under Uncertainty

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 4 of the last 7 terms. Winter 2027: not on the schedule. Spring 2027: schedule not out yet.

This course deals with normative, descriptive, and prescriptive theories and models of decision making under uncertainty. The course focuses on concepts such as risk measures, Bayes theorem, and basic and multi-attribute utility theories. The course uses these concepts to build analytical decision-making models considering the randomness and/or risk-attitude of the decision-makers. Various forms of decision analysis techniques will be covered and typically include, expected utility maximization, the value of information analysis, one/two-way sensitivity analysis, and sequential Bayesian inference. Practical uses and limitations of the models and techniques will be illustrated.

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)
      • MSE251 - Probability and Statistics 1 (0.50)
      • ME202 - Statistics for Engineers (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

None listed.

Leads to

No course lists it as a requisite.

Reviewed on UW Flow

78% liked it56% easy72% useful

From 9 ratings and 4 comments on UW Flow. The most helpful comments, quoted as written, without names. Read them all on UW Flow.

  • Course was pretty chill and lecture prepared you well for assessments. If you did well in stat it will be pretty easy for you.

    Jun 2025 · liked itOn UW FlowRemove this

  • Just attend class and get the problems he does in class.

    Dec 2023 · liked itOn UW FlowRemove this

  • NIce course, a chill TE with vibes of MSCI 431. If you do some study, you should be fine; skippers should come to class because if you're going to skip, dont skip this one

    Aug 2023 · liked itOn UW FlowRemove this

  • A strange course. It teaches you how to make decisions when you are given the probabilities. But talks nothing of how you actually come up with those probabilities.

    May 2016 · liked itOn UW FlowRemove this

Check it elsewhere for Fall 2026

Calendar versions

Undergraduate Calendar